Hockey: Ehren Hazell named in 2022 National Men's Development Squad

Announcing the 20-strong squad, which was finalised following the recent Domestic Series, Kookaburras head coach Colin Batch laid down the challenge to the players - opportunities will present themselves so continue to improve.

Batch sees the NDS as an important stepping stone to the Kookaburras, and with the lack of opportunities over the past two years due to COVID, he has every intention of providing this NDS group with the chance to show their potential and demonstrate their capability at the elite level.

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"This was an interesting selection for us.

"We are thinking ahead of who from the NDS could take the next step," Batch said.

"There will be enough opportunity for these players to develop and show that they have the quality and skill to play for the Kookaburras.

"We want to give players an opportunity and we want to see constant improvement."

"We are looking forward to assessing these players during the year with Visiting Athlete Agreement opportunities and then watching them perform in the Sultana Bran Hockey One League to see who could break into the Kookaburras squad."

"There are a host of players who have come from the Junior (under-21) squad so we want to give them an opportunity to show us what they've got."

In the immediate term, the players will continue to train and develop at their home National Training Centre (NTC) under the guidance of National Pathways Program coaches.

2022 Men's National Development Squad: Hayden Beltz (TAS), Jonathan Bretherton (VIC), Luca Brown (QLD), Liam Flynn (WA), Michael Francis (QLD), Gobin Gill (TAS), Fred Gray (SA), Sam Gray (NSW), Anand Gupte (ACT), Tom Harvie (WA), Ehren Hazell (NSW), Sam McCulloch (TAS), Mitch Nicholson (QLD), Daine Richards (NSW), Joel Rintala (QLD), Ben Staines (ACT), Jake Staines (ACT), Christian Starkie (WA), Damon Steffens (VIC), Ash Thomas (NSW).