Only days after learning she would make her national debut with the Hockeyroos, 16 year old Georgia Nanscawen has received a further endorsement of her potential, today named in the 24 player 2009 Junior Women's World Cup Squad.
From this squad a team will be selected to compete at the 2009 Junior World Cup in Boston, USA from 4-16 August.
Demonstrating the youthful nature of the current national Hockeyroos squad, which was announced three weeks ago, the Junior World Cup Squad includes six Hockeyroos.
In addition to Nanscawen, Hockeyroos Casey Eastham, Anna Flanagan, Emily Hurtz, Heather Langham and Danielle Schubach have been named in the Junior World Cup squad.
Of particular interest is the inclusion of 20 year old Casey Eastham. Having found herself as the youngest member of the Hockeyroos for many years, Eastham now has a role reversal as she becomes the most experienced member of the Junior World Cup squad.
Having competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics as a 19 year old, Eastham has been identified by Hockeyroos coach Frank Murray as having the potential to one day become an elite player on the world stage.
ÔÇ£There is no doubt that she has the ability to one day become one of the top players in the world. At such a young age she has already gained a lot of valuable experience and her inclusion in this squad will allow her to develop her leadership abilities,ÔÇØ said Murray.
The youngest member of the Junior World Cup squad is Tasmanian Nina Khoury at 16 years of age - 10 months younger than Nanscawen. Khoury, a quality athlete who formerly held a tennis scholarship with the Tasmanian Institute of Sport, has now decided to concentrate on hockey.
Another notable inclusion is that of Western Australia's Kate Denning, daughter of 1988 Seoul Olympic gold medalist, Elspeth Denning.
Women's Junior Coach Katrina Powell says she believes the squad is well prepared for the Junior World Cup, with nine of the 24 players having competed in both the 2009 Australian Youth Olympic Festival and Junior World Cup Qualifier in recent months.
ÔÇ£We have recently exposed several players to high pressure tournaments in order to prepare them for what they can expect at the Junior World Cup. With this in mind, the players have preformed quite well at these tournaments, and I believe we have had a great build up to the event which will continue as we approach August,ÔÇØ said Powell.
With the average age of the squad 19 years and one month, the squad currently has four players (Anna Flanagan, Nina Khoury, Georgia Nanscawen and Jade Warrender) who are young enough to qualify for the next Junior World Cup in 2013.
Team Australia: Catriona Bailey-Price, Hannah Cohen, Paige Collins, Kate Denning, Jill Dwyer, Casey Eastham, Anna Flanagan, Bianca Greenshields, Teagan Holcroft, Marnie Hudson, Carla Hunter, Emily Hurtz, Kate Jenner, Nina Khoury, Heather Langham, Emily Lawson, Tamsin Lee, Georgia Nanscawen, Emma Pearce, Danielle Schubach, Jade Warrender, Hollie Webster, Ashleigh Wells, Emily Wilson.
Source: Hockey Australia
