The match schedule for the women's Samsung Hockey World Cup Qualifier has been released.
The qualifier will be played in Rome, Italy, from 25 April-6 May, with 12 teams competing for the remaining five places at the Samsung Hockey World Cup in Madrid, Spain, later this year.
As with the men's BDO Hockey World Cup Qualifier, teams have been split into two Pools of six based on the Sahara WorldHockey Team Rankings, with China and New Zealand the top seeds in their respective groups.
Each team will play the others in their Pool once before the classification and playoff matches. The top five teams will earn a spot at the 12th staging of the women's World Cup. All teams will participate on the opening day of the tournament, before the Pools alternate match days until the end of the preliminary rounds.
The top two teams in each Pool at the completion of the round robin phase will earn a spot at the World Cup, with the remaining berth to be decided in the fifth place playoff on the final day.
China will open the tournament against Scotland and should have little trouble finishing in the top two of their Pool. Based on the world rankings, Japan and England are the strongest competitors for the other qualifying spot Pool A.
New Zealand, Korea and USA are the fancied trio in Pool B. The Black Sticks' greatest threat should come from Korea, who they have replaced in the field for the Rabo Hockey Champions Trophy in Amstelveen, Netherlands, this year.
Home team Italy were New Zealand's Achilles heel towards the end of 2005, with a pair of victories giving them a tremendous boost in their quest to qualify for World Cup for the first time since 1976.
Pool A: China, England, France, Japan, Scotland, Ukraine
Pool B: Azerbaijan, Ireland, Italy, Korea, New Zealand, USA
The Samsung Hockey World Cup will be played in Madrid, Spain, from 27 September-8 October this year. Seven teams have already confirmed their participation ÔÇô Argentina, Australia, Germany, India, Netherlands, South Africa and hosts Spain.
