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Tokyo dream over for ex-Hockeyroos skipper

3 minute read

Star goalkeeper Rachael Lynch has won back her Hockeyroos spot, but former captain Georgina Morgan has been controversially left in the cold.

The Olympic hopes of Georgina Morgan are over after the former Hockeyroos skipper was controversially snubbed yet again.

Hockeyroos players threatened to strike late last year when 27-year-old Morgan and 2019 FIH goalkeeper of the year Rachael Lynch were left off the 2021 contract list.

The pair successfully appealed that decision, and the new four-person selection panel announced on Friday that Lynch has been reinstated in an expanded squad of 27 that will vie for the 16-person Olympic team.

Queensland striker Savannah Fitzpatrick, who has made 60 international appearances, was also a late inclusion alongside Lynch.

But there was no room for Morgan, who is considered one of the best defenders in the world, and was one of three co-captains to stand down last year amid the ongoing crisis within the elite women's hockey set-up.

It's understood that Morgan and Lynch had raised some of the concerns about the player group to team management last year before being overlooked for a 2021 contract.

"The selection period for these athletes included the training camp in Darwin, a number of intra-squad matches and performance in our daily training environment," new Hockeyroos coach Katrina Powell said in a statement.

"Across the duration Rachael (Lynch) has shown herself to be up to international standard and has been selected on her performance in this training block.

"Savannah (Fitzpatrick) played really well in the five intra-squad games and proved herself to be a constant goal-scoring threat in the penalty circle."

"Sadly for Georgina, she has missed out on this occasion."

The Hockeyroos have been in turmoil for years now, with a recent independent review finding a dysfunctional culture existed in their set-up.

Hockey Australia high performance manager Toni Cumpston quit in January after losing the support of the player group and the Hockey Australia board, while coach Paul Gaudoin resigned in March immediately after the release of the independent report.

The Kookaburras and Hockeyroos will end their 14-month drought of international games when they take on New Zealand in Palmerston North in a four-match series starting on May 27.

Australia's women's and men's Olympic teams are scheduled to be announced on June 14 in Perth.

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