Right: Hockey sensation Chris Ciriello will stop at nothing to make the Australian side for August’s Beijing Olympic Games.By Marc McGowan
ENDEAVOUR Hills hockey prospect Chris Ciriello is a young man in a hurry.
Not content with being considered the country’s next great full-back, Ciriello, 22, intends on making the Australian squad for August’s Beijing Olympic Games.
Fresh from debuting at senior level for his country at the Five Nations men’s hockey tournament in South Africa last month, Ciriello is setting his expectations high.
“You can’t hope for anything better than playing for your country,” he said.
“As of this year, a lot of guys will retire. They’re 28 or 29 and a lot go out at that age, but I don’t want to have to wait.
“If I get the chance, I’ll take it and go for it.”
Australia won the Five Nations event with a 3-2 grand final victory over rival Spain, avenging a loss by the same score in the preliminary matches.
Ciriello played in each of Australia’s five games throughout the tournament, scoring a goal from a penalty corner against Holland.
It was his penchant for goalscoring during the Australian Institute of Sport’s (AIS) European tour in September, where he nailed 12 goals in 10 matches, that earned him a position in the team.
“During the AIS tour, I played the majority of it as the starting full-back and I was happy and surprised with how well I did,” Ciriello said.
“We had a big, hard year of training in Western Australia (where the AIS’s hockey program is based).”
But nothing could prepare Ciriello for what to expect at the Five Nations.
“The intensity and the quality of the competition was a lot higher and the basic skills were a lot better than what I was used to,” the Victorian Vikings star said.
“I probably spent the first match getting used to the speed, but once you get into the flow of things it’s just another game.”
Ciriello’s concentration now turns to the national championships at Canberra Hockey Centre, starting on 25 February.
Although he will be putting his Olympic dreams on the line, Ciriello is more interested in team success.
“I have more of a focus on playing the team thing and then (the national selectors will) look at you amongst the mix,” he said.
“To me, it is also better if you win more.
“We’ll play as well as we can and, from a personal view, with the players we have got, we can definitely do pretty well and be one of the teams to beat.”
Victoria finished third at the national championships last year behind Tasmania and Queensland and Ciriello expects those two states to be frontrunners again.
The selectors will choose an initial squad after the tournament before whittling it down to the final 24 players in July.
“I’m an outsider to make the Olympic squad because of my age and the age of the other guys that play my position,” Ciriello said.
“They’re 29, 30, 31 and I’m 22, so that’s a fair age jump.
“There are five spots for full-backs in the squad of 24 and they’ve already given out three of the spots.”
Picture: Stewart Chambers.
