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White puts family ahead of Kookaburras

Kookaburras player Tristan White has withdrawn from the squad ahead of the World Cup in India due to family commitments.

Tristan White
Tristan White has withdrawn from the Kookaburras squad ahead of the World Cup. (AAP)

Kookaburras defender Tristan White has put family first and withdrawn from the squad ahead of the 2018 Hockey World Cup.

The 102-cap veteran says the decision to step away, effective immediately, comes after he was unable to commit to the squad's preparation for the end-of-year tournament.

"Given that I've recently become a father, my goalposts have shifted and I want to spend as much time as possible with my family," he said.

"The Kookaburras have been and still are very important to me, however I am at a point where I am not able to meet all of the rigours that are involved with being in the Kookaburras squad leading into a World Cup."

White and his family are based in Wollongong, the other side of the country from Perth where the Kookaburras' training program runs.

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The squad will be based there ahead of the World Cup, scheduled to run from November 28 to December 16 in Bhubaneswar, India.

The 28-year-old stressed he hadn't retired from international competition and hoped to return to play for the Kookaburras in the future.

Coach Colin Batch said the side would continue to assess White's performance and would consider him for future selection if his situation were to change.

"We understand Tristan's decision was a difficult one but made for the right reasons," he said.


2 min read

Published

Source: AAP


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