Undated image of Eire ladies’s hockey crew. X/@irishhockey
New Zealand’s ladies’s hockey crew on Monday formally withdrawn from the upcoming season of the FIH Professional League, paving the way in which for Eire to take part within the marquee occasion.
The Worldwide Hockey Federation (FIH) confirmed the event, stating that New Zealand declined the invitation to compete within the elite league, regardless of being the champions of the final FIH Nations Cup.
In accordance with FIH guidelines, the winner of the Nations Cup is granted computerized qualification for the following version of the Professional League.
Nonetheless, if the champion crew is unable or unwilling to take part, the runner-up is obtainable the slot. As per this regulation, Eire who completed second within the Nations Cup, will now take New Zealand’s place within the ladies’s Professional League.
The explanation behind New Zealand’s withdrawal has not but been disclosed. In the meantime, uncertainty additionally looms over New Zealand’s participation within the males’s FIH Professional League.
Whereas there was no official affirmation from the FIH, hypothesis is rising that the New Zealand males’s crew might also choose out of the event.
If New Zealand’s males’s crew withdraws, the door might open for Pakistan, the runner-up of the Males’s Nations Cup, to take part within the Professional League.
The FIH has acknowledged that New Zealand Hockey has requested time till July 21 to finalise its resolution relating to the boys’s crew and added that New Zealand is presently assessing all elements earlier than making a proper announcement.
For the unversed, the Nations Cup closing, held in Malaysia, noticed New Zealand defeat Pakistan 6-2 to safe the championship and initially qualify for the elite event.
