Ireland squad named for men's Olympic qualifiers

Ireland head coach Mark Tumilty has named his squad for next month's Olympic hockey qualifiers.

The qualifying tournament which will take place in Valencia, Spain from 13-21 January marks the final chance for men's teams to reach next summer's Paris 2024 Games.

The Irish women's side will also be in Valencia for qualifiers, with Sean Dancer to name his squad at the end of December.

The Ireland men's team, who are ranked 13th in the world, are in Pool A against the second-ranked Belgium as well as Japan (15) and Ukraine (29).

The top two from Pool A as well as Pool B advance to the last-four, with the semi-final winners booking their placess at the Games.

Losing semi-finalists will meet in a third-place play-off to decide the final team to qualify.

After announcing his 18-player squad, Tumilty said: "It has been a tough selection process, and I feel for those players that have not been selected.

"I am very pleased with the squad selected and feel that if we can produce our best hockey we have an opportunity to achieve our objectives.

"This is the most experienced squad selected in recent years and I feel that experience will be vital in Valencia. I look forward to finalising our preparation over the next few weeks, before flying to Valencia for a week's training before the tournament starts. It is a great challenge for this group of players but one I look forward to seeing them embrace."

Ireland squad: David Harte (GK), Jaime Carr (GK), Tim Cross, Lee Cole, Peter McKibbin, Shane O'Donoghue, Kyle Marshall, Luke Madeley, Sean Murray, Michael Robson, Jonny Lynch, Sam Hyland, Nick Page, Daragh Walsh, Johnny McKee, Jeremy Duncan, Ben Walker, Matty Nelson.