With summer holidays coming to a close, things have been getting busy for our UNSW elite athletes. Let's check in with them as they been smashing sixes, scoring goals and hitting the gym.

CRICKET

UNSW Science student Carly Leeson had a sensational game in the Women's National Cricket League this week. Although her ACT Meteors team weren't able to get the win against the NSW Breakers, Carly put up a strong fight, coming in number eight when her team was in crisis and top scored with 56 from 63 balls. She then took the important wicket of Breakers captain Alyssa Healy, who was looking dangerous on 34 to give her team a shot at winning the game. Although they weren't able to come away with the win in the end, it was an impressive performance from the young player, finishing with the best performance for her team with the bat and ball. Her team will play next against Western Australian on 4 February in Canberra.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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HOCKEY

UNSW Business School student Tim Brand has been working hard in preparation for the Kookaburras' first match of the 2020 FIH Pro League. As the defending champions, they will be the team that everyone wants to beat and will need to be on top of their game to secure the back-to-back championships. Tim finished 2019 in excellent form, helping his NSW Pride team to the premiership in the new national league, Hockey One, scoring three goals in their 8-3 win over Brisbane. The team has been preparing in Sydney all week and will play two games against Belgium this weekend - at 6:30pm on Saturday and 5:30pm on Sunday - both at the Sydney Olympic Park Hockey Centre.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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NETBALL

Coming into her second year at the Giants, UNSW Law/Psychology student Matilda McDonell has been working hard in preseason with her team. From gym sessions to courtwork, the team is looking fit and ready for the upcoming preseason tournament. They will hope to improve on their Super Netball finish in 2020 after missing the finals by the narrowest of margins in 2019.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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RUGBY

UNSW Business School student Henry Hutchison is getting Tokyo ready with the Australian Rugby 7s team as they prepare for their Olympic journey. After a disappointing finish in Rio, the Australians will be desperate to prove themselves on the world stage this August. With the team now officially qualified for the Olympics, they are training hard to put themselves in the best position to win a medal. Meanwhile in the 15s, UNSW's 2019 Indigenous Athlete of the Year Triston Reilly and 2019 Blues award winner Ned Hanigan are deep into preseason with the NSW Waratahs. The start of the season is fast approaching with the Waratahs' first game against the Crusaders in Nelson on Saturday 1 February.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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ATHLETICS

A number of our student athletes are working on their own Tokyo ambitions at the moment, with Law student Georgia Winkcup, Science student Jessica Thornton and Arts student John Gikas all in the mix to qualify for the Australian athletics team for the Olympics. Georgia is looking to qualify for the 3000m steeplechase event, while Jess is looking to the 4x400m relay team, and John is aiming for the 200m and 400m events.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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WATER POLO

A number of our water polo players are working hard for inclusion in the Australian teams for the Olympics. Amy Ridge, Nathan Power and Andrew Ford are all ticking boxes on the selectors' lists - hopefully they can tick enough to make it into the final 22 (11 women and 11 men) that will be on the plane to Tokyo. A recent series of friendlies against the US were promising for both teams, with the women's team breaking a 69-game winning streak by the US over Australia but ultimately losing the series 2-1. The men's team came away 2-1 winners in the series. Nathan was thrilled with the result.

"It feels really good… I mean playing in front of a crowd like this it’s amazing, probably some of the best supporters in Australia and to be able to play under this atmosphere while you have a bit of pressure, you can really feel the atmosphere of the game, and that’s really important especially for our preparation," he told the Australian Olympic Committee. "We play these official matches, and have a big crowd to feel that pressure and to get a win in that pressure, it’s really promising for the team.The US is just like us. They’re a hard-working team, so to get these strong, hard, hit-outs through the course of the week, it’s really, really valuable for our team."

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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