Margaret River’s Aran Zalewski, Dardanup’s Jake Harvie feature in Kookaburras’ dominant 4-1 Test series win

Ahead of the 2023 FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup in January, the Kookaburras have continued to show they are a force to be reckoned with after knocking off India 4-1 in a recent Test series. Margaret River’s Aran Zalewski and Dardanup’s Jake Harvie featured in the Kookaburras’ five-match Test series against India, which took place at Adelaide’s MATE Stadium between November 26 and December 4. The Test series marked the first time the Kookaburras had played in Adelaide in 13 years and the first matches for the world No.1 ranked team since winning gold at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. After getting off to a strong start with a 5-4 win, the Kookaburras celebrated co-captain Eddie Ockenden’s 400th international cap during the second match in style with a 7-4 victory. A strong effort from Harvie during the second match earned him player of the match. Zalewski made an impact in the third match, putting the Kookaburras in front two minutes into the second half with just his left hand on the stick, from a perfectly directed drag flick from Jeremy Hayward, but India prevailed 4-3 to keep the series alive. However, the Kookaburras quickly bounced back and ran away with the series winning 5-1 in match four and 5-4 in match five. In match five, Zalewski helped the Kookaburras to a tw0-goal lead just before half-time with a shot through the legs of Bahadur Pathak. Zalewski went on to be named player of the series.