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The squads for the World Cup have been announced - all sixteen of them, as they get into a state of battle readiness for the final onslaught. How do they stack up? Let's take a close look at all four pools ahead of the biggest hockey extravaganza of the year.
POOL A: Argentina, France, New Zealand, Spain
ARGENTINA (WR #2)
The Olympic Champions are heavily dependent on their one-man goal-machine Gonzalo Peillat, and why not? Peillat was the highest scorer at three of the recent biggies - the 2014 World Cup (10 goals), the 2016 Rio Olympics (11 goals), and the 2018 Champions Trophy (6 goals). The Los Leones also have veterans Matias Paredas and Lucas Vila to fire them in from open play.
HEAD COACH: Germán Orozco
Goalkeepers: Juan Manuel Vivaldi, Tomás Santiago
Gonzalo Peillat, Pedro Ibarra, Juan Ignacio Gilardi, Ignacio Ortiz, Juan Martín López, Matías Rey, Lucas Rossi, Agustín Bugallo, Nicolás Cicileo, Tomás Bettaglio, Matías Paredes, Agustin Mazzilli, Lucas Vila, Maico Casella, Lucas Martínez, Joaquín Menini
SPAIN (WR #8)
Xavi can prove to be quite a handful in the attacking circle while Sergi Enrique and goalkeeper Quico Cortes who were part of Spain's silver-medal winning squad of Beijing 2008 will be the key for the Red Sticks in their battle for the Copa Del Mundo.
HEAD COACH: Fred Soyez
Goalkeepers: Quico Cortes, Mario Garin
Alejandro de Frutos, Albert Beltrán, Álvaro Iglesias, Diego Arana, Enrique González de Castejón, Ignacio Rodriguez, Marc Sallés, Marc Boltó, Marc Serrahima, Miquel Delàs, Pau Quemada, Pepe Romeu, Ricardo Santana, Sergi Enrique, Vicenç Ruiz, Xavier Lleonart
NEW ZEALAND (WR #9)
The Black Sticks have what it takes to upset the best of teams on their day - a wealth of experience in their ranks with Shea McAleese and Arun Panchia to control the midfield, Hugo Inglis and Jared Panchia to strike swiftly, and Kane Russell to power in the short corners.
HEAD COACH: Darren Smith
Goalkeepers: Richard Joyce, George Enersen
Cory Bennett, Marcus Child, Hugo Inglis, Stephen Jenness, Dane Lett, Shea McAleese, George Muir, Dominic Newman, Jared Panchia, Arun Panchia, Hayden Phillips, Nick Ross, Kane Russell, Aidan Sarikaya, Blair Tarrant, Nick Woods.
FRANCE (WR #20)
The Genestet brothers (Hugo and Tom) have hockey running in their blood with 315 international caps between them, but watch out for Victor Charlet whenever Les Blues earn a PC as he can be just as good as the best in the business.
HEAD COACH: Jeroen Delmee
Goalkeepers: Artur Thieffry, Corentin Saunier
Pieter van Straaten, Tom Genestet, Hugo Genestet, Blaise Rogeau, Victor Lockwood, Charles Masson, Nicolas Dumont, Gaspard Baumgarten, Francois Goyet, Cristoforo Peters-Duetz, Jean-Baptiste Forgues, Etienne Tynevez, Victor Charlet, Aristide Coisne, Maximillien Branicki, Timothee Clement
POOL B:: Australia, England, Ireland, China
AUSTRALIA (WR #1)
Except, perhaps, a drag-flicker of the caliber of Chris Ciriello, the World Champions have it all - Daniel Beale and Trent Mitton have been in fine form. Jake Harvie earned the Best Rising Player Award in the Champions Trophy while goalkeeper Tyler Lovell was at his superlative best in the final at Breda. With veterans like Ockenden and Zalewski manning the midfield, the Aussies look as solid as ever.
HEAD COACH: Colin Batch
Goalkeepers: Andrew Charter, Tyler Lovell
Daniel Beale, Timothy Brand, Tom Craig, Matthew Dawson, Blake Govers, Jake Harvie, Jeremy Hayward, Tim Howard, Trent Mitton, Eddie Ockenden, Flynn Ogilvie, Matthew Swann, Corey Weyer, Jake Whetton, Dylan Wotherspoon, Aran Zalewski
ENGLAND (WR #7)
When Barry Middleton takes the field at Bhubaneswar, it will be the fourth World Cup appearance for the 34-year-old midfielder who is still going strong. Adam Dixon continues to defend as tidily as ever at 32, while another veteran George Pinner won the Best Goalkeeper Award as the Azlan Shah Cup earlier this year. Sam Ward can be lethal in opposition territory while Harry Martin and Ian Sloan have pivotal roles in the midfield.
HEAD COACH: Danny Kerry
Goalkeepers: George Pinner, Harry Gibson.
Adam Dixon, Liam Sanford, Mark Gleghorne, Jack Waller, Michael Hoare, Luke Taylor, Harry Martin, David Ames, Ian Sloan, Barry Middleton, Zach Wallace, James Gall, Phil Roper, David Condon, Will Calnan, Sam Ward, Brendan Creed, Rhys Smith
IRELAND (WR #10)
A blend of youth and experience is the hallmark of Cox's side with goalkeeper David Harte and defenders Conor Harte and Paul Gleghorne forming an experienced defensive unit. Shane O'Donoghue finds the back of the net consistently, and Ireland can be tough to beat for both neighbors England and defending champions Australia.
HEAD COACH: Alexander Cox
Goalkeepers: David Harte, David Fitzgerald
Jonathan Bell, Matthew Bell, Luke Madeley, Chris Cargo, Matthew Nelson, Alen Sothern, Eugene Magee, Kirk Shimmins, Shane O'Donoghue, Sean Murray, Mitch Darling, Michael Robson, Daragh Walsh, Paul Gleghorne, Cornor Harte, Jeremey Duncan, Lee Cole, Stuart Loughrey
CHINA (WR #17)
Powered by an eminently successful South Korean coach who knows precisely what it takes to perform on the big stage, the Chinese will be making their first-ever appearance in a Men's World Cup as the highest-ranked team from last season's HWL (which did not already qualify).
HEAD COACH: Kim Sang-Ryul
Goalkeepers: Ao Zhiwei, Wang Caiyu,
Guo Xiaoping, Guan Quyang, Ao Suozhu, E Wenhui, Ao Yang, Meng Dihao, Su Jun, Meng Nan, Su Wenlin, Su Lixing, Du Chen, Du Talake, Guo Zixiang, E Wenlong, Ao Weibao, Guo Jin
POOL C: Belgium, India, Canada, South Africa
BELGIUM (WR #3)
The Red Lions may not have been at their very best at the Champions Trophy - but are perfectly capable of making it all the way to the top at Bhubaneswar. Vincent Vanasch in goal has stood like a rock for the Olympic silver-medalists aided by an equally solid defence with the likes of van Doren, Boccard, and Loick Luypaert. John Domen controls the midfield traffic with aplomb while Tom Boon and Cedric Charlier can rip apart the opposition defence almost at will.
HEAD COACH: Shane McLeod
Goalkeepers: Vincent Vanasch, Loic Van Doren
Arthur De Sloover, Arthur Van Doren, Loïck Luypaert, Alexander Hendrickx, Gauthier Boccard, Emmanuel Stockbroekx, Simon Gougnard, John-John Dohmen, Victor Wegnez, Felix Denayer, Sébastien Dockier, Cédric Charlier, Tom Boon, Thomas Briels, Florent van Aubel, Nicolas De Kerpel
INDIA (WR #5)
A relatively young Indian team will attempt to make history at home - Harmanpreet, Amit, and Birendra have withstood several onslaughts from the best of teams, Manpreet is calm and composed in midfield, as is Chinglensana, while the Indian forward line can strike fear with their lightning-quick counters - whether or not the hosts can handle the pressure of knockouts is the real question.
HEAD COACH: Harendra Singh
Goalkeepers: PR Sreejesh, Krishan Bahadur Pathak
Harmanpreet Singh, Birendra Lakra, Varun Kumar, Kothajit Singh Khadangbam, Surender Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Manpreet Singh, Chinglensana Singh Kangujam, Nilakanta Sharma, Hardik Singh, Sumit, Akashdeep Singh, Mandeep Singh, Dilpreet Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Simranjeet Singh.
SOUTH AFRICA (WR #15)
The South Africans made it to the World Cup via the African Cup of Nations, and captain Tim Drummond, along with experienced campaigners Austin Smith, and Rhett Halket will be keen to make an impact at Bhubaneswar.
HEAD COACH: Mark Hopkins
Goalkeepers: Gowan Jones, Rassie Pieterse
Tim Drummond, Dayaan Cassiem, Taylor Dart, Tyson Dlungwana, Jethro Eustice, Rhett Halkett, Tommy Hammond, Keenan Horne, Julian Hykes, Peabo Lembethe, Mo Mea, Bili Ntuli, Taine Paton, Richard Pautz, Austin Smith, Nick Spooner
CANADA (WR #11)
Gordon Johnston's brace along with Keegan Perreira's goal resulted in a huge upset win for the Canadians against India in last year's HWL, but the Indians - and every other side in the competition would be just as wary of Scott Tupper's scoring prowess and Mark Pearson's midfield skills.
HEAD COACH: Paul Bundy
Goalkeepers: David Carter, Antoni Kindler
Balraj Panesar, Brandon Perreira, Gordon Johnston, Scott Tupper, Keegan Perriera, Matthew Sarmento, Iain Smythe, James Kirkpatrick, Oliver Scholfield, Mark Pearson, Sukhi Panesar, Gabe Ho-Garcia, John Smythe, Richard Hildreth, Brenden Bissett, Jamie Wallace
POOL D: Netherlands, Germany, Malaysia, Pakistan
NETHERLANDS (WR #4)
The very fact that Mink van der Weeden is back, is quite enough to set the alarm bells ringing for the opposition, but the quality in the Dutch camp is hardly restricted to the veteran drag flicker's expertise. Jeroen Hertzbeger's forays up front, in partnership with Pruijser, de Voogd, and Brinkman, can unsettle the best defensive units and the Dutch themselves are pretty resolute all they way back with Blaak being the shield in goal.
HEAD COACH: Max Caldas
Goalkeepers: Sam van der Ven, Pirmin Blaak,
Seve van Ass, Sander Baart, Billy Bakker, Lars Balk, Thierry Brinkman, Thijs van Dam, Jonas de Geus, Jeroen Hertzberger, Robbert Kemperman, Mirco Pruyser, Glenn Schuurman, Valentin Verga, Bob de Voogd, Mink van der Weerden, Sander de Wijn, Floris Wortelboer
GERMANY (WR #6)
The old guard, Tobias Hauke, and Martin Haner signify the unflinching and ruthless efficiency which the Germans are known for, with Florian Fuchs, Christopher Ruhr, and Mats Grambush providing the attacking firepower in the circle - and, who can forget the heroism of a hopelessly-depleted German side which made the hosts sweat it out in the HWL bronze-medal match at Bhubaneswar last December?
HEAD COACH: Stefan Kermas
Goalkeepers: Mark Appel, Tobias Walter
Florian Fuchs, Benedikt Furk, Mats Grambusch, Tom Grambusch, Johannes Grobe, Martin Haner, Tobias Hauke, Timm Herzbruch, Dieter Linnekogel, Marco Miltkau, Matthias Muller, Dan Nguyen Luong, Christopher Ruhr, Ferdinand Weinke, Nikias Wellen, Lukas Windfeder
MALAYSIA (WR #12)
A gritty defensive unit with Faiz Jali, at the forefront, which can effortlessly transform into an extremely skillful and speedy attack, courtesy of the Saari brothers - Faizal and Fitri, along with Tajuddin Tengku, Hasan Azuan, and Nik Rozemi, who will now be guided by the wily Roelant Oltmans, makes the Malaysians a formidable and dangerous side - and do not forget Razie Rahim, the PC ace.
HEAD COACH: Roelant Oltmans
Goalkeepers: Kumar Subramaniam, Hairi Rahman
Sumantri Norsyafiq, Ramadan Rosli, Marhan Jalil, Fitri Saari, Joel van Huizen, Faizal Saari, Syed Cholan, Sukri Mutalib, Firhan Ashari, Nabil Noor, Razie Rahim, Faiz Jali, Azri Hassan, Hasan Azuan, Tajuddin Tengku, Nik Rozemi
PAKISTAN (WR #13)
Rizwan Sr's playmaking skills, Ali Shan's sizzling runs, Imran Butt's presence under the post backed up by the drag-flicking skills of Aleem Bilal and Mubashar Ali are quite adequate for Pakistan to begin their campaign as the dark horses at Bhubaneswar.
HEAD COACH: Tauqeer Dar
Goalkeepers: Imran Butt, Mazhar Abbas
Mohd. Irfan (Sr), Aleem Bilal, Mubashar Ali, Tauseeq Arshad, Tasawwar Abbas, Rashid Mahmood, Ajaz Ahmed, Ammad Shakeel Butt, Mohd. Irfan (Jr.), Mohd. Rizwan (Sr.), Ali Shan, Faisal Qadir, Abubakr Mahmood, Umar Bhutta, Atiq Arshad, Mohammad Zubair
