Shona McCallin aiming for European gold

Former Newark Hockey Club player Shona McCallin insists the pressure is not off her England teammates ahead of the Unibet EuroHockey Championships, which start on Friday, despite Olympic qualification being secure for Team GB.

The 22-year-old midfielder was part of the British side that clinched their Rio 2016 berth thanks to a World League gold medal earlier this year in Valencia, reports Jack Miller.

That meant England go into the EuroHockey tournament, which they otherwise would have had to win, with a huge weight off their shoulders.

McCallin, of Dry Doddington, is confident that World League success will bode well as England go in search of another triumph at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London.

She believes that in front of an expectant home crowd the side cannot afford to take their foot off the pedal.

“We had a good World League,” she said. “It was a high-pressure time to be involved with GB hockey. We did what we needed to do and came away with Olympic qualification.

“Hopefully we can cap off a good year with the right performance at this championship.

“I wouldn’t like to think the pressure is off us because we have qualified — there is always pressure when you are playing international hockey.

“It would have been a lot higher had we not qualified because obviously we would have had to win here, but we are in front of our own fans so that creates pressure as there is an expectation on us after doing so well at the World League.

“Competition is so strong in Europe. It’s going to be intense and hopefully we can come out at the end of it with a medal.”

England will be looking to make up for the disappointment of missing out on gold at the last EuroHockey Championship in 2013, when they lost to Germany on penalty shuffles in the gold-medal match.

While McCallin was not involved on that occasion, she is confident those memories — as well as the prospect of playing at an Olympic Games next year — will spur the squad on to new heights.

'My goal is to go to the Olympics'

She added: “I remember watching (in 2013) when the girls got so close to winning.

“That will create an extra buzz for certain players who were involved and a bit of extra fight for the rest of us.

“But that was two years ago and a lot of things have changed since then. We all know what to expect; it will be a tough competition and we will go into it with the right mindset.

“On a personal level my goal is, of course, to go to the Olympics. I’m still relatively new and this will be only my second tournament in a senior England shirt so I’m just happy to be involved.

“I’m loving training full-time as a hockey player and learning from all the girls around me. I’m relishing the chance to play in front of a home crowd.

“It will be special with friends and family here to watch because they can’t come when we are abroad.”