South Africa test for golden girl

Hockey star Shona McCallin is looking forward to her next challenge as she prepares for her first match since winning Olympic gold.

The 24-year-old, from Dry Doddington, is one of seven Great Britain players from the Rio Games last summer to be selected for the England squad travelling to South Africa.

The national side will play two tests against South Africa on February 25 and 26 before facing Germany on March 1, 3 and 4 for three unofficial practice matches.

The series leads into a potentially big summer of hockey for McCallin.

Great Britain face the Netherlands in June at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London, which is followed by the EuroHockey Championships and World League tournament.

"I have learned never to expect anything and take things for granted."

McCallin, a former Newark Hockey Club junior, said it was a relief to see her name on the England team list.

“Over the past couple of years I have learned never to expect anything and take things for granted,” she said.

“I was hoping to be selected for the South Africa team and it is great now I have been.

“It is good to be going with a new set of girls. It will be a nice trip, getting to know my new teammates.

“We are going to spend a lot of time together on and off the pitch, which will be great for team understanding and development.

“There are no expectations from the trip. We are just going out there to develop ourselves as a team and individuals.

“I haven’t played a competitive game since Rio. This tour will show me areas I can work on and will act as a good starting point for this year.”

England coach Danny Kerry has selected a squad that could see as many as 11 players make their senior England debuts and McCallin admitted her role within the squad could change.

“Naturally, as you develop and get older and more experienced you do start to fill into different roles,” she said.

“Last time, on the Rio cycle, I was one of the younger ones, but now I am in the middle of the age groups and experience.

“It puts a different expectation on myself. I am not just looking at other people to learn, but people are looking to me.

“I try not to think about it too much. I just try to be the best teammate I can be, whether that’s helping someone on or off the pitch.”

'Always a major competition on the horizon'

McCallin has recovered from torn tendons in her thumb, after slipping on rocks while on holiday in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

“It has cleared up nicely now, although it took a lot longer than I was expecting,” she said.

“I am back full-time training and settling back into it all.

“We have had sessions delayed or cancelled because of the typical English winter weather, so we have not played a lot of hockey.

“It has been more about getting our bodies and minds up to scratch.

“Starting a new central programme is tough, both physically and mentally, so there has been a lot of hard work in the gym.”

Despite being selected for the new Olympic cycle working towards Tokyo 2020, McCallin said it was too early to think about replicating the gold medal success from the Brazil games last year.

“What is great about hockey is that there is always a major competition on the horizon and another medal to try to win,” she said.

“Personally, I don’t look towards Tokyo so early. That doesn’t work for me in terms of motivation.

“What works for me is looking at this year.

“We have the World League in Johannesburg and EuroHockey Championships in Amsterdam, and my mind is very much focused on those two tournaments.”