Three Tasmanian Players Earn National Under 18 Honours

Three Tasmanian players have been rewarded for their outstanding performances at the 2026 Hockey Australia Under 18 Championships in Darwin, earning selection in the Australian Under 18 National Squads.

Patrick Donegan and Cruze Gray were both named in the Australian Under 18 Men's Squad after playing pivotal roles in Tasmania's impressive fourth-place finish, which saw the side reach the semi-finals and narrowly miss out on a medal.

Gray enjoyed a standout tournament, finishing as Tasmania's leading goalscorer with seven goals. His campaign included a hat-trick in the opening match against the Northern Territory, before adding braces against South Australia and Victoria to establish himself as one of the competition's most dangerous goalscorers.

Donegan's influence was equally significant, producing a series of composed and creative performances. His vision, distribution and ability to create scoring opportunities were central to Tasmania's attacking play throughout the tournament, while he also found the back of the net twice himself.

Fellow Tasmanian Angus McMullen, who captained the side and was one of the tournament's standout performers, was not considered for Under 18 selection as he is already a member of the Australian Under 21 Burras Squad, despite still being eligible by age for Under 18 honours.

In the women's competition, goalkeeper Miles Almenara Del Solar was rewarded with selection in the Australian Under 18 Women's Squad following an outstanding tournament between the posts.

Almenara Del Solar produced a string of top-drawer saves throughout the championships and proved instrumental in Tasmania's run to the quarter-finals, playing the starring role in the side's penalty shootout win against South Australia, by preventing all four South Australian attempts to secure victory and helping Tasmania progress to the knockout stages. 

The trio's selections continue Tasmania's strong record of producing players capable of performing on the national stage and provide further recognition of the quality displayed by the state's Under 18 programs throughout the championships.