Rising hockey star Maddison Fenwick named in Futures Squad

A Busselton-based hockey star could be the next big Australian sporting name after being recognised on the national stage. Maddison Fenwick, 18, has been named as a part of the 2022 under-18s women’s Australian National Futures Squad, a program recognising the exceptional talents of 38 hockey players around the country and prepares them for a career in the sport. In the world of hockey, it is the first opportunity players have to be nationally identified in the sport, a chance Fenwick said she was very humbled to have received. “I’m very excited and very grateful for the opportunity,” she said. “I can’t wait to keep going with it all and improve my game.” Scouted at the recent Australian U18 Championships in Cairns, Fenwick represented the WA side who finished fourth overall. The Futures Squad will train undertake a six-part program in October which will include individual athlete performance planning, online technical and tactical sessions, dual career, mental health and wellbeing, and a training camp at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. The chosen rising stars are believed to show potential for selection in Australian teams at multiple major sporting events over the next decade, including the 2028 and 2032 Olympic campaigns, a prospect Fenwick is very excited by. “It’s something that I’ve always dreamed of as a little girl, so I’m hoping to make it there (the Olympics),” she said. “I really like the team environment of hockey, and all of the pathways that go with it as well, there’s some many opportunities and it’s just really fun.” One of 15 players selected players from WA, other young guns include Matilda Banfield, Jessica Freedman, Summer Greenway, Elyssa Melville, Saysha Pillay and Caitlin Templeman. Fenwick encouraged other young athletes to “follow their dreams.” “Keep sticking at it, there’s a lot of support around you,” she said. “Make the most of it and just give it a crack, you’ve got nothing to lose at the end of the day.”