Black Sticks Name 20-Man Squad for the India Centenary Series in Auckland, and These Are Not Test Matches
A hundred years after the first Indian hockey team toured New Zealand, the two countries are doing it again. Hockey New Zealand have named a 20-man Black Sticks squad for the Slumberzone Indian Centenary Hockey Series, three matches against India at Lloyd Elsmore Park in Auckland on Thursday 19, Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November. And before anyone starts counting caps and records, read the small print: these are not official test matches.
That is the point of this series, and Hockey New Zealand are upfront about it. The matches will not be official tests. It is an invitational celebration series, built to showcase international hockey and give young and emerging players experience against India, played after the FIH World Cup and India’s qualification for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. Nobody’s cap count is on the line. Development is. That changes how you should watch it. The result still matters, the shirt still matters, but the real prize for the Black Sticks is finding out which of the next generation can handle India.
The squad is a mix of the familiar and the brand new. Richard Joyce is back in goal after stepping away from the Black Sticks in 2020, which is a story on its own. Nic Woods and Scott Cosslett bring the experience, Sam Hiha and Dean Clarkson bring the youth, and five players join the wider group for the first time: Clarkson, Javahn Jones, Sam Lints, Tim Greenwood and Zander Fraser. The full squad: Aidan Sarikaya, Benji Culhane, Dean Clarkson, Dylan Thomas, Gus Nelson, Javahn Jones, Joe Morrison, Jonty Elmes, Luke Holmes, Matt Ruetsch, Nic Woods, Patrick Ward, Richard Joyce, Ryan Parr, Sam Hiha, Sam Lints, Scott Cosslett, Tim Greenwood, Tim Neild and Zander Fraser. India have not named a squad for this series in any source checked, so nobody should be writing an India team sheet for it yet. India coach Craig Fulton has said a younger Indian squad will tour New Zealand for three matches after the Asian Champions Trophy, which fits this window, but that is his comment about India’s plans, not a confirmed squad for these matches.
The weekend has a proper old-school shape to it. The series marks 100 years since India’s first hockey tour to New Zealand in 1926, when the touring side was an Indian Army team, and the Armed Forces of both countries play curtain-raisers before every match, a nod to the military origins of that first tour. Thursday 19 November opens with the New Zealand Defence Force men at 4:00pm local time, 8:00am PKT, and the Black Sticks against India at 6:30pm local, 10:30am PKT. Saturday 21 November has the Defence Force women at 11:30am, the men at 1:30pm, a kabaddi match at 2:30pm and the Black Sticks against India at 4:00pm local, 8:00am PKT. Sunday 22 November closes with the Defence Force women at 9:30am, the men at 11:30am and the Black Sticks against India at 2:00pm local, 6:00am PKT. All three matches are broadcast live on TVNZ+. Slumberzone are the naming partner and Tātaki Auckland Unlimited, Auckland Council’s events arm, are supporting the series.
A century of hockey between these two countries, a squad with five new faces and a goalkeeper back after five years away, and three matches where the scoreboard matters less than what the Black Sticks learn. That is worth watching on its own terms.
Related links:
https://sportscursor.com/new-zealand-premier-hockey-league-2026-india-test-series/
https://sportscursor.com/india-13-0-bangladesh-mandeep-hat-trick-asian-champions-trophy-27-october-2026/
https://sportscursor.com/latest-news/
https://sportscursor.com/highlights/
