England captain Barry Middleton admits he can’t wait to return to the capital ahead of next week’s Investec London Cup.
Middleton will lead an 18-strong men’s team between July 9 and 13 as England play in the first tournament held at Olympic legacy venue Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre.
The squad includes all 16 athletes who will be competing in Glasgow at the Commonwealth Games, but with the addition of two extra names as James Bailey and Ollie Willars are also named.
Tim Whiteman is also included in the squad as he continues to recover well following surgery on his broken thumb.
Waiting for England at the London 2012 venue are Scotland, Ireland and South Africa, with a round-robin tournament set to kick things off before the classification matches take place on Sunday 13 July.
And Middleton insists he is champing at the bit to get going.
“It’s great to be playing in the Investec London Cup on home turf and to be back on the Olympic Park at our new legacy venue,” he said.
“We had such good support back here during the recent World Cup in the Netherlands and this tournament will help maintain the interest levels we’ve seen in hockey so far this summer.
“The opportunity to play four competitive matches in front of a home crowd just one week before the Commonwealth Games will definitely help to sharpen the team up before we head off to Glasgow.”
© Sportsbeat 2014