Great Britain call-up for Scotland hockey international Emily Dark

Scotland hockey international Emily Dark has been invited to train with the senior Great Britain squad.

Emily Dark celebrates with team-mate Kate Holmes after scoring for Scotland against Ukraine at the Euros in Glasgow last year. Picture: Mark Pugh

It’s a huge opportunity for the Dundee Wanderers player who was selected for the GB elite development programme (EDP) in 2018.

“It has been an ambition of mine to play for GB for so many years, so to be offered this opportunity to train with them for the next three weeks is unbelievable,” said the 20-year-old.

“I am incredibly excited to get started, not only for high-quality hockey but to meet everyone too. This is a big opportunity for me to show what I can bring to the game and I want to embrace it and have fun.”

The GB elite development programme was launched as part of a strategic objective during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic cycle with the aim of developing medal winners of the future, with the selected athletes having shown their potential to achieve that during a comprehensive selection process.

It’s an experience that Dark has enjoyed and learned from

“GB EDP has been fantastic,” she said. “It’s always really tough and they constantly challenge you mentally and physically, but I come away from every session having learned something new, or having thought about something from a different perspective.”

It has been a memorable few years at international level for the young Scot who has clocked up an impressive 23 senior caps.

Dark was part of the gold medal-winning Scotland squad at EuroHockey Championship II in Glasgow in 2019, a tournament in which she excelled.

She won the Young Player of the Tournament award and scored against Ukraine and Poland.

Scotland head coach Jen Wilson said: “I am delighted with the progress that Emily has made over the last couple of years. When she was awarded Young Player of the Tournament at the EuroHockey Championship II we knew that she had the ability to take on any challenge presented to her.

“Emily’s natural position is in defence however she played the whole tournament in our striker line and scored some very impressive goals. For such a young player, she plays with an incredible amount of maturity and a vast repertoire of skills which continue to develop rapidly.”

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