Woodman, Webster Called Up to Australian Squad

Perth Thunder duo Jamie Woodman and Kieren Webster have been selected for the Australian Men’s Ice Hockey Team to take part in the IIHF World Championships in Romania in April, it was announced on Friday.

Woodman and Webster will join last season’s successful Australian squad that went undefeated through the tournament and immediately regained their spot in Division II Group B, where they’ll participate this season.

In the tournament, which runs April 3-6, the Mighty Roos will take on Serbia, Iceland, Spain, Belgium and host nation Romania, hoping to win gold and gain promotion to Group A.

For both Woodman and Webster, this is the first time they will represent the Australian Senior Men’s team, having both competed previously for underage Australian teams.

Woodman is coming off the best season of his career in the AIHL, posting nine points (3G, 6A) through 26 games in 2016 while establishing himself as one of the best two-way defencemen in the league.

Webster posted seven points (3G, 4A) through 26 games last season after being named AIHL Rookie of the Year in 2015, and his terrific form for the Australian Junior team at January’s Junior World Championships, where he led the team in scoring, has seen him secure a spot in the senior team for the first time.

Best of luck to both Jamie and Kieren as they look to do the Perth Thunder and Australia proud and bring back more gold!