Alice Arnott has declared herself the woman for the Hockeyroos job, vowing to repay the faith shown by coach Katrina Powell and her huge Olympic selection call.
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The Hockeyroos will chase their first medal in Paris since claiming their third gold in four Games in Sydney, 24 years ago.
Powell was a player in two golden campaigns and, after taking over on the eve of the Tokyo 2021 Games, has made bold moves at the selection table in an attempt to end the drought.
Arnott, who only debuted as a 25-year-old last year, is the big winner.
She was selected ahead of long-time striker Rosie Malone, who had her appeal dismissed by the National Sports Tribunal.
"I understand selection, it just sucks," Arnott, now 26, told AAP.
"Debuting at 25, it was an interesting journey for me and I've been on the bad end of it for a long time and I really sympathise with her (Malone).
"But also the rest of the girls that didn't make it, working just as hard and not getting the credit they deserve."
"It was disappointing it blew up the way it did .... some get lucky, some don't."
Arnott doesn't put it down to luck though, adamant she belongs after a move to play club hockey alongside boyfriend and Kookaburra Tom Craig in the Netherlands transformed her life.
"I'd been in development squads but never cracked the team, had injuries," she said.
"Being stuck there in those programs, it becomes way bigger than it actually is.
"The fact I wasn't making it was such a big deal, for so long.
"As soon as I went away I realised I didn't need it to be the person I wanted to be."
It also fundamentally improved her hockey, Arnott's daily exposure to the world's best - the Netherlands are heavy Olympic favourites - helpful when she returned home to make her Test debut.
"I knew I was capable," she said.
Shocked in a frustrating 1-0 quarter-final loss to India at Tokyo's Games, two-time Olympian Malone's omission is a nod to Powell's ongoing search for regular avenues to goal.
"That's something I do bring to this group," Arnott said.
"In and around the goal mouth, I'm not scared to get on my belly or get hit by the ball.
"I just bring this determination to score goals.
"The others (strikers) too; we have the same mentality and connect well in the circle. I'm confident, we 100 per cent can scores the goals we need to.
"We are on the same page - our best hockey can bring us home gold."
Powell said injuries counted against Arnott when she first overhauled the squad after Tokyo.
"Timing is an interesting phenomenon in elite sport and she's just got her timing right," the coach said.
"I really love her belief; she always knew she could do it and knows it's the right place for her, right time."
Australian Associated Press
