Toowoomba’s Kris Glass preparing to pack his Australian junior hockey gear for a shift to Perth.

Photos

Sporting action from Toowoomba

View Photo Gallery

A DECISION to call time on a budding cricket career is continuing to pay Toowoomba’s Kris Glass big dividends on the sporting field.

Glass’s emergence in Australian hockey is gathering momentum and next week he will realise every aspiring hockey player’s goal when he takes up a scholarship with Hockey AIS based in Perth.

The move west for Glass sees him follow in the footsteps of several former Toowoomba international players and comes in the middle of a pivotal year for the 21-year-old.

Glass recently returned from the Junior World Cup in Singapore/Malaysia with a bronze medal and already Australian hockey officials have him earmarked for higher honours.

“It’s all happened pretty quickly and I had the news confirmed last week,” Glass said yesterday.

“I’m naturally very happy.

“It’s something you aspire to from a young age and it creates huge career opportunities.”

Glass will soon be rubbing shoulders with Australia’s senior Kookaburras.

“The scholarship is basically a six-month contract to train and play alongside the senior Aussie team,” Glass said.

Glass will be part of an Australian A team which lines up against the Kookaburras, Canada and Malaysia in a Canberra tournament from July 29.

Glass is also entering his final semester at university where is studying secondary P.E. teaching.

He’s now looking forward to experiencing a lifestyle change and working at grabbing his next sporting opportunity.

Glass is not yet looking as far ahead as next year’s Commonwealth Games but he realises his name is now in the mix.

“A few spots will be up for grabs through retirements, and I suppose I will be one of the players in there battling for one of them,” he said.