It is not often a player’s career milestone happens to be his country’s feat, and then it converge on two nation’s historical occasion.

This is the double delight when
Queensland’s prince Jamie Dwyer sets his feet on the Rotterdam turf today, when Australia meets India in the third quarterfinal of the ongoing Hockey World League Round 3, also called Semifinal League.

Jamie will be playing his 300th match — only two other Australians are above capwise — today at Rotterdam. At the same time, two hockey great nations, India and Australia, will also be celebrating their 100th encounter as per Hockey Australia statistics.

India and Australia met for the first time in 1935, and then till 1968 India had never lost to them.

But strikes one’s mind is not this old piece of glory, but what happened in 2004.

India and Australia had a great game at Athens in the pool, but hardly a minute left for the hooter, Jamie did the unthinkable, from D to D, snatching the ball from Ignace Tirkey, he slammed the ball home, and the hooter came as if it waited for the great goal!

Many might naturally talk of the golden goal he struck in the extra time there to give Australia its only Olympic gold till date, but for the Indians his last second goal is unforgettably painful.

For a great player like Jamie Dwyer, history too comes easily, and in more than one ways.

Jamie, the youngster whom I met at Perth during Women’s World Cup in 2002 was a shy player, called to a star hotel where FIH presented him the ‘Young Player Award’ along with another legend Luciana Aimar.
Everyone knows he will grow further and further, but an era of likes of Teun de Nooijers and Stephen Veens, not many thought he will outgrow everyone of his contemporaries and become what he is today.

His national federation Hockey Australia is in a celebration mood, and brings out special arts which are displayed in their official website.
Jamie, who sees himself not just a player on the entertaining turf, but also an entrepreneur what with his grand plan of JDH brands had already been making headlines on right quarters.

Jamie, a polite, through gentleman is everybody’s delight, and is well versed with India.

He came briefly for now abandoned Premier Hockey League, first league in the hockey world to be telecast live, for one part in its last edition, and everybody understood what a player he is, and his game is different from others, especially the stick artists kind of which India is proud of. He combined elegance with winning habits.
Jamie, as everyone witnessed during the last Hockey India League, where represented Punjab, is not just a forward, but an impact making all rounder. When the domestic team was struggling to score through penalty corners, he assumed the role on a few occasions and proved his worth. The bottomline is one plays for the team not vice versa.
He is a team man, his team wins, his country wins, and he is therefore a celebrity, and whatever fame comes to him is well deserved, will elevate hockey’s profile.

Congrats on this historic occasion.