Sydney: Eight members of the gold medal-winning Athens line-up were named on Thursday in the Australian men’s field hockey team along with eight Olympic debutants for next month’s Beijing Games.

Travis Brooks, Liam De Young, Jamie Dwyer, Bevan George, Robert Hammond, Mark Knowles, Grant Schubert and Matthew Wells all played in the 2-1 sudden-death win over the Netherlands in the 2004 Athens final.

Coach Barry Dancer said the team’s recent international performances had given them confidence and belief for Beijing.

“Knowing how difficult it will be and knowing the landscape in Beijing will be different to what we have faced so far this year, we will be making every effort in the next three to four weeks to make sure that we’re the best prepared team,” Dancer said on Thursday.

Defending champions Australia go into the Olympics at the top of the world rankings the Champions Trophy last month in the Netherlands. AFP