Boyanup’s Brayden Dalton earns Australian Country men’s hockey squad selection after successful Country Champs

Boyanup hockey star Brayden Dalton has been selected in the Australian Country Senior Men’s Squad for 2022 after putting together another incredible tournament for the WA Country team in August. Dalton was one of an incredible eight South West players that were part of the WA Country side which claimed a silver medal at the Country Challenge in Albany in early August. The Collie product went into the Challenge having been selected for the Under-21 Australian squad three times from 2017 to 2019 and went on to score seven goals from his five matches to earn his first selection in the senior squad. Dalton’s tournament was highlighted by an incredible semi-final hat-trick against Victoria which helped put WA into the decider. WA conceded in the first minute of the match and trailed 2-1 at quarter-time before Dalton took control of the match. The Boyanup midfielder netted three goals in 16 minutes giving WA the lead and the side eventually holding on for a gripping 4-3 win. Queensland defeated WA 5-0 in the gold medal match. Dalton said he was thrilled to earn selection in the squad after the tournament. “It is really exciting to have been picked for my first senior squad with the Australian Country men after one of my best tournaments with WA,” Dalton said. “It was awesome to play down in Albany this year and play some great hockey with a really talented group who all bought in. “We gave it our best throughout the tournament and the semi-final against Victoria definitely stands out as one of the best matches I have been a part of. “To go down against Queensland is obviously hard to take, but to come away with a silver medal from such a competitive tournament is something I am really happy with.”