Australian hockey legend Jay Stacy appointed HIL team Kalinga Lancers coach

Bhubaneswar, Sep 16 (PTI) Legendary Australian Jay Stacy was on Tuesday appointed head coach of Hockey India League side Vedanta Kalinga Lancers for the upcoming edition of the tournament, which was revived earlier this year.

He will take over from German coach Valentin Altenburg, who led the side in the previous campaign.

The 57-year-old tactician made 321 international appearances for Australia and was part of the national side that won three Olympic medals (silver, Barcelona 1992; bronze, Atlanta 1996; and bronze, Sydney 2000), besides gold at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur and the 1999 Champions Trophy.

Stacy retired in 2000 as Australia's most capped international player.

The Australian has worked as a coach across clubs and domestic circuits in Australia, Netherlands, and Belgium, and also served as head coach of the Mumbai franchise during the 2016 and 2017 editions of the HIL.

He takes over the responsibility after being head coach of the Australian junior team since 2022.

"I am excited to begin a new chapter with Vedanta Kalinga Lancers and am thrilled to be returning to the Hockey India League, which has evolved significantly since my earlier stint. I am sure this will be another exciting experience for me," said Stacy in a statement.

The next edition of HIL will tentatively be held in January-February 2026. PTI AM AM UNG