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Australia's best medal chances at the Commonwealth Games: Team sports

The Australian Boomers are favourites to take gold at the Commonwealth Games. (STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images)
Expert
2nd April, 2018
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Some of Australia’s best medal chances will be in team sports for the 2018 Commonwealth games, but on home soil with high expectations, that’ll bring with it plenty of pressure from the media and public.

From basketball to hockey, netball or rugby sevens, there isn’t a single team sport Australia aren’t expected to medal in and more often than not, anything less than gold will be classed as a failure.

The 2016 Rio Olympics were somewhat of a disaster for most of the teams, and without some of the world’s superpowers at the Commonwealth Games, it’s a chance to make amends.

More Commonwealth Games
» About the Commonwealth Games
» Full 2018 Commonwealth Games events schedule
» How to watch the 2018 Commonwealth Games online or on TV

Basketball

Basketball isn’t a sport which has been played much in Commonwealth Games history. It was introduced in the 2006 Games (in Melbourne) and hasn’t been sighted since.

That is thanks to the relative dominance of Australia and the low level of talent in most Commonwealth nations.

There are eight teams at the tournament for both men and women, with the top four in Group A. They will all qualify for the finals in some way, with the top two going straight to the semi-finals and the bottom two making the qualifying finals.

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The two winners of the qualifying finals will then progress to the semi-finals.

Boomers
The Boomers will be without their regular NBA stars for the Commonwealth Games, with the season still ongoing in the United States of America.

Instead, they will be made up of players from the recently completed NBL competition, which is growing in standards all the time.

With Melbourne United’s Chris Goulding, Perth Wildcats’ guard Damian Martin and Sydney Kings forward Brad Newley leading the side as the three Rio Olympians, they will be aiming to finish top of their group for the easiest possible semi-final.

New Zealand are likely to give them the best run for their money, with the side also made up mainly of NBL players, many from the New Zealand Breakers.

Canada could also pose a threat, but like Australia, will be without their NBA players.

At the recent FIBA Asia Cup, Australia beat New Zealand comprehensively and with home court advantage on the Gold Coast should a final eventuate between the two sides, Andrej Lemanis’ men will be extremely disappointed with anything other than a gold medal.

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Opals
The Opals were also strong in Rio, but like the Boomers, fell short of a medal.

Unlike the men’s side, they are set to more or less be at full strength. Centre Liz Cambage led the team in the paint at the Olympics, monstering rebound tallies and scoring plenty of points. If she is anywhere near her best, the centre will be impossible to deal with for most of the teams on the Gol Coast.

The biggest challenges for the Opals will come in the form of Canada who most recently won the FIBA Americas Championship and finished fifth at the World Cup.

Australia finished third at that same World Cup though and will fancy their chances.

Elizabeth Cambage Basketball Australia Opals Rio 2016 Olympic Games

(AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

Hockey

Neither of Australia’s hockey teams had much fun in Rio, with both failing to medal.

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The Commonwealth Games will see ten-team tournaments for both men and women, with the teams separated into two groups of five. The top two from each group will then qualify for the semi-finals, with the winners advancing to the final.

Kookaburras
The Kookaburras, now under the coaching of Colin Batch, had a disastrous Olympic campaign by their standards. After a gold medal in 2004 at Athens and a pair of third-place finished in Beijing and London, they were bundled out by a dominant Dutch outfit in Rio after a poor group stage performance.

It was less than impressive, but their form has turned a corner since. They were World League champions in 2016-17 and in their most recent effort took out the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup without losing a single game against some of the best sides in the world including England, Argentina and India.

England and India are also in the Commonwealth Games, while Australia have also had the wood over New Zealand, winning the last Oceania Cup in 2017.

Their record at the Games speaks for itself as well with the Kookaburras winning five out of five tournaments.

Hockeyroos
Like the Kookaburras, the Hockeyroos were knocked out of the quarter-finals at Rio. They lost 4-2 to New Zealand after a tournament where they never looked in good form.

Coach Paul Gaudoin will have his work cut out for him on the Gold Coast with the side not living up to its potential.

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They managed to win the 2017 Oceania Cup against New Zealand – the same side who knocked them out of Rio – and after series wins this year over Spain and China they will be somewhat confident, but with Canada, New Zealand and Scotland in their group, the Hockeyroos will need to be somewhere near their best from the word go.

Daniel Beale Australia Hockey Kookaburras Rio 2016 Olympic Games

(AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Netball

Netball will be played as a 12-team tournament with the sides divided into two groups, followed by semi-finals and a final.

The Diamonds are, without a doubt, the most successful team in world netball and anything less than a gold medal at a home Commonwealth Games would be a disappointment.

The challenge for Australia will be that the top 12 teams in world netball are all Commonwealth teams. Essentially, it’ll be like a World Cup on the Gold Coast and unless the Diamonds are at their absolute best, they won’t win.

While the Australians are reigning Commonwealth Games champions, they lost the two before that and could easily be upstaged by the likes of New Zealand here, but in saying that, their form appears strong.

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The Diamonds played a quad series to kick-off 2018 against New Zealand, South Africa and England, winning all three of their matches.

Australia's netball Diamonds

(AP Photo/Rob Griffith)

Rugby sevens

Men’s sevens
After a quarter-final exit at the 2016 Olympics, the men’s sevens team will be aiming to add their first Commonwealth Games medal to the cabinet.

Played at the Commonwealth Games since Kuala Lumpur in 1998, Australia have made the semi-finals three times, having to settle for a bronze medal on all three occasions.

In saying that, they took out the Sydney sevens on home soil this year, have been semi-finals in one other tournament and made the fifth-placed play-off on two occasions.

Wile their form appears a little inconsistent, the men’s sevens team will be confident of getting past England, Jamaica and Samoa in their group and from there, anything is possible.

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Women’s sevens
In amongst all the doom and gloom from Australia’ teams at Rio, the women’s sevens were the shining light as they took home the gold medal. They would drop just a single game in their group and then go onto dominante both Spain and Canada before beating New Zealand in the final.

Charlotte Caslick, who scored seven tries across the tournament, was the star of the show and will again lead the Australian team into battle on the Coast.

The Aussies have since won the Oceania Cup and started 2018 in superb form, taking home the gold medal at both the Dubai and Sydney Sevens events.

Their form makes them red-hot gold medal favourites, with New Zealand again shaping as their toughest opposition. Given they beat them 31-0 in the Sydney final though, the Australian team will be brimming with confidence.

Australian Womens 7s player Charlotte Caslick runs ball against New Zealand

(ARU Media)

Could Australia’s teams complete a clean sweep and take seven out of seven gold medals on the Gold Coast? Time will tell, but the chance is there.

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