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The Australian Steelers have passed another test at the Paris 2024 Qualification Tournament in Wellington, New Zealand by reaching the knockout stage.
The Steelers booked a semi-final showdown on Saturday, with one pool match still to play, by defeating Colombia 55-45 in a torrid contest on Thursday.
The next and most important challenge for the Steelers is to secure a ticket to the Paralympic Games by winning Saturday’s semi-final. Blocking their way is Germany, who they will battle for Pool A supremacy on Friday.
The victor will earn a semi-final against the second-ranked qualifier in Pool B, while a loss will present a tougher path to Paris qualification – a semi-final against Canada, the undefeated winner of Pool B.
Needing victory against the reigning world champions to keep their own Paris hopes alive, the Colombians knew the odds were stacked against them and went down swinging.
“It was amazing to see how hard they were going at the ball. Their whole team lifted,” said Australian 0.5 player James McQuillan.
“I think a lot of teams lift when they play Australia because we like to think of ourselves as a benchmark. As a team, we really enjoyed the challenge. They applied a lot of pressure. They forced a lot of loose passes for us.
“It was pretty scratchy at times but we can’t be too upset when you get up by 10 against a very good team. There’s still plenty to work on but we’re happy with that.”
McQuillan had an extra reason to celebrate during the 10-goal victory when he crossed for his first international goal in his 26th appearance for the Steelers. He made his debut in 2022.
“I just went long and prayed for a long pass. Fortunately Brayden Foxley-Conolly launched one long and Jayden Warn didn’t steal it from me so I was very happy,” McQuillian said.
“I’ve been letting everyone. Hopefully that increases my chances of Players’ Player for this game,” he added with a laugh.
Ranked nine in the world, the Germans have been impressive in Wellington. They hammered Colombia 57-50 on Wednesday before sealing their semi-final passage with a 57-50 victory Switzerland.
While the difference in world rankings suggest the Steelers (ranked two) should be heavily favoured, nothing should be taken for granted according to the Steelers’ Ella Sabljak.
“I think we’ve still got a lot to work on. We’ve made a promise to each other to bring the energy for the Germany game and then the semi-final to get the job done.
“There’s still a lot of hard work ahead of us. We still haven’t reached our ceiling which is really exciting as a team.”
“I’m feeling excited, I just want to get out there and beat some boys up.”
The Australian Steelers are aiming to finish on top of pool A when they face Germany on Friday at 4:00pm AEDT.
Paris 2024 Paralympic Qualifying Tournament
Wellington, New Zealand
Wednesday March 20
Australia 60 defeated Switzerland 40
Thursday March 21
Australia 55 defeated Colombia 45
Friday March 22
Australia vs Germany @ 4:00pm AEDT
Saturday March 23
Semi-Finals
Sunday March 24
Medal Matches*
*The gold, silver and bronze medal winning teams earn qualification to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Pool A
Australia (ranked 2nd)
Colombia (10th)
Germany (9th)
Switzerland (12th)
Pool B
Brazil (ranked 11th)
Canada (5th)
Netherlands (15th)
New Zealand (8th)
By: Tim Mannion, Paralympics Australia
Published: 21 March 2024
