Katherine Gale looks ahead to Great Britain’s Olympic ice hockey qualifiers

Katherine Gale says she is hoping for another “unbelievable” atmosphere at Great Britain’s next Olympic qualifiers, with Sheffield hosting six international matches this December.

Great Britain will play in a group of four alongside the Netherlands, Spain, and Latvia in a round robin format, with the top team advancing to the final round of qualifiers.

The last time Great Britain hosted an international women’s tournament, they attracted a record crowd of over 2,000 fans. Gale said: “It (Great Britain’s last home tournament) was unbelievable with the number of fans and the atmosphere. I hope the atmosphere will be similar, and we get more fans and young girls who are keen to play.”

Looking ahead to Great Britain’s game against the Netherlands, Gale said: “They are big, and they’re quite physical. I hope being on home ice gives us the edge, but even Latvia and Spain are very powerful teams.

“The difference (between international and league fixtures) is when you’re playing, you have to be really smart at international level, there’s no room for mistakes. At a club you could make a mistake and recover, but definitely not at international level.”