FIH Pro League will give my Ireland squad great exposure for the quality and crowds expected at the summer Olympics, says head coach Mark Tumilty

A few weeks ago, Ireland became the 12th and final team to qualify for the Men's Olympic Hockey tournament next summer in Paris by virtue of their 4-3 win over Korea.

Ireland knew it was win or bust in their quest to reach the Olympics and they managed to hold firm to qualify for the summer tournament for only the third time in their history.

Ireland led 2-0 and 3-1 during parts of the game but Korea kept coming back, with Ireland managing to stave off heavy pressure towards the end of the contest to edge through.

Despite acknowledging he might have preferred his side to beat Korea without any last minute scares, Tumilty was pleased for everyone involved for the qualification.

"It was a special day for the players, the staff and all the families to achieve our objective of qualifying for the Olympic Games after a few misses," said the Banbridge native.

"We let Korea back into the game but we managed to hold on and get the job done.

"Of course, we did it the hard way but probably seeing the game out as we did means the victory means a wee bit more.

"I've had plenty of good days as a player but this is the pinnacle. Yes, we've had some tough times since I've been in charge but I'll never forget that special day.

"I have to pay special praise to my staff as they are excellent and make my life easier. Everything has really kicked-on, especially our sports science department."

As preparations continue for the Olympics, Ireland are set to make their debut in the FIH Pro League next week.

The Pro League is the elite competition in hockey and consists of the eight top-ranked teams in the world, with the winners of the Nations Cup also competing.

Ireland finished runners-up in the Nations Cup but qualified for the Pro League after South Africa withdrew.

In the first series of games from February 10-16, Ireland will face Australia, Spain, world number one ranked the Netherlands and hosts India in Bhubaneswar.

The teams will then meet again in Rourkela, India, from February 19-25 as the competition continues.

Ireland will square off against the likes of Great Britain, Belgium, Argentina and Germany in the next round of games to take place in Belgium in May and London in June.

Tumilty has named his 23-man squad for the first series of games which includes Lisnagarvey trio James Milliken, Peter McKibbin and Matty Nelson.

Four players from Banbridge - Luke Witherow, Peter Brown, Charlie Rowe and Johnny McKee have also been selected.

Ulster-born Sean Murray, who now plays hockey for Gantoise in Belgium, will captain the squad after being chosen in the panel.

However, seven players miss out from the squad which qualified for the Olympics a couple of weeks ago due to injury and work commitments.

Tumilty said: "I’ve gone on record to state that the Pro League will definitely be the best preparation for the Olympics.

"It will give our lads the best exposure to compete against the best teams in the world and in front of large crowds.

"We are obviously missing a few guys but the strength in depth means we can give other guys an opportunity.

"The competition in the panel is certainly there and we've left some good people behind but we can only name a 16-player squad and two reserves for Paris, so it's up to everyone to produce their best.

"We know the standard of hockey in Paris is going to be high but that's what you expect, so we will be doing our best to play our best hockey and see where it takes us."

Ireland squad for FIH Pro League: Jaime Carr (GK), James Milliken (GK), Tim Cross, Lee Cole, Peter McKibbin, Sam Hyland, Shane O’Donoghue, Luke Madeley, Luke Witherow, Sean Murray, Michael Robson, Peter Brown, Jonny Lynch, Nick Page, Kevin O’Dea, Charlie Rowe, Ben Johnson, Johnny McKee, Jeremy Duncan, Ben Walker, Matty Nelson, Conor Empey, Daragh Walsh.

FIH Pro League schedule (UK time):

Ireland v Netherlands, Saturday 10 February (12pm)

Ireland v Australia, Tuesday 13 February, (12pm)

Ireland v Spain, Thursday 15 February, (12pm)

Ireland v India, Friday 16 February (2pm)