The Australian side competed strongly from the outset, and made it comfortably out of the group stages before they ran into a roadblock in the semi-finals. 

After losing a nailbiting semi-final to eventual champions Holland, the Hockeyroos were bounced out of medal contention by Spain in the bronze medal decider. 

“I think from the start we said we were going there to win a medal, so that was disappointing that we got to that stage and couldn’t execute,” Smith said. 

By the end of their campaign, the Aussies had played in a total of four draws from their six matches, something that Crookwell local Smith said was a result of sub-par goal-shooting. 

“We had chances in the games, and when you don’t take them, you end up having a draw,” she said. 

However, she added that the Hockeyroos’ outstanding defence kept them in such tight encounters. 

“When we played some of the higher ranked teams, they were peppering our goals and we stood strong,” Smith said. 

One of the highlights of the tournament was the relative meaninglessness of the world rankings. 

With the exception of the Dutch side, who dominated most of their matches as expected, many of the top sides struggled. 

Proof of this was clear even in the grand final, which included the lowest ranked side in the tournament – Ireland. 

“A lot of teams that did lose and were expected to go better than us bowed out in the early stages,” Smith said. 

“It’s great for world hockey I guess, that the top 15 nations can beat each other on a given day.”

Despite the heroics Smith displayed on her birthday with an equalising goal against New Zealand, the 26-year-old said that the highlight of the tournament for her was the match against Holland. 

“They were by far the best team there, and to keep them to a draw in regular time … that’s something I’m really proud of,” she said. 

Given the relative lack of experience within the Hockeyroos’ side, making the semi-finals was an astounding result, and Smith is sure that her young teammates learnt multitudes from the experience. 

“I think they were incredible, considering the lack of experience,” Smith said.  

“They stepped up and played like they do at training every day. Sometimes big tournaments can be quite daunting, but they handled it like champions.

“They couldn’t have done much more to make us successful, I’m very proud of that.”