A dream come true for Dwyer

New Delhi: The town of Rockhampton in Northern Queensland achieved prominence when gold was discovered in its vicinity in the late 19th century. Then, the gold rush ended and the town slipped back into relative obscurity.

Now, the town has struck gold once again, through one of its favourite sons, Jamie Dwyer, who captained Australia to a famous victory in the final of the Hero Honda World Cup in Delhi.

Blessed with amazing speed, outstanding skill on the ball and terrific vision, by all accounts, three-time World Player of the Year Jamie Dwyer has had a great career. If there was one thing missing from his trophy cabinet, it was this, a world cup gold medal. So victory here is a dream come true.

"I have won everything the game has to offer — Olympic gold, champions trophy, Commonwealth Games, but this was one that had got away from me. I'm glad things turned out right in the end,'' he says, proudly wearing the gold medal around his neck.

Having finished on the losing side in the previous two world cup finals to Germany, this was Dwyer's final shot at the crown. It was also an opportunity to give himself a belated birthday present, having turned 31 just a day earlier. And, with Ric Charlesworth — who was aiming to become the first man to win the world cup both as player and as coach — pulling the strings this time, the Australian strategy of all-out attack proved too much for young German team to counter.

Dwyer won the game's other big prize — the Olympics — at Athens in 2004, where he ended up scoring the winning goal, just months after coming back to the game following a major knee injury.

While that victory was special because it was Australia's first hockey gold at the Olympics, the man nicknamed "Foetus" is just as happy to have broken his world cup hoodoo.

"That victory [in Athens] came at a stage when I was young and had most of my career to look forward to. Now, I'm not too far away from the end of my playing days, so everything I win assumes even more significance,'' he says.

"I'm pretty sure I will continue till the London Olympics if I am still required. But I don't see myself continuing any further,'' adds the Australian captain. For the moment though, Dwyer is keen to soak in this win, dedicating it to his son Julian, born last year and to his parents, who had flown in all the way from Rockhampton to watch him play.