He's one of the biggest names in world hockey. And that's not just because his parents christened him Augustinus Wilhelmus Johannes Marines Vogels. Guus as he's popularly known, has set the standard for goalkeepers around the world over the last decade, ever since he took over as Holland's number one from the outstanding Ronald Jansen in 2000.
He's been with the Dutch team for the best part of 14 years, winning two Olympic golds as well as one silver, four Champions Trophy titles and a European Championship gold. On the face of it, his has been a flawless career, but if you dig a little deeper, it's obvious why the Hero Honda World Cup means so much to this man from Zuid, Holland.
While he has won almost everything the game has to offer, he's never been part of a World Cup winning side, having been dropped from the team that won gold in Utrecht in 1998. Also, both his Olympic golds came when he was understudy to Jansen. So this, his last tournament, will be an opportunity to claim some personal glory.
He's been out of the Dutch team since the Olympics, with coach Michel van den Heuvel preferring to give his reserve goalkeepers some field time as he prepares for life post-Vogels.
This will most likely be the last World Cup for a number of Vogels' teammates as the likes of Teun de Nooijer, Ronald Broewer and Rob Reckers move towards the final stage of their career. This, feels Vogels, will be a huge motivating factor as the team looks to give its long-serving stars a winning send-off.
"We haven't thought about winning yet, but of course, every team wants to win the World Cup and we are no different. We have had a good start to the tournament and I personally have been quite happy with my form," he says.
The Dutch though, haven't won anything of note since the 2007 European Nations Cup and of late, their record in major tournaments hasn't been as good as they would have liked. Coach van den Heuvel, so successful with all-conquering Dutch club side HC Bloemendaal, hasn't quite found the winning formula at the very highest level so far, but the team's form in the tournament so far has put its major rivals on alert.
"I think the Dutch would be a good bet to win this one," feels Australian coach Ric Charlesworth. "They certainly have the experience, they have a great penalty corner and they have a very good goalkeeper."
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