Bay of Plenty's trio of women's Black Sticks remain firmly in the mix for a spot in the 2014 World Cup squad after making the cut to compete in the upcoming United States tournament.

Black Sticks head coach Mark Hager yesterday named a significantly different side for the February tournament, making it clear that positions are still up for grabs ahead June's World Cup.

Tauranga's Rose Keddell returns to the women's Black Sticks after a stint on the sideline with injury. Photo: Facebook

Tauranga's Sam Charlton and Gemma Flynn both retrain their spots in the side while Rose Keddell, returning from injury, is one of seven changes from the recent World League Final team.

Other changes include senior players Emily Naylor and Bianca Russell re-joining the team, young striker's Michaela Curtis and Sian Fremaux having the call-up while Stacey Michelsen and Aniwaka Roberts also return from injury.

'The team for the World Cup certainly isn't set in stone and this tournament is a chance to give others a chance to prove themselves. We need to improve our performance and be more consistent if we want to win medals at pinnacle events,” says Hager.

The USA Tournament, between February 6 and 20, sees the Black Sticks take on the United States and England as part of their preparation ahead of the pinnacle event of the year – the FIH 2014 World Cup in Holland in June.

'We are trying to get as much game time as possible before the World Cup. That is our key event for the year and if we want to be competitive against the top nations, we have to play those teams more.

Star player Stacey Michelsen injured herself in April this year and it has been a long road to recovery. Whether she makes this tour will be dependent on her taking a fitness test at the end of January.

The Black Sticks finished fifth at the World League Final in Argentina earlier this month after winning their final game against China 1-0.

2013 Black Sticks Women's – USA Team

Sam Charlton – Midlands

Sophie Cocks – Canterbury

Michaela Curtis – Central

Rhiannon Dennison – North Harbour

Krystal Forgesson – Auckland

Gemma Flynn – Midlands

Sian Fremaux – Canterbury

Amelia Gibson – Canterbury

Rose Keddell – Midlands

Olivia Merry – Canterbury

Stacey Michelsen – Northland

Emily Naylor – Central

Brooke Neal –Midlands

Anita Punt – Capital

Aniwaka Roberts – Capital

Bianca Russell – North Harbour

Kayla Sharland – Central

Liz Thompson – Auckland

Petrea Webster – North Harbour