Kookaburra is also the name of a Australian cricket and field hockey equipment manufacturer. Kookaburra cricket balls have been almost exclusively in the southern hemisphere since World War II. The Kookaburra dimpled hockey ball has been the official Olympic hockey ball since 1984. Kookaburra also make a wide range of cricket bats (as used by Ricky Ponting and Dean Jones), cricket shoes (as used by Brett Lee) and other cricket clothing.
Kookaburra Sport was created by the English born Alfred Thompson. He made assorted sporting balls including rugby and AFL. After World War II, the ACB wanted to have a standard cricket ball for all official matches. The A.G. Thompson "Kookaburra Turf" was selected as the preferred ball and to this day it still has a monopoly on the cricket ball industry. Kookaburra also make the white cricket ball used in one-day matches in Australia. The main feature of the "Kookaburra Turf" is the ability to retain its shine longer than any other cricket ball made in Australia (see cricket ball for why this is important).
The Kookaburras are also the national Australian field hockey team. They have achieved much success winning six Olympic medals, eighteen Champions Trophy medals and five World Cup medals. They are the only team to win three medals in the past three Olympics. Their pool for the upcoming Commonwealth Games includes: Scotland, South Africa and Malaysia.
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