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All the news for Sunday 1 June 2014

Kookaburras, Red Lions capture first wins of Pool A

Australia, Belgium men conquer opening matches of Rabobank Hockey World Cup


(Photo: Ali Lee)

Only two teams picked up wins on the opening day of the Rabobank Hockey World Cup for the men's Pool A. Australia and Belgium each earned three points, while England and Spain both failed to capitalise and drew 1-1. The Kookaburras cruised over Malaysia 4-0, while India pushed Belgium to the final whistle to trail 3-2 at the final horn.

MEN Pool A  Australia v Malaysia 4-0 (1-0)

Glenn Turner was the first name on the Rabobank Hockey World Cup score sheet as the number one ranked team, Australia, opened their account with a emphatic 4-0 victory over 13th-ranked Malaysia. The result was especially sweet for Rob Hammond, as he received his 250th cap. Jamie Dwyer and Eddie Ockenden each got on the board, while Turner capped it off with a second-half goal to lead the Kookaburras.

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MEN POOL A Belgium v India 3-2 (1-0)

John-John Dohmen was the toast of Belgium as the Red Dragons overcame stern resistance from India to take a 3-2 victory over their illustrious Asian opponents. Dohmen's late goal arrived with just 17 seconds on the clock, meaning that India didn't even have to time restart the game let alone go in search of a leveller. It was a fittingly dramatic end to a pulsating game in which both teams made massive contributions.

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MEN POOL A England v Spain 1-1 (1-0)

England and Spain played out a 1-1 draw in the final men's game on day one of the Rabobank Hockey World Cup and both teams will be disappointed not to have capitalised on chances created during the game. Alastair Brogdon opened the scoring in the 6th minute after blasting home a shot for England without being challenged. Spain's Eduard Tubau was credited the second-half equaliser thanks to a video referral.

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Men's action continues tomorrow, 1 June with Pool B match ups between Germany and South Africa (10:30 CET), Netherland and Argentina (16:00 CET) and New Zealand and Korea (17:30 CET). For full match schedules and live streaming visit www.rabobankhockeyworldcup2014.com

FIH site

Black Sticks, Hockeyroos and Netherlands triumph on Day 1

Seven-goal thriller sees Black Sticks triumph over Red Sticks, while Hockeyroos survive Korea, Netherlands dominate Japan


(Photo: Frank Uijlenbroek)

Day one of the Rabobank Hockey World Cup 2014 saw New Zealand, Australia and Netherlands each earn three points in Pool A. All three games were close encounters with the exception of the Netherlands, who triumphed 6-1 over Japan to wrap up the last game of the day.

WOMEN Pool A New Zealand v Belgium 4-3 (3-0)

New Zealand women got their Rabobank Hockey World Cup campaign off to the best possible start with a 4-3 victory over their lower-ranked rivals Belgium, but it was not the straightforward victory the Black Sticks seemed to be heading for over their more inexperienced rivals. A 3-0 half-time lead was almost overturned as the Red Panthers showed their mettle and determination to fight back.

Krystal Forgesson (20') put her team ahead with a deflected goal following a drag flick from Anita Punt and it was Forgesson again just six minutes later scoring her second in almost identical fashion. Punt, who worked tirelessly throughout the first half, drag-flicked her shot and Forgesson swooped on the dipping ball to slam it past Aisling D'Hooghe in the Red Panther's goal.

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WOMEN Pool A Australia v Korea 3-2 (1-1)

A closely-fought and thrilling encounter between the fourth-ranked team and the eighth-ranked team resulted in a 3-2 win for the Hockeyroos over a Korea side who will be disappointed not to have at least shared the points. Anna Flanagan tallied two goals for Australia, both on set pieces, while Emily Hurtz deflected in the Hockeyroos' first goal. For Korea, Eunbi Cheon had the game's first goal, while a late add from Seul Ki Cheon was too little, too late.

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WOMEN Pool A Netherlands v Japan 6-1 (3-0)

A capacity crowd were treated to a sumptuous example of flowing, attacking play and the first hat-trick of the Rabobank Hockey World Cup when reigning Olympic champions the Netherlands took to the field for the final game on day one of the tournament. The hat-trick hero was Kelly Jonkers as the Netherlands romped home to an emphatic 6-1 victory over the 9th-ranked team Japan in their opening match. Captain Maartje Paumen converted twice, first on a penalty corner and then again on a penalty stroke. The lone goal scorer for Japan was Akane Shibata in the 65th minute.

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Pool B for the women will pick up tomorrow, 1 June, beginning with England and USA (13:00 CET) and ending with Germany and China (14:30 CET) and Argentina and South Africa (19:45 CET). For full match summaries and schedule, visit www.rabobankhockeyworldcup2014.com

FIH site

Malaysia fall in opener

By Jugjet Singh   

THE Malaysian hockey team could only play well in patches and went down 4-0 to World No 1 Australia in the curtain raiser of the World Cup at the Hague, Netherlands yesterday.

The score was 1-0 at half-time, but World No 13 Malaysia let in three more soft goals in the second half.

Glenn Turner struck the first and last goals for the Kookaburras (in the 25th minute and 54th) while Eddie Ockenden (50th) and Jamie Dwyer (52nd) were on target in between.

All the second half goals were scored within four minutes as the Malaysian backline collapsed.

Only the heroics of S, Kumar, voted as Asia’s best goalkeeper, stopped at least seven Dutch attempts and saved Malaysian from a huge defeat.

Hours before the match against Australia, the Malaysian team were hit by the bad news that coach K. Dharmaraj’s father, R. Kanniah, had passed away in India.

Dharmaraj posted on his FaceBook: “Thank you all for your condolence messages with regard to my father's sudden demise. It has been a difficult moment with so many sad and bad news. Thanks for the kind words and concern.

“It is difficult but your words make me strong. Thank you again.”

The match statistics showed Australia had 11 shots at goal while Malaysia had only two. The Australians also had six penalty corners but they failed to score a single goal as Malaysia defended well.

The two penalty corners won by Malaysia were executed by Razie Rahim and Faizal Saari but they were superbly stopped by Australia’s first runners.

Malaysia will next play Belgium tomorrow.

RESULTS — GROUP A: Malaysia 0 Australia 4, Belgium 3 India 2.

MALAYSIA’S World Cup fixtures (Malaysian time) — Tomorrow: v Belgium (11.30pm); Thursday: v England (7pm); Saturday: v India (8.30pm); June 9: v Spain (8.30pm).

New Straits Times

Malaysia off to losing start at The Hague

By S. Ramaguru


Glenn Turner scores the first goal for Australia against Malaysia in the Group A World Cup match at The Hague on Saturday. Australia went on to win 4-0. - EPA

THE HAGUE: Malaysia’s first match back in the hockey World Cup fold, after a 12-year absence, ended with a 4-0 bashing by world No. 1 and defending champions Australia at the Kyocera Stadium in The Hague, Holland.

Malaysia did well to restrict Australia to just a one-goal lead in the first half of their Group A match – courtesy of a Glenn Turner solo effort in the 26th minute.

But the floodgates opened after the breather as the Australians added three more goals in a four-minute blitz – through Eddie Ockenden (50th), Jamie Dwyer (52nd) and Turner (54th).

After finding themselves in the wilderness for 12 years, the defeat clearly illustrates the wide gulf that separates the boys from the men.

The first 11 who started the match – S. Kumar, Mohd Razie Rahim, Mohd Shukri Mutalib, Azlan Misron, Faiz Helmi, Fitri Saari, Faizal Saari, Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin, Ismail Abu, Nabil Fiqri Mohd Nor, Mohd Firhan Azhaari – were all making their World Cup debut.

Just before the match began, a minute’s silence was observed in honour of the late Sultan Azlan Shah, who passed away on Wednesday.

The late Sultan Azlan was widely acknowledged as the “Father of Malaysian hockey”. He was the longest-serving president of the then Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF), having taken over as president in 1976 from former Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak. He remained at the helm until 2005.

The Malaysian players also wore black armbands in the match against Australia.

It may have been a losing start, but the national players were certainly not overawed.

Defender Shukri said that they were confident of doing well, “although we knew it would be tough against the Australians”.

“We did not fear them and the first half was good for us. We showed that we were up to the task. But we let out guard down in the second half,” he said.

“You cannot do that against such a good team. We conceded the goals through our own mistakes and made them look good. Let this be a lesson to all of us.”

National coach K. Dharmaraj hopes that his men will learn from their mistakes as well.

“We stopped their penalty corners (seven) but let in field goals. I’m proud of the way my men performed out there, considering it was their first World Cup match,” he said.

“Izad (Hakimi Jamaluddin) was also okay despite having just arrived here from the airport. I played him in the forward line to let him get used to the atmosphere. He will need to rest properly first.”

Izad was flown in to replace defender Kevin Lim, who has been ruled out of the tournament after pulling a hamstring during a friendly on Thursday.

Izad arrived at The Hague from Kuala Lumpur at 7.30am and rushed straight to the stadium for the opening tie.

But the way Australia played, not even the presence of Kevin could have made much difference.

Australian coach Ric Charlesworth said that they were relieved to get the match out of the way.

“It was not a top-class show from us but we got the job done. We took too long to score and were not able to get it right at the start,” he said.

“Malaysia are always a difficult team to play against and they have good counter attacks. So, we’re pleased to have got three points and start off on a positive note.”

Malaysia’s second group match is against Belgium tomorrow.

The Star of Malaysia

England take point against Spain at World Cup


England's Alastair Brogdon scores the opening goal against Spain at the 2014 Rabobank World Cup

England’s first game of the Rabobank World Cup was against world number 10 side Spain. Alastair Brogdon gave England the lead inside six minutes as Bobby Crutchley’s side dominated the first half with a host of chances, but Spain came back at England in the second thirty five minutes and Eduard Tubau pulled the crucial goal back to take a share of the spoils in the Pool A match.

Iain Lewers did not play today after suffering a dead leg in last weekend’s game against Australia.

Speaking after the game England Head Coach Bobby Crutchley said, “The game showed a lot of what we’re about. There was some really good hockey in there and we created plenty of chances. We played particularly well in the first half and then we lost some control in the second half and that’s when they put us under pressure, but overall we played very well.”

“We’re a bit frustrated not to win having created so many chances, but it’s a long tournament and they are a good team so one point is a decent start and we’ll move on and build on it for India on Monday.”

England Captain Barry Middleton added, "In the first half we played some really good hockey and deserved to be in the lead. In the second half they changed some things and made it harder for us and we made a few mistakes. I hope it was exciting to watch. It felt exciting to play in, which is what we want. We want to win but we want to go about it by playing good and exciting hockey. If they get a goal like they did it’s a shame but that’s the way it goes.”

“We want to create chances. We said to the guys at half time that as long as we create chances we don’t have to change anything. There’s no sense in getting frustrated when things don’t quite go to plan; that won’t get you anywhere. We want to keep doing the things we’re good at. Sometimes they go in and other days they don’t. That’s hockey for you.”

Match overview

Wimbledon’s Alastair Brogdon put England in the driving seat after just six minutes with a fantastic shot in space from the top of the circle after Nick Catlin had played the ball through to find the Wimbledon forward.

A goal up, England looked confident and dominated play. Midway through the first half a great piece of set play from England saw both Barry Middleton and Adam Dixon fire shots towards Quico Cortes in Spain’s goal, but Cortes and a wide shot kept Spain within just one goal. England queued up the chances, Dixon, Mark Gleghorne and Catlin all came close to converting, but it remained 1-0 at half-time as the packed stadium basked in the evening sun.

With just two minutes gone in the second half Spain levelled the score through Eduard Tubau, who got the faintest of touches on a ball fired into the circle from long-range. George Pinner in England’s goal hardly reacted and a hit-out to England was initially given, but Spain referred and the replays confirmed the touch.

At 1-1 the game was poised for a big finish, but both sides showed signs of nervousness and a few mistakes started to creep into England’s game for the first time. Despite a handful of opportunities England were unable to capitalise and the game finished 1-1.

England men’s next game is against India on Monday at 1500 (BST).

ENGLAND 1 (1)
Alastair Brogdon 6 (FG)

SPAIN 1 (0)
Eduard Tubau 37 (FG)

England’s women play tomorrow in their first game against the USA at 1200 (BST).  All matches will be shown live on Sky Sports with expert analysis from a host of international stars including Kwan Browne and Chloe Rogers.

England Hockey Board Media release

England stretch winless run against Spain to 23 years with 1-1 draw in World Cup

Alastair Brogdon's fifth-minute goal cancelled out by late, lucky deflection in The Hague

By Rod Gilmour


Battle: England's Alastair Brogdon competes against Spain's Ramon Alegre in The Hague Photo: EPA

If there are unwanted records in hockey, then England’s one against Spain must rank up there after Bobby Crutchley’s men’s side could only muster a 1-1 draw in their opening World Cup game in The Hague.

Their winless run against the Spanish now stretches back to 1991 as England failed to capitalise on a fifth-minute strike by Alastair Brogdon, the Wimbledon forward. His goal was cancelled out moments into the second half by a late, lucky deflection by Eduard Tubau.

Played out on the smaller pitch adjacent to the Kyocera Stadium, England will now hope for an improved performance in front of goal against India on Monday in the main arena.

“We have pace in our team and it is one of our strengths, so we are disappointed we couldn’t get over the line,” Brogdon said.

England had got their campaign off to the perfect start. Although Brogdon’s goal was struck with enough venom past Quico Cortes to power several local windmills, the Spanish defence was perhaps backing off with one eye on the advancing Barry Middleton, England’s captain.

It was the perfect start against a side who punch well above their world ranking, thanks to limited funding to play the top tournaments. But England, who rested Iain Lewers after the Holcombe defender suffered a dead leg, could not add polish and should have been three goals ahead before the break, chances falling to Tom Carson and Adam Dixon.

Just before the hooter, Middleton was hauled down in the Spanish half and England immediately countered. The England captain fizzed one across goal, but Nick Catlin, lurking two yards out, could not lift it over Cortes.

England were made to pay a minute after the restart when Sergi Enrique slapped one towards the D. Tubau, with his back to goal, somehow managed to find the edge of his stick as well as the back of the net. Chances were few thereafter.

England women get their campaign under way on Sunday against the United States.

The Telegraph

Kookaburras open with win

World Cup title defence begins with victory over Malaysia in The Hague



The Kookaburras’ defence of their 2010 World Cup title began with a 4-0 victory over Malaysia in the tournament’s opening game in The Hague on Saturday.

Prolific forward Glenn Turner’s raceaway goal in the 25th minute set the Kookaburras on their way ahead of a commanding second half performance where goals in quick succession from Eddie Ockenden, Jamie Dwyer and Turner again put them in the driving seat.

Three-time World Cup winning coach Ric Charlesworth declared he was happy with his side’s opening performance. He said, “The first game is always difficult. I think [in] the first game of the tournament everyone is a bit anxious and things are just being sorted out but I’m pleased with the result. I think the quality of our field play was pretty good. I was happy with the speed of the ball and the movements of the players. We didn’t finish well enough and I think that’s obvious, we can improve on that. And the aim, of course, is to play better as the tournament goes on.

“In the first or second minute one of our players saved a goal from one of our players on the goal line and if that had gone in it may have been different. The game may have opened up earlier. But as it was we had to fight very hard for the second goal, and then the third and fourth.

“We took a long time to score. We were our own worst enemy. We made a bunch of chances in the first half and didn’t finish. It was attritional for a long time but in the end I’m happy with the win. We get the game out of the way, we are into the tournament. Malaysia can be a difficult team, they can break on the counter and you have to be vigilant."

The Kookaburras were awarded six penalty corners but unusually failed to capitalise from any of them. Charlesworth added, “We were weren’t so good [at penalty corners] today. The goalkeeper made some good saves and the other ones we didn’t finish. So that’s always a worry but they’ve been good until now so I’m happy with where we’re at.”

Turner’s opening goal, a cool flick on the breakaway after Fergus Kavanagh’s pinpoint pass, was no less than the Kookaburras deserved. Simon Orchard had already blocked teammate Kieran Govers’ goal-bound shot in the second minute, Jake Whetton had narrowly failed to divert Jamie Dwyer’s deflection on target and Govers’ foot connected before his stick while through behind the goalkeeper.

Tasmanian Ockenden doubled he Kookaburras’ advantage with a low tomahawk strike into the bottom corner after cutting into the circle from the right hand side. Two minutes later Jamie Dwyer put the result beyond doubt and Turner promptly made it 4-0 with a back post diversion of Chris Ciriello’s ball into the circle.

Late on, goalkeeper Andrew Charter was called upon to save smartly from Firham Ashari.

Playing his third World Cup, the match marked a milestone for two time Olympian Rob Hammond who made his 250th appearance in the match.

Rabobank Hockey World Cup
Men's Tournament
Pool A
Match 1

KOOKABURRAS 4 (1)
Glenn Turner 25, 54 (FG, FG)
Eddie Ockenden 50 (FG)
Jamie Dwyer 52 (FG)

MALAYSIA 0 (0)
-

Kookaburras’ squad v Malaysia
Athlete (Home town, State) Caps/Goals [Age]
Started
Andrew Charter (Canberra, ACT) 64/0 [27]
Chris Ciriello (Melbourne, VIC) 134/78 [28]
Tim Deavin (Launceston, TAS) 85/3 [30]
Jamie Dwyer (Rockhampton, QLD) 315/204 [35]
Kieran Govers (Wollongong, NSW) 87/42 [26]
Mark Knowles (Rockhampton, QLD) 233/19 [30]
Eddie Ockenden (Hobart, TAS) 209/53 [27]
Simon Orchard (Maitland, NSW) 144/46 [27]
Matthew Swann (Mackay, QLD) 101/5 [24]
Jake Whetton (Brisbane, QLD) 56/23 [22]
Aran Zalewski (Margaret River, WA) 31/3 [23]

Used Substitute
Liam De Young (Brisbane, QLD) 306/34 [32]
Glenn Turner (Goulburn, NSW) 106/78 [30]
Rob Hammond (Townsville, QLD) 250/28 [33]
Matt Gohdes (Rockhampton, QLD) 88/25 [24]
Jeremy Hayward (Darwin, NT) 11/3 [21]
Fergus Kavanagh (Geraldton, WA) 179/14 [29]

Unused Substitute
Tyler Lovell (Perth, WA) 23/0 [27]

Hockey Australia media release

Roos rebound to win opener

Anna Flanagan doubles up & Emily Hurtz strikes to earn win over Korea


Anna Flanagan celbrating Photo credit: Grant Treeby / Treeby Images

The Hockeyroos got their World Cup campaign off to the best possible start in testing circumstances as they came from behind to beat Korea 3-2 in The Hague on Saturday.

Missing captain Madonna Blyth to a calf strain sustained in training on Friday, they found themselves behind to a seventh minute goal but rebounded to score three times before holding out for a nervy final five minutes after a late Korean strike.

Emily Hurtz’s neat finish at the back post from Georgie Parker’s threaded pass levelled things in the 12th minute after Eunbl Cheon’s opener and the Hockeyroos made their set pieces count to devastating effect in the second half. Anna Flanagan fired high into the goal from a penalty corner earned on video referral before Casey Eastham won a penalty stroke from a corner, which Flanagan converted low into the bottom of the goal.

Just as things might have looked more comfortable for the girls in gold, Korea pulled one back with just over five minutes remaining, setting up a nervy final period. With the ball breaking loose in the centre of the circle, Seul Ki Cheon fired into the top corner, lifting the ball over the diving glove of goalkeeper Rachael Lynch.

Despite the setback the Hockeyroos regrouped, defending resolutely and maintaining possession to thwart the late Korean push for an equaliser.

National coach Adam Commens said afterwards, “We knew before we started the game and the tournament that the match against Korea would be a very difficult one. They’re a team that normally begins tournaments well and we thought it would be tricky. We saw that in the first half; they began strong. I thought that we built into the game and throughout the second half we played some good hockey. During that period we controlled the match well and I was pleased with the efforts of our players to take their opportunities well. The last five or six minutes were a little disappointing, to let them back into the game, but ultimately we got the three points and that’s what we were after.”

The Hockeyroos, led by Casey Eastham, played with 17 players as Blyth supported her teammates from the dugout.

Speaking about double Olympian and World Cup silver medallist Blyth, Commens said, “It happened yesterday at training – [in] our last training session. She felt it and as we know with those types of injuries you don’t feel them coming on, it’s just slightly sore. We made the decision to rest her. Our focus is the end of the tournament. I think it says something about our team and the confidence we have in it that we can play against a quality nation like Korea and take the option to rest our captain. She could have played but we didn’t want the injury to worsen for later in the tournament.

“We’d like her to play [against Japan on Monday]. Obviously it’s not ideal to have her sitting off for too long but as you know with these type of injuries it’s five to seven days normally. Belgium is in five days but we’ll monitor each day, do a small fitness test but right now she’s resting; she didn’t warm up or do anything.”

The Hockeyroos face Japan in their second match of the tournament at 18:30 AEST on Monday.

World Cup
The Hague, Netherlands
Pool A | Match 1

HOCKEYROOS: 3 (1)
Emily Hurtz 12 (FG)
Anna Flanagan 49, 57 (PC, PS)     

KOREA: 2 (1)
Eunbl Cheon 7 (FG)
Seul Ki Cheon 63 (FG)     

Hockeyroos’ squad v Korea
Athlete (Hometown, State) Caps/Goals [Age]
Started
Eddie Bone (Evatt, ACT) 41/2 [26]
Jane Claxton (Adelaide, SA) 42/4 [21]
Casey Eastham (South Coast, NSW) 204/44 [25]
Anna Flanagan (Canberra, ACT) 125/25 [22]
Jodie Kenny (Wamuran, QLD) 107/53 [26]
Rachael Lynch (Warrandyte, VIC) 106/0 [27]
Karri McMahon (Berri, SA) 40/4 [22]
Ashleigh Nelson (Wagin, WA) 149/61 [27]
Georgie Parker (Berri, SA) 57/16 [25]
Emily Smith (Crookwell, NSW) 87/35 [21]
Kellie White (Crookwell, NSW) 77/24 [22]

Used Substitute
Kirstin Dwyer (Mackay, QLD) 49/2 [25]
Emily Hurtz (Camden, NSW) 79/30 [24]
Kate Jenner (Tamworth, NSW) 96/1 [24]
Georgia Nanscawen (Melbourne, VIC) 125/23 [22]
Jayde Taylor (Bunbury, WA) 95/1 [29]

Unused Substitute
Madonna Blyth (Brisbane, QLD) 281/65 [28]
Ashlee Wells (Morwell, VIC) 33/0 [24]

Hockey Australia media release

Australian men and women win at hockey World Cup

THE HAGUE (Netherlands): Defending champion Australia got off to a winning start Saturday at the field hockey World Cup, overwhelming Malaysia in the second half to win 4-0.

In the other men's matches, John-John Dohmen grabbed a last-minute winner as Belgium edged India 3-2 and Spain held England to a 1-1 draw on the opening day of the tournament in The Hague.

Australia's women also won their first match, beating South Korea 3-2 after falling behind early. New Zealand's women raced to a four-goal lead over Belgium before conceding three in a 10-minute spell in the second half and then holding on for a 4-3 victory.

Olympic women's champion the Netherlands was playing Japan in the final match of the day.

The Times of India

Aussies thrash Malaysia in World Cup opener


THE HAGUE: Australia’s Simon Orchard (R) fights for the ball with Faizal Saari of Malaysia during their World Cup match at the Kyocera Stadium on Saturday.—AFP

THE HAGUE: Malaysia’s first match back in the hockey World Cup fold after a 12-year absence ended with a 4-0 bashing by world No. 1 and defending champions Australia at the Kyocera Stadium on Saturday.

Just before the match began, a minute’s silence was observed in honour of the late Sultan Azlan Shah, who passed away on Wednesday.

Malaysia had to call on replacement player Izad (Hakimi Jamal­uddin) who was flown in to replace defender Kevin Lim, who has been ruled out of the tournament after pulling a hamstring during a friendly on Thursday. Izad arrived at The Hague from Kuala Lumpur at 7.30am and rushed straight to the stadium for the opening tie.

Malaysia did well to restrict Australia to just a one-goal lead in the first half of their Group A match — courtesy of a Glenn Turner solo effort in the 26th minute. But the floodgates opened after the breather as the Australians added three more goals in a four-minute blitz — through Eddie Ockenden (50th), Jamie Dwyer (52nd) and Turner (54th).

The late Sultan Azlan was widely acknowledged as the “Father of Malaysian hockey”. The Malaysian players also wore black armbands in the match against Australia.

It may have been a losing start, but the national players were certainly not overawed. Defender Shukri said that they were confident of doing well, “although we knew it would be tough against the Australians”. “We did not fear them and the first half was good for us. We showed that we were up to the task. But we let out guard down in the second half,” he said.

“You cannot do that against such a good team. We conceded the goals through our own mistakes and made them look good. Let this be a lesson to all of us.”

But the way Australia played, not even the presence of Kevin could have made much difference. Australian coach Ric Charlesworth said that they were relieved to get the match out of the way. “It was not a top-class show from us but we got the job done. We took too long to score and were not able to get it right at the start,” he said.

“Malaysia are always a difficult team to play against and they have good counter attacks. So, we’re pleased to have got three points and start off on a positive note.”

Malaysia’s second group match is against Belgium tomorrow.

Dawn

Australia drubs Malaysia 4-0 in hockey WC opener

Title defenders Australia started their hockey World Cup campaign in The Hague with a 4-0 win over Malaysia in the opening match on Saturday.

Glenn Turner put the Kookaburras ahead in the 25th minute before three goals in a four-minute spell in the second.

Eddie Ockenden doubled the lead on 50 minutes and Jamie Dwyer put his name on the score sheet a couple of minutes later. Turner added his second goal when converting a penalty corner to extend the lead to 4-0.

The Hindu

Black Sticks Women win World Cup opener


Sophie Cocks takes a shot at goal, courtesy Dirk Markgraf www.265-images.com

The Black Sticks Women have opened their Hockey World Cup campaign with a 4-3 win over Belgium at Kyocera Stadium in The Hague.

New Zealand dominated the first 40 minutes of the game, leading 4-0 thanks to a first half double from Krystal Forgesson and goals from Anita Punt and Kayla Whitelock.

Belgium mounted a remarkable comeback in the second half with three unanswered goals, but the Black Sticks were able to regain composure and secure three valuable points for the win.

Head coach Mark Hager was pleased to come away with a win but said there was plenty to build on going into their next game.

“We saw Belgium as a real danger team here, we’d heard some good results and knew it would be tough so we are happy to come away with three points,” he said.

“It was hot out there today and I thought we did really well in the first half, scoring from our first three penalty corners which took some pressure off.

“In the second half we let them back into the game. They played really well and we put ourselves under pressure by not holding the ball for long enough periods or finishing chances.”

From the opening whistle the Black Sticks played with composure and control, and it wasn’t long until they began to take control of the game.

Strikers Gemma Flynn and Sophie Cocks put in plenty of work up front early in the first half and created several great chances.

But it was Forgesson who scored New Zealand’s first goal at the World Cup, deflecting in a penalty corner drag flick from Anita Punt in the 18th minute.

Eight minutes later Forgesson was on the scoreboard again after pouncing on a loose ball in the circle and flicking over the goalkeeper who had just blocked a shot.

The Black Sticks rounded out the first half three from three penalty corners with Punt flicking low and hard into the left corner on the stroke of halftime to give her side a 3-0 lead.

Captain Kayla Whitelock added to the score sheet nine minutes into the second half, tapping in a nice bounce pass around the keeper by Sophie Cocks.

The momentum swung as time wore on and after scoring three unanswered goals, Belgium battled desperately in search of an equaliser during the final 10 minutes.

The Black Sticks Women play Korea in their second Pool A game on Tuesday 3rd June at 12:30am (NZ time), with live coverage on SKY Sport 3.

Meanwhile, the Black Sticks Men open their World Cup at 3:30am tomorrow morning (NZ time) against Korea in Pool B.

BLACK STICKS 4: (Krystal Forgesson 2, Anita Punt, Kayla Whitelock)
BELGIUM 3: (Barbara Nelen, Emelie Sinia, Stephanie Vanden Borre)
Halftime: Black Sticks 3-0

Hockey New Zealand Media release

Black Sticks women win World Cup opener

MATT RICHENS

The New Zealand women's hockey team kicked their World Cup hockey campaign off with a win, but still have plenty to work on.

The Black Sticks beat Belgium 4-3 in their tournament opener, in The Hague overnight.

The game remained scoreless for the opening 20 minutes before Krystal Forgesson struck first for New Zealand, from their first penalty corner.

Forgesson got low and deflected Anita Punt's drag flick into the top of the goal.

New Zealand scored twice more in the first half, through Forgesson again after a scramble from the side's second penalty corner and through Punt directly from their third.

Captain Kayla Whitelock scored the side's fourth, nine minutes into the second spell when she tapped in Sophie Cocks' bounce pass inside the Belgium circle.

The Belgians fought back well scoring three goals in the next nine minutes as, for a short spell at least, New Zealand had no answer.

The third goal came in controversial fashion.

A penalty corner was called after the ball looked to have hit Samantha Charlton. Charlton immediately appealed the decision and was adamant the ball had, legally, struck her hand on her stick. Replays proved inconclusive and to the New Zealand side's dismay, the penalty corner stood.

The first attempt led to another penalty corner which in turn led to a penalty stroke.

New Zealand goal keeper Sally Rutherford got a touch on Stephanie De Groof's stroke, but it was still converted.

That left New Zealand with a nervous 15-minutes to defend including two more Belgian penalty corners, but Mark Hager's side held on to win.

In other matches in the women's tournament, Australia beat Korea 3-2 and hosts and world No 1 the Netherlands thumped Japan 6-0.

Australia had an opening win in the men's tournament, 4-0 over Malaysia, Belgium beat India 3-2 while England and Spain drew 1-1.

Result: New Zealand 4: (Krystal Forgesson 2, Anita Punt, Kayla Whitelock) Belgium 3: (Barbara Nelen, Emelie Sinia, Stephanie De Groof) HT: New Zealand 3-0.

Stuff

Heart-break for India in opener

Concedes a goal with just seconds left on the clock

India’s shaky defence conceded a goal 15 seconds from time to go down 2-3 to Belgium in its opening game of the World Cup at the Kyocera Stadium here on Saturday.

The Indian defenders allowed space inside the circle to the Belgians, who were frustrated and under pressure after being tied 2-2 going into the final minute of play.

The last-gasp attempt by Belgium saw the ball being switched around to leave the Indians confused and John-John Dohmen managed to push ball over the goalline in a scrimmage.

The last-minute goal undid India’s good show in the second session when it rallied from a one-goal deficit to lead 2-1 to the surprise of the crowd comprising overwhelmingly of Belgium supporters.

Belgium took the lead in the 34th minute through Florent van Aubel before India scored two field goals through Mandeep Singh (45th minute) and Akashdeep Singh (50th).

Belgium equalised on a set-piece penalty corner conversion by Simon Gougnard in the 56th minute and India created openings at the other end before Dohmen got the final-minute winner.

Belgium dominated the game from the beginning, forcing the Indian players to strengthen the defence.

The defenders did quite well to deny the rival strikers and goalkeeper P.R. Sreejesh was, as usual, outstanding under the bar.

He blocked two attempts but was sadly beaten by a deflection just a minute before half-time.

Arthur van Doren’s diagonal ball into the circle was deflected by van Aubel into the right corner of the goal past Sreejesh.

The results:

Men: Australia 4 (Glenn Turner 25 & 54, Eddie Ockenden 50, Jamie Dwyer 52) bt Malaysia 0.

Belgium 3 (Florent van Aubel 34, Simon Gougnard 56, John-John Dohmen 70) bt India 2 (Mandeep Singh 45, Akashdeep Singh 50).

Women: New Zealand 4 (Krystal Forgesson 20 & 26, Anita Punt 35, Kayla Whitelock 44) bt Belgium 3 (Barbara Nelen 46, Emille Sinla 49, Stephanie de Groof 55).

Australia 3 (Emily Hurtz 12, Anna Flanagan 49 & 57) bt Korea 2 (Eun Bi Cheon 7, Seul Ki Cheon 63).

The Hindu

Dying moments return to haunt

Old flailing of losing grip in last minutes strike again as India concede winner to Belgium with 12 seconds to final whistle

V Krishnaswamy


Belgium’s Simon Gougnard (R) vies for the ball with India’s Sardar Singh during their World Cup hockey match at the Hague on Saturday AFP

India squandered a great opportunity in their opening match against Belgium in the Rabobank Hockey World Cup. Twenty minutes away from glory after snatching a 2-1 lead against the run of play, they still had a draw to look forward to with 12 seconds on the clock against World No. 5 Belgium. Then, that old failing – the inability to keep possession in the dying minutes of match cost them dearly as they lost 2-3 to Belgium, who led 1-0 at half-time.

Indians were outplayed for most of the first half when they gave too much space to the Belgian strikers, and it stayed so for the first 10-15 minutes of second half. The Belgian strikers be it John-John Dohmen, Tom Boom or Simon Gougnard, kept squandering decent chances. But it was not just them messing up, Indian goalkeeper Sreejesh also held the Indian flag aloft with a highly performance.

After holding out for 34 minutes, mainly due to the brilliance of their goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, who had a superb game, India conceded the first goal with just over a minute left in the first half. Florent van Aubel making good a slapshot put Belgium ahead in the 34th minute.

In the second half India seemed to be more visible in the frame. Mandeep Singh made good a square pass from Dharamvir Singh, who had got the ball from Gurbaj Singh to get Indian to 1-1 in the 45th minute of the game.

Then against the run of play Akashdeep Singh scored a beauty after being left unmarked inside the striking circle. He neatly deflected a long strike from VS Raghunath, who otherwise had a mediocre game.

Despite Belgium going all out the Indians managed to hang in by a slender thread. Belgium, who have never finished higher than eighth at the World Cup but are now looking to take a medal, wasted no less than four penalty corners, before Gougnard converted the fifth to restore parity in the match.

Once they found the equaliser, the Belgians saw new hope. But they were unable to find the goal as chances went abegging.

With the match seemingly destined for a draw, the Belgians made one final lunge as the Indians tried to dribble their way out of trouble in their own half, rather than clear the ball. They dispossessed the Indians and got into the target zone.

With the ball getting switched around between the Belgians, Dohnen, who had his share of misses in the match, found the target from close with a nice tap as the Indian defence ran all over in confusion. The clock showed 12 seconds and there was no time even for a re-start.

"They (Belgium) had the first half and we had the second. But I suppose they had the first half by a better share (possession) than us in second. I won't say we deserved a point or not, in the end you get what you deserve," said the normal smiling Terry Walsh, as the disappointment showed through.

Walsh, who took over as the Indian coach about six months ago, added, "We should have got a point from there." But then of his own accord, shook his head, his mind probably still re-playing that last minute disaster of young Mandeep Singh being unable to hold the ball with less than a minute to go.

On the question of pressure and expectation, Walsh added, "I would say the pressure is great on teams like Belgium. The pressure on is something others may put. But I would say the way we are playing the big teams now is way better than what we were doing earlier."

Skipper Sardar Singh, also hugely disappointed, said, "They were dominating in the first half, but we held out as Sreejesh did a great job in the goal. We also did well to catch up and then even take lead. It was disappointing to see them equalise as we made small mistakes here and then and then in the last minute, it was a huge error. It a not a very good start for the team and we will have to push ourselves a little more harder now."

DNA

Belgium beat India 3-2 in hockey World Cup opener

THE HAGUE (Netherlands): India's shaky defence conceded a goal 15 seconds from the hooter to go down 2-3 against Belgium in their opening game of hockey World Cup at the Kyocera Stadium on Saturday.

The Indian defenders allowed space inside the circle to the Belgians, who were frustrated and under pressure after being tied 2-2 going into the final minute of play.

The last-gasp attempt by Belgium saw the ball being switched around to leave the Indians confused and John-John Dohmen managed to push ball over the goal-line in a scrimmage.

The last-minute goal undid India's good show in the second session when they rallied from a one-goal deficit to lead 2-1 to the surprise of the crowd comprising overwhelmingly of Belgium supporters.

Belgium took the initial lead in the 34th minute through Florent van Aubel before India scored two field goals through Mandeep Singh (45th minute) and Akashdeep Singh (50th).

Belgium equalised on a set-piece penalty corner conversion Simon Gougnard in the 56th minute and India created a openings at the other end before Dohmen got the final-minute winner.

Belgium dominated the game from the beginning, pushing Indian players to fall back into their half to strengthen the defense.

The Indian defence did well to deny the rival strikers many shots at the goal. P.R. Sreejesh played an outstanding game under the bar and blocked two goalwards shots before being beaten by a deflection just one minute before half-time.

Arthur van Doren's diagonal ball into the circle was deflected by van Aubel into the right corner of the Indian goal past the outstretched arm of the custodian.

The Indian team felt the ball had gone off van Doren's foot and sought a video review, but the goal was upheld after being reviewed twice and Belgium went into the second half was a 1-0 lead.

The Indians failed to mount many raids as they seemed to effortlessly give the ball away after defending stoutly, which enabled the Belgians to keep mounting regular attacks.

But on one occasion, India could have spelt trouble for the rivals when Sreejesh palmed away a penalty corner shot and skipper Sardar Singh relayed a long ball on the right flank to unmarked Akashdeep, who failed to trap the ball and let away the best chance to assert pressure in the first session.

India were back on level terms 10 minutes into the second session on a move Gurbaz Singh where Dharamvir Singh squared the ball to Mandeep to shoot in.

Against the run of play, India went into the lead in the 50th minute when V.S. Raghunath sent a diagonal ball from left into the circle and Akahsdeep's deflection soared into the net past the bewildered goalkeeper.

Belgium were rattled by this reverse, but continued to assert pressure and got the equaliser on a set-piece attempt in what was the only conversion from six penalty corners.

India's lone penalty corner came in the 66th minute, but Rupinder Pal Singh sent the drag-flick wide over the cross-bar.

The Times of India

India lose to Belgium in opener

As usual, team concedes a goal in the dying seconds to go down 2-3

The Hague - India suffered a heart-breaking loss in their opening match of the Hockey World Cup as Belgium scored in the final seconds to win 3-2.

After going down 0-1, India made a spirited comeback to take a 2-1 lead. Mandeep Singh and Akashdeep Singh scored from India's only shots on target.

Belgium drew level in the 56th minute but it looked like India were going to hold on before John-John Dohmen scored with just 17 seconds on the clock, meaning that India didn't even have the time restart the game let alone go in search of a leveller. It was a fittingly dramatic end to a pulsating game in which both teams made massive contributions. Belgium fired nine shots on target in the match as opposed to India's three and if it weren't for Indian goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, the match would have had a very different scoreline.

The opening stages of the match were evenly contested, although there weren't many clear cut scoring opportunities. India's defensive line held Belgium's live-wire attackers at bay though India goalkeeper Sreejesh was forced into making a reflexive save from a close range deflection midway through the period.

Belgium slowly began to take control of the contest as the half progressed, and would have taken the lead were it not for more outstanding work from Sreejesh who made a string of unbelievable blocks including a fine save from Tom Boon's ferocious penalty corner drag-flick.

Despite Sreejesh's heroics, Belgium eventually opened the scoring a minute before the half time break thanks to a close range diving deflection from Florent van Aubel at the fat post, which was awarded following a video referral.

Despite conceding late in the first half, India came out firing at the start of the second period but were unable to break down the Belgian defence. That all changed in the 45th minute when Mandeep Singh expertly poached a goal from close range, before Akashdeep Singh moved India ahead with a wonderful sliding deflection five minutes later. Belgium were rattled, but were soon back on level terms thanks to a gloriously worked penalty corner routine in the 56th minute. Simon Gougnard was the scorer, emphatically slamming home Boon's perfectly weighed pass before Dohmen's late, late winner.

Oz thrash Malaysia 4-0

Australia started their World Cup defence in the Netherlands with a 4-0 win over Malaysia.

Glenn Turner put the Kookaburras ahead in the 25th minute before three goals in a four-minute spell in the second. Eddie Ockenden doubled the lead on 50 minutes and Jamie Dwyer put his name on the score sheet a couple of minutes later. Turner added his second goal when converting a penalty corner to extend the lead to 4-0. Australian coach Ric Charlesworth said he was happy with how his side opened their World Cup defence. "I think the quality of our field play was pretty good," he said. "I was happy with the speed of the ball and the movements of the players. "We didn't finish well enough and I think that's obvious, we can improve on that. And the aim, of course, is to play better as the tournament goes on.” — Agencies

TODAY’S MATCHES

* Germany vs SA (2PM)
* Netherlands vs Argentina (7.30PM)
* New Zealand vs Korea (9PM)
* LIVE ON TEN SPORTS

The Tribune

Opinion: Belgium deserved the win

K. Arumugam

Indian team may have been heartbroken on losing the opener to Belgium conceding a goal in the dying moments, but seen in its entirety the victor deserved it, rather earned it.

Any other results would have been unfair, much against what has transpired on the ground.

India played a perfect defensive hockey in the first half like the Europeans of the 80s and 90s, and were distinctly lucky not to concede more than a solitary goal.

Absence of penalty corner executioner in Loick Luypaert helped India unhurt despite conceding half a dozen penalty corners. In the entire first half, Belgians were on top. Entire Indian team defended. But there were positives here, though it seemed a dull and boring part from India.

India did not panic, withstood the onslaught. PR Sreejesh churned out another of good performance.

Even Sardar Singh, who was playing like a centre-forward, had to revert back to midfield midway through first half – and in the second half he was full of a defender.

On a few occasions Indian made inroads in the first half, unusually off colour SV Sunil messed it up.

When the attacks are were few and far between his failure to stop and send the ball across the circle on either flank stood out. He messed up whatever little headway Indian forwards made in the first half.

What one has to ponder over is the fact that India conceded a goal in the last minutes of either half. This brings to the mind the question of closing down the game. Though it is easy to articulate the last second goals – one here, another at Monchengladbach in the opener against Germany in 2006 World Cup, and many more – the point is whether India deserved to win on a particular day.

India did not here on Saturday. So was at Monchegladbach. India’s strength, as I observed in the preview, was penalty corners, getting adequate number of them.

Belgians conceded just one speaks volume of their precise work on the defence.

The Belgians were fast, precise and never gave up. Once India took 2-1 lead and then meandering for 2-2 draw, it relaxed a bit. Its here, the mindset of foreseeing the result rather than forcing the result it wants, that counts.

Giving away a goal when 8,10 seconds left in the clock is not the way one would have lost the match, but the reality is India could have lost the opener bigger way.

Barring a 10,15 minutes spell in the second half, India was under the control of the Belgians. They never gave up. They rotated the ball faster and better. They were a better side. They deserved the outright win. That they got in the dying moments of the game is an academic thing.

Stick2Hockey.com

India lost the matches in seconds

Statistics by B. G. JOSHI

The term pal is a unit of time in Indian culture, and is equivalent to 24 seconds. The following is a list of 8 World Level (FIH tourneys) hockey matches played by India where important match have been lost with only pal-do-pal (around a minute) left in the game.

2014 World Cup-The Hague, BEL 3-IND 2

22 seconds were on clock, Red Lions makes a counter attack, 4 Indians defenders unable to clear the ball, John-John Dohman scored the winner when 15 seconds left on the clock.

2011 Champions Challenge-Johannesburg, BEL 4-IND 3

India leads 3-1 till last quarter of the final. Tomfooling of Indian defence and goalkeeper Bharat Chetri allows the Belgians to score the goals. Fourth goal came in 41 seconds before the hooter by Tom Boon of Belgium.

2006 World Cup- Monchengladbach,GER 3- IND 2

Kanwalpreet Singh fails to intercept pass of Timo Weiss to M.Witthaus, who diverted the ball to C. Zeller and he scored the match winner when 100 seconds remains on clock.

2004 Athens Olympics: AUS 4 – IND 3

Brennan scored the game winner for Australia with a brilliant diving goal with only 17 seconds left for the hooter. Australia thus secured 3 points, which enabled it to surpass New Zealand (9 points) by just 1 point to qualify for the semi-finals.

2003 Champions Trophy: NED 4 – IND 3

62 minutes into the game, India was leading 3-0. However, in a dramatic turnaround, the Dutch scored 4 goals in the last 8 minutes. Ronald Brouwer scored the match winner just 3 seconds before the final whistle.

2000 Olympics: POL 1 – IND 1

India needed either a victory or a 2-2 tie in its final pool match against Poland, for a berth in the semi-final. India led 1-0 till the last 86 seconds of the game, before Tomascz Cichy of Poland scored the equalizer. India were thus denied a semi-final by Poland.

1998 Utrecht World Cup: KOR 4-IND 3

Pakistani umpire Faizi awarded the penalty corner synchronizing with hooter. Kang scored the game winner.  By this defeat India finished bottom of the pool first time in any World level tourney.

1973 World Cup: NED 2 (4) – IND 2 (2)

Just 31 seconds from the end of the 2nd period of extra-time, India was awarded a penalty stroke. With the World Cup on the line, centre-forward B. P. Govinda missed the most important penalty stroke of his life. The Dutch goalkeeper Sikking made an easy save and the match went into a tie-breaker.

In the penalty stroke competition, Govinda once again failed. Harcharan’s powerful flick went wide and high. Paul Litjens, Ties Kruize, Zweerts and Taminianu converted for Holland, who became the champions of the world.

Fieldhockey.com

Hague and hearty

Impressive Opening reminds Oltmans of 1998

V Krishnaswamy


Head of Dutch royal house Koning Willem Alexander bij with team captains at the opening ceremony

The impressive Opening Ceremony on the eve of the World Hockey World Cup reminded Dutchman Roelant Oltmans, the high performance director of the Indian Team, of 1998 when he coached the Dutch men's team to the gold medal. "Then there was music as well. These ceremonies are always nice, because you meet people from all over the hockey world."

His Majesty King of Netherlands Willem-Alexander was present at the official welcome and posed for photographs with the teams and the mayor of The Hague Jozias van Aarsten greeted the gathering on behalf of the host city.

Musical Tour of 15 countries

The highlight of the Opening was a Cultural Music Tour of all 15 participating teams. The members of the Band, sporting uniforms of various teams, played different instruments, to mark the presence of each of the teams at this World Cup. Among the performances was the Table as an offering to celebrate India.

The 75-minute musical opening ended with all the captains coming onto the foot of the stage and engaging in aerial dribble as the ensemble played the theme song of the Tournament, "Let's Celebrate Hockey".

Nine countries have teams in both sections

The 2014 event showcases 15 nations, 24 teams and 432 athletes. Nine countries have teams in both men and women's sections, while India, Spain and Malaysia are represented only in men and Japan, China and USA figure only in women's competition. The teams in both sections are Australia, England, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, New Zealand, Korea, Argentina, South Africa

The 2018 World Cups will be hosted in India, for the men, and England, for the women and both events will feature a new 16-team format, up from 12 this year.

DNA

SA teams thrown in at deep end but that's OK

JONATHAN COOK in The Hague


Investec South Africa's Nicolene Terblanche has the ability to test Argentina's players. Photo: MATT WITHERS

Playing the most illustrious teams in your Group first-up is a blessing for the national men’s and women’s teams as Hockey World Cup 2014 gets under way for the African champions in The Hague, Holland Sunday.

Rightly so, the players in green and gold are not expected to win and that freedom will allow them to express themselves without the undue burden of expectation.

The South Africa men’s team take on Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympic Games winners Germany at 10.30am SA time (live on SuperSport 5) and in talismanic captain and defender/midfielder Austin Smith they have a key figure in mobilising the side in all facets.

At the back is penalty corner drag-flick king Justin Reid-Ross, whose return from a post London 2012 international sabbatical is underpinned by a superb Hoofdklasse season with Pinoke that ended recently in Holland.

Head coach Fabian Gregory says Reid-Ross has added maturity and variation to his game but SA must force enough PCs to make this weapon count. And at the other end SA must not concede early goals – an Achilles heel in recent times that has forced them to play catch-up.

The SA side is unheralded but has quality players of the calibre of Jonty Robinson, who adds much value in open play and at set-pieces, while Lloyd Madsen’s accurate long passes from the back are also a major plus.

It is as a tight unit that SA can cause problems and against the clinical Germans who have sheer class in their midst, it’s a must. Midfielder and 2013 World player of the Year Tobias Hauke and a number of others, notably captain and key defender Max Muller, as well as strikers Christopher Zeller and Florian Fuchs, take advantage of any and every unforced error. The mercurial superstar Moritz Fuerste is out of the tournament due to injury but Germany’s collection of superstars limits the damage.

The Investec South Africa women’s hockey team, fielding 13 players with over 100 caps, tackle reigning World Cup champs Argentina at 7.45pm SA time (live on SuperSport 7) and will be relying on their pace and direct style of play to create uncertainty amongst eight-times World Player of the Year Luciana Aymar’s line-up.

World number 11 SA have genuine speed in players of the calibre of striker Sulette Damons and attacking midfielder Shelley Russell while captain Marsha Cox is the engine of the side. The absence of double Olympian Lenise Marais, who suffered a serious injury in the week leading into the four-yearly showpiece, will be sorely felt in defence, but quality in the likes of combative Nicolene Terblanche and central defender Lisa Deetlefs will help negate this setback.

Not many teams can call upon the world record goalscorer as a last-minute call-up and in Pietie Coetzee SA have a player with the ability and experience to play whatever role head coach Giles Bonnet asks.

Apart from Aymar, Argentina have other game breakers in Delfina Merino, Carla Rebecchi and Rosario Luchetti, while key defender Noel Barrionuevo is a constant threat come penalty corner time and consistency for the full 70 minutes is a given for SA.

A heartening start by the South Africa teams against the best will stand them in good stead for what lies ahead.

SA WORLD CUP TEAMS

Men - Goalkeepers: Rassie Pieterse (Southern Gauteng); Gowan Jones (KZN Coastal Raiders). Defenders: Rhett Halkett, Austin Smith (capt), Dylan Swanepoel (all Western Province); Jethro Eustice (Southern Gauteng); Justin Reid-Ross, Lloyd Madsen (both Northern Blues). Midfielders: Taine Paton, Tim Drummond (both KZN Coastal Raiders); Clint Panther (Southern Gauteng); Wade Paton (Western Province); Jonty Robinson (Northern Blues). Strikers: Julian Hykes (Southern Gauteng), Lungi Tsolekile, Lloyd Norris-Jones, Pierre de Voux (all Western Province); Natius Malgraff (Eastern Province).
Women - Goalkeepers: Anelle van Deventer (North West); Sanani Mangisa (Southern Gauteng). Defenders: Lisa Deetlefs (Southern Gauteng), Marcelle Manson (Border), Nicolene Terblanche (Northern Blues), Quanita Bobbs (Western Province). Midfielders: Marsha Cox (capt), Bernie Coston (both Southern Gauteng); Shelley Russell, Tarryn Bright, Ilse Davids (all Western Province), Kelly Madsen (KZN Coastal Raiders). Strikers: Dirkie Chamberlain (Northern Blues); Kathleen Taylor (Western Province); Celia Evans, Sulette Damons (both North West); Lilian du Plessis (Southern Gauteng). Late inclusion: Pietie Coetzee (Southern Gauteng).

SA Hockey Association media release

Ready for The World

Tom Robinson

The U.S. women’s field hockey team will try to carry the momentum and confidence from winning the Champions Challenge earlier this month in Scotland into the Rabobank World Cup, which starts Saturday in The Hague, Netherlands.

“The Champions Challenge was an important series of games for the team and the squad as a whole,” coach Craig Parnham told TeamUSA.org. “Not only was it important for us to understand where our program is at physically and technically, but it also served as part of our selection process for the World Cup.”

The Champions Challenge’s contribution to the selection process was to convince Parnham to go to the same lineup in the World Cup, one of the two most important events in the field hockey world.

The team returned from Scotland to more training. When it headed back to Europe last weekend, Parnham took the same roster of 18 players from a pool of 29 national team players.

The U.S. women return 11 players from their last shot at the sport’s other big event — the Olympic Games. Strikers Michelle Kasold, Katie O’Donnell and Paige Selenski; midfielders Rachel Dawson, Katelyn Falgowski, Melissa Gonzalez, Katie Reinprecht and Michelle Vittese; and defenders Lauren Crandall, Caroline Nichols and Julie Reinprecht are back and trying to improve on a disappointing finish at the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Parnham took over as U.S. coach in January 2013. He inherited a team that finished last in the 12-team field in London and brings his squad into the World Cup ranked 10th.

The United States will play in Pool B along with second-seeded Argentina, third-seeded England, Germany, China and South Africa. Host Netherlands, the top-ranked team, is in Pool A with Australia, New Zealand, Korea, Japan and Belgium.

“We know we’re better than what we did at the Olympics,” Selenski, who scored the last U.S. goal in London, said in an interview last year.

The World Cup is the first chance to show that against all of the top competition in the world and Parnham reminds there is an achievement in just getting the shot.

“The World Cup and Olympic Games are the two most significant tournaments in international field hockey,” said Parnham, a former assistant coach for England. “Both tournaments traditionally feature the top-12 ranked teams in the world. In addition, both tournaments only come around every four years and there is a long and highly contested qualification process.

“To qualify for a World Cup and Olympic Games is not an easy journey and I must commend the players for qualifying for this World Cup.”

The U.S. women finished sixth in the 2006 World Cup but did not qualify in 2010.

This year’s qualification process was completed long before the United States tuned up with its Champions Challenge title, which came with a 3-1 victory over Ireland on May 4 to complete an effort in which the team won four of five games.

Selenski, who was named Player of the Match, erased an early deficit. Nichols put the United States ahead before halftime and O’Donnell scored the final goal.

“Our goal coming into this tournament was to grow each game,” Crandall, the U.S. captain, said in a press release following the final.

“This gives us confidence going into the World Cup.”

The United States plays England in its opener Sunday. Pool play continues through June 10 with the final set for June 14.

The remainder of the roster includes strikers Kelsey Kolojejchick, Kathleen Sharkey and Jill Witmer; midfielder Emily Wold; defender Stefanie Fee; and goalkeepers Jackie Kintzer and Alesha Widdall.

Parnham said teams that are successful in the World Cup tend find success on their set pieces, including their penalty corners. He liked the way his team responded to the demands of tournament play at the Champions Challenge, where the United States lost to South Africa in its second pool play game.

“We were pleased with the way we remained focused throughout the tournament despite some moments of adversity, which is inevitable in a tournament setting,” Parnham said. “We have been working hard on our mental game.”

Tom Robinson is a sportswriter from northeastern Pennsylvania. He is a freelance contributor to TeamUSA.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.

Article courtesy of the United States Olympic Committee

USFHA media release

England men hoping a strong World Cup showing will help ease pain of missing out on 2012 Olympic medal

Spain represent a tough first group test in The Hague in the Netherlands on Saturday, while women open up against the USA on Sunday

By Rod Gilmour


England stalwart: Captain Barry Middleton is now the record caps-holder for his country Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Seeking redemption after missing out on an Olympic medal will be high on England men’s agenda when their World Cup campaign starts in The Hague on Saturday afternoon.

Holland, who host both men’s and women’s events for the first time at the same venue since 1988, overturned England 9-2 in a semi-final mauling at London 2012, but a clutch of retirements and a focus on youth have meant that coach Bobby Crutchley has an 18-strong squad with high hopes of matching their silver at the 1986 World Cup in London.

Captained by Barry Middleton, who broke Russell Garcia’s record of 307 England caps in a warm-up Test match against Australia last week, Crutchley also has star forward Ashley Jackson to turn to, back to peak form after ankle surgery.

A tight defence has been moulded to compete with hockey’s heavyweights, too. Dan Fox and Iain Lewers have been an instrumental duo at the back, while George Pinner is a towering presence in goal.

Crutchley, though, is wary of the dangers in England’s group. They face Spain on Saturday, with Australia and Belgium likely to pose the biggest threat to semi-final hopes.

“The reality is that it will be a tough tournament for us and it will be difficult to put together a series of results with so many top teams here,” he said.

“We haven’t beaten Spain for so long at a big tournament. It is getting into a position to attack in the first few games so when we do play Australia we are right in the mix.”

However, confidence in the camp is high. Pinner said in the build-up to this 13th World Cup that England have, in past tournaments, “lowballed it a bit” in terms of medal chances. The world No 4 side punched above their weight in 2013 as they adjusted to squad changes, coming through World Cup qualifying before winning bronze at the World League Finals in January.

“Last year was always going to be nervous for me with the short turnaround before the qualifiers,” said Crutchley. “But I am really impressed by how much this group has pushed on. We are probably ahead of where we want to be, and they are now really competitive.”

Meanwhile, England women start their group matches on Sunday against the United States. Coached by Jason Lee, who switched from men’s to women’s coach post-Olympics, the 2010 bronze medallists have perhaps the best chance of returning with a podium place.

But group qualification, with only two progressing to the semi-finals, will be a tall order and their final two games against holders Argentina and Germany will surely determine the outcome.

“With all the sides ranked 11th or higher, we’re under no illusions as to how tough the games will be,” said Lee.

Kate Richardson-Walsh, who made her debut in 1999, will lead England for the last time at a World Cup before a likely retirement after the Commonwealth Games.

“Having listened to Ryan Giggs and Jonny Wilkinson recently, it’s all in the gut,” she said.

The Telegraph

Kevin's already thinking ahead after World Cup setback

By S. Ramaguru


Malaysia's Kevin Lim (left) injured his hamstring during a friendly match at The Hague on Thursday and will miss the hockey World Cup which starts on Saturday.

THE HAGUE: Defender Kevin Lim is not one to wallow in self-pity. Just a day after his World Cup dream ended, he was back on his feet looking ahead.

All he wants is to quickly get over his latest hamstring injury and make the team for the next two assignments – the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

“Yes, it’s a huge disappointment for me to miss my World Cup debut. But injuries happen ... I’m not going to let it get me down. I will work hard to get over the injury and get back to training soon,” he said.

Kevin was expected to be one of the key defenders in the team but pulled a hamstring in Malaysia’s last practice match against RC Rotterdam on Thursday night.

He is replaced by Izad Hakimi Jamaluddin, who arrived here on Saturday.

Kevin admitted that it was important that “I get proper treatment and take necessary precaution during the recovery period”.

“Yes, I’ll be going back to Germany tomorrow (today) to seek treatment there. The team doctor has seen me and I will give the team a report once the doctor in Germany has seen me,” he said.

“I know a hamstring injury can take a long time to heal. I’ve had this injury before and am aware of the issues.

“The pain can be unbearable at times. It’s just unfortunate (that it happened) ... as I’m always careful with how I play.

“My family was expected to be here in full force to see me play. I know they will be disappointed as well. But they’re supportive.”

The 29-year-old Kevin has dual citizenship – having played for Germany before making the switch to Malaysia – and is still studying.

“I will go back to my studies and then work on my fitness in Germany. It will be up to the national team selectors to decide if I can get back into the team. But I’m not giving up ... I want to play for Malaysia,” he said.

The Star of Malaysia

Asraf’s hat-trick steers Penang to hockey semis

KANGAR: Mohamed Asraf Bahari grabbed a hat-trick to steer Penang to an impressive 7-1 win over Kelantan in a men’s Group B hockey match at the Perlis Malaysia Games (Sukma).

The easy win at the State Sports Complex Turf on Saturday sees Penang qualifying for the semi-finals.

Asraf was on target in the 2nd, 11th and 46th minutes. Mohd Rahimi Iskandar Baharom (24th), Mohd Redzhwan Jaafar (33rd), Mohd Hafify Mohd Rodzi (55th) and Abdul Rauf Mohd Nazri (59th) got the other goals for Penang.

Mohd Aminuddin Mohd scored the consolation goal for Kelantan in the 12th minute.

Penang, who finished runners-up in the group with 14 points from six matches, will face Group A champions Perak in the semi-finals on Monday.

The other semi-final will be between defending champions Terengganu and Group B champions Negri Sembilan.

Negri reached the semi-finals after outplaying Malacca 3-0 on Saturday. They completed the fixtures with 15 points from five wins and a draw.

In the women’s semi-finals, also on Monday, defending champions Terengganu will face Federal Territories while Malacca will take on Johor.

The Star of Malaysia

Penang, Negri in last four

PENANG and Negri Sembilan advanced to the semi-finals of the Perlis Malaysia Games hockey competition after both teams emerged victorious on the final day of the preliminary stages yesterday.

Negri, Penang and Malacca all went into the last day of matches in Group B with a chance to advance having 12, 11 and 10 points respectively.

Negri and Penang, however, left no room for drama as they beat Malacca 3-0 and Kelantan 7-1 at the Perlis Sports Complex in Kangar to finish first and second in the group.

Penang will now play Group A champions Perak in the last-four while Negri face defending champions Terengganu for a spot in the decider.

The other match in Group B yesterday saw Selangor drub Sarawak 10-0. In Group A, Johor downed Pahang 2-1 while hosts Perlis edged Sabah 2-1. The semi-final will be held tomorrow.

New Straits Times

2014 Big Apple Memorial Six-A-Side Tournament

New York City - More than 60 teams competed in the 2014 Big Apple Memorial Six-a-Side tournament at the Aviator Sports & Recreation complex in New York City during the Memorial Day weekend (May 24 & 25). Competition was held in four divisions: Women, U-14, U-16 and U-19 Girls on Saturday and Sunday.

The Big Apple Memorial Six-a-Side tournament is one of the largest field hockey tournaments held on the East Coast, held every year to honor the memory of those field hockey lovers who are no longer with us, and have contributed to hockey in their own way and are missed by all.

The weekend weather was a much better improvement from last year's freezing rain, with both days reaching in the upper to mid 70’s degrees. The whole atmosphere was created with music, good hockey, carnival, vendors, family and friends was great and enjoyed by crowds of over 900 people in attendance each day.

Hudson Valley continues their strong showing at this annual event, capturing gold and silver in the U-16 and U-19 Divisions. Over the years, they have been consistently represented on the award podium and this year was no different.

East Coast FH, captured silver in both the U-19 and Women’s divisions, and Total Dutch and Big Apple HC finally made it to the podium by capturing Gold in the U-14 and Women’s Divisions.

New comer New Heights, dominated the U-16 Divisions by going undefeated and conceding just two goals  while scoring thirty five, to raise the Championship Trophy.

Over those two days, we witnessed excellent skill level and great team work by these teams.

The results are as follows:

U-14 Division:

1st Place: Total Dutch FH

2nd Place: Jersey Intensity FH


Jersey Intensity FH

U-16 Division:

1st Place: New Heights

2nd Place: Hudson Valley

U-19 Division:

1st Place: Hudson Valley

2nd Place: East Coast FH


Hudson Valley

Women’s Division:

1st Place: Big Apple HC

2nd Place: East coast FH

Congratulations to the winning teams!

The trophies for the U-16 and U-19 girls divisions were donated by Rosemary and Michael Serrette in the name of their beloved daughter, Michele, who passed away in 1983 at the very young age of nine.

The trophy for adult open competitions is dedicated to Harold Cox (New York FHC), William Irving (Greenwich FHC), Michael Grannum (Tri-State Falcons), Frank Noodt (North Jersey FHC), Roland Mass (New York FHC), George Moody (West Indies International), John Greer (Greenwich FHC), Steven Haley (Greenwich FHC), Kenrick Bernard (New York FHC) George Griffith (New York Islanders FHA), Aldwin Ferguson (New York FHC), Qamar Uddin (Zindabad FHC) and Kenwin Nancoo (The Edge FHC).

These individuals were devoted to field hockey and contributed to the growth of the sport not just in the Tri-state area but throughout the USA.

Special thanks to, Dita Hockey, Defender Mouthguards, K B Designs and the Flatbush Volunteer Ambulance for their continued support.

Much appreciation to the Umpires, Technical staff and volunteers for their continued support!

On behalf of BAHF, Inc. (Big Apple Hockey) we thank you all for making this another successful event and hope to see you all next year.

USFHA media release

Obituary : Sultan Azlan Shah’s departure leaves a big void in Asian hockey

By Anwar Zuberi

WITH the sad demise of 86-year-old Sultan Azlan Shah in Kuala Lumpur last Wednesday, the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) has lost its mentor.

His association with the AHF as its president lasted over three decades during which he took the game’s continental body to new heights.

After coming at the helm of AHF, he put life into the regional body bringing it at par with its European counterpart.

Previously, Asian hockey was confined to the quadrennial Asian Games. But after his induction, events like Asia Cup (men and women), junior Asia Cup (men and women), U-18 Asia Cup (boys and girls) became part of AHF calendar.

The Malaysian Hockey Federation, of which he was head, launched a prestigious tournament named after him (Azlan Shah Cup) in the year 1983.

The AHF formally came into being in Bangkok in December 1978 with Pakistan’s retired Col A.I.S Dara and retired Brig M.H. Atif elected as president and secretary respectively. Unfortunately, the former could not complete his four-year term due to his sudden demise on Jan 16, 1981 making room for Azlan Shah to assume the role as acting president.

It is pertinent to mention that the idea of the Asia Cup was conceived by Col Dara who had also served as vice-president of the International Hockey Federation (FIH). The then Indian Hockey Federation president Dr M.A.M. Ramaswamy, donated the Asia Cup.

The executive committee of the AHF which met in Kuala Lumpur on April 10, 1981, decided to dedicate the inaugural Asia Cup to late Dara, who had represented British Indian as well as Pakistan hockey teams at the 1936 Berlin and 1948 London Olympics.

Azlan Shah, who was Sultan of Perak and a lawyer and judge par excellence, had a passion for the game and had visited Pakistan on couple of occasions in this regard, including at the launch of inaugural Asia Cup hockey tournament staged at the Hockey Club of Pakistan Stadium in Karachi in 1982 during the era of retired Air Marshal Nur Khan and Atif.

Back home, the late Azlan Shah also used to invite participating hockey teams of different nations in Ipoh at his luxurious Palace to dine.

This correspondent also had the honour of visiting the Palace with the Pakistan junior squad during the 1989 Junior World Cup hockey tournament.

The state-of-the-art sporting facilities at Ipoh also speak high about his avid love for sports. Close to the Azlan Shah Hockey Stadium are a number of squash courts and other facilities.

Malaysia has become a hub of sports during the last quarter-of-a-century, and always remained eager to host many prominent international sporting events.

Like great Mahathir Mohamad, the former prime minister of Malaysia, Azlan Shah also stands tall and his immense contribution to sports in Malaysia, particularly field hockey, have left an indelible mark.

Dawn