News 10 January 2014
All the news for Friday 10 January 2014
Eight teams aim for glory at the Hero Hockey World League Final
New Delhi’s Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium is ready to host the show
Eight captains dreaming of HHWL glory (Photo: FIH / TABREZAHMAD)
8 teams, 24 matches, 144 players, 1,680 minutes of captivating Hockey… and one nation walking off with the trophy. The final of the inaugural Men’s Hockey World League kicks off this Friday in New Delhi, India. “We look forward to seeing these international superstars battling in their last major competition before the summer’s Rabobank Hockey World Cup”, says FIH Representative Alberto Budeisky.
Thousands of fans are expected to attend the matches in the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, with a global audience of millions following the action on television or via the live streaming provided on the FIH YouTube channel.
Pool A features Olympic and European champions Germany, New Zealand, England and host nation India while in Pool B, Olympic silver medallists, the Netherlands, reigning world champions Australia, Belgium and Argentina will battle it out. The 12 pool matches will be played on Friday, Saturday and Monday with the four quarter finals being held on Wednesday. “We know that the quarter final is the most important game in this competition but at the moment we are really focussed on our first match against Australia”, says Belgium striker John-John Dohmen.
Belgium, who qualified by winning the Rabobank Hockey World League Semi Final in Rotterdam, have made incredible strides forward over the past few years, a trend that very much continued throughout the 2013 period. Dohmen explains: “We achieved good results in our last tournaments and we would like to continue with this. All of us are very proud to play for our country and of course we would like to win this tournament.”
However, winning the trophy will be a tough challenge for the Red Lions, as Australian captain Mark Knowles has made clear: “We are here to win", he said. "We are definitely not here to come fifth or sixth. We are coming to a new tournament with a new trophy played at a great stadium."
The lowest ranked team featuring in the tournament are Argentina, but coach Carlos Retegui sees this as an important part of his team's learning curve. "This is a very important tournament for us because we will be playing against the best teams in the world. Playing these teams will help us grow and become better; essential if we are to rise up the international rankings."
Recent performances by Argentina suggest that they are more than capable of playing above their rankings. In the World League Semi Final in Johor Bahru, they pushed Germany all the way, eventually losing 4-2.
Alongside Olympic medallists Australia and Germany, one of the pre-tournament favourites are the Netherlands. Captain Robert van der Horst underlined the aspirations of the Dutch team: “Our expectations are very high. We are ready for the tournament and it is time for us to win a final.”
Another team certain to stand in the way of the Dutch team are near-neighbours and fierce rivals Germany. "We will pose a major threat, says stand-in captain Oliver Korn. “We have an experienced team and I know that we are able to defeat any other team here.”
29-year-old Korn – who is standing in as captain for injured Max Muller – is honoured to be leading the German squad in Delhi. He points out: “This is the kick-off into the year of the World Cup. We want to improve our game during the tournament.”
Germany's first opponents are New Zealand and the Black Sticks captain Dean Couzins is under no illusion as to the enormity of the task ahead of the team ranked seventh. "Germany have a strong side and the games against England and India will be difficult as well. But we are really looking forward to playing India in front of their home crowd. That’s going to be a highlight.”
India’s team-captain Sardar Singh agrees on the importance of this competition ahead of the World Cup: “It will be a great experience, especially for the young players in our team. This is a very important tournament.”
Fourth ranked England open their account against the host nation, and can expect a vocal crowd to greet them. Captain Barry Middleton is looking forwards to the challenge of playing the host nation in their national stadium: “We will try to play the best we can. The Indian crowd is amazing.”
How are you going to make your mark?
Hockey fans can follow all the action on the FIH Youtube channel or via the FIH event microsite.
FIH site
Hero HWL Final in New Delhi: One day to go
Let’s have a closer look at the teams participating in Pool B
(Photo: FIH)
In the second of two event previews, we take a look at the teams that will meet in Pool B, which features world champions Australia, Olympic Silver medallists The Netherlands, Belgium and Argentina. The Hero Hockey World League Final in New Delhi will start on Friday with the opening match Australia v Belgium.
AUSTRALIA
Current FIH World Ranking: 2
How they qualified: 2nd place - Rabobank Hockey World League Semi Final, Rotterdam (NED)
About the team: Ric Charlesworth’s Australia are always among the front runners of every tournament that they enter and have an abundance of talent at their disposal. There can be no doubt that the Kookaburras will be considered as one of the tournament favourites. The reigning world champions are boosted by the return to fitness of two key players, with experienced defender Mark Knowles (ankle) and dangerous striker Kieran Govers (hamstring) both back in the fold following lengthy injury lay-offs. A powerful squad also contains the considerable tallents of Russell Ford, Jason Wilson, Glenn Turner, Simon Orchard, Liam de Young and the exceptional Eddie Ockenden, a player widely considered to be among the very best attacking midfielders in world hockey. The Kookaburras come into the event as Oceania champions, having defeated host nation New Zealand in the tournament final to take the trophy.
NETHERLANDS
Current FIH World Ranking: 3
How they qualified: 3rd place - Rabobank Hockey World League Semi Final, Rotterdam (NED)
About the team: By their own very high standards, the Netherlands had a disappointing 2013 thanks to third place finishes at the Tri-Finance EuroHockey Nations continental championship in Belgium and the Rabobank Hockey World League Semi Final on home soil. However, the team produced occasional flashes of brilliance in those events, giving everyone a little reminder of the qualities that took them to an Olympic Silver medal at hte London 2012 Games. The Netherlands squad for this event contains a glittering array of world class talent including midfield dynamo Robert van der Horst, drag-flicking defender Mink van der Weerden, playmaker Billy Bakker and quicksilver goal-scorer Jeroen Hertzberger. Ahead of the event, head coach Paul van Ass stated that team preparations had been going very well and that his charges were greatly looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead in New Delhi. If the Dutch are on their game, they will take some stopping.
BELGIUM
Current FIH World Ranking: 5
How they qualified: 1st place - Rabobank Hockey World League Semi Final, Rotterdam (NED)
About the team: Belgium have made incredible strides forward over the past few years, a trend that very much continued throughout the 2013 period. Head coach Marc Lammers, the legendary Dutchman who guided the Netherlands women to Olympic Gold at Beijing 2008, has moulded Belgium into one of the most feared attacking sides in the world, a fact proven by their two victories over reigning world champions Australia on their way to winning the Rabobank Hockey World League Semi Final event in Rotterdam. The Belgium side that competes in New Delhi is hugely experienced, with eight players having surpassed the 100 international appearances mark – John-John Dohmen (251 caps), Cedric Charlier (169), Thomas Briels (195), Jeffrey Thys (101), Felix Denayer (163), Simon Gougnard (138), Alex de Saedeleer (161) and Tom Boon (142). Despite their vast on-field experience, the fact that this group does not contain anyone over the age of 26 suggests that this talented pool of players are likely to remain together for many years to come. Although Belgium were narrowly beaten by Olympic champions Germany in the final of the Tri-Finance EuroHockey Nations continental championship in the summer, they will come into the Hockey World League Final tournament as one of the tournament favourites.
ARGENTINA
Current FIH World Ranking: 11
How they qualified: 2nd place - Hockey World League Semi Final, Johor Bahru, (MAS)
About the team: Argentina has always produced international teams with plenty of talent, but over the past year the current men’s team has developed into a side that can challenge the best in the world. Coach Carlos Retegui – the man who guided the Argentina women to World Cup glory in 2010 – is overseeing the revolution, helping “Los Leones” (The Lions) to realise their massive potential. Argentina, who come into this event as Pan American champions, were hugely impressive in the HWL Semi Final in Johor Bahru, reaching the event final before eventually losing to Olympic champions and world number 1 Germany. Fourteen of the 18 competitors from Johor have been selected for the Hero Hockey World League Final, including free-scoring attackers Matias Paredes and Facundo Callioni as well as rising star Gonzalo Peillat, the drag-flicking defender who netted seven times at the event in Malaysia. The South Americans may be the lowest ranked team in the competition, but their superb recent form and fearless attacking style provides plenty of evidence that they truly are a team to be feared.
FIH site
Big guns set for World League finals
NEW DELHI: Hockey's elite, led by Olympic champions Germany, kickstart their preparations for the upcoming World Cup when they contest the final round this week of the inaugural Hockey World League in New Delhi.
The International Hockey Federation's newest competition opened with 54 teams in August 2012, and, after three rounds played across the world, the top seven plus hosts India qualified for the title round.
World Cup-holders Australia, the Netherlands, England, Argentina, New Zealand and Belgium are the other teams in the battle for the league-cum-knockout tournament in the Indian capital starting on Friday.
The final will be held on January 18. All eight teams have already qualified for the World Cup to be held in The Hague in the Netherlands from May 31 to June 15.
Germany, who won back-to-back Olympic titles in Beijing and London, will be without captain Max Muller, Christopher Zeller and 2012 player of the year Moritz Furste for the HWL finals.
But coach Markus Weise was confident of a good showing by the world's top-ranked team despite a lack of match practice in recent months due to the harsh European winter.
"This tournament is the stepping stone to the World Cup," Weise said. "It will be tough for us because we trained indoors at home and now we must play outdoors.
"We are here to improve our game and test our skills against teams we will face again at the World Cup. The competition will be strong, so it is difficult to predict a winner."
Australian captain Mark Knowles said the tournament will be a good workout for his team ahead of the defence of the World Cup title they won in New Delhi in 2010.
"We have come here to win," Knowles said. "Winning will boost morale for the World Cup. I expect Germany to be our strongest rivals, but none of the other teams can be taken lightly."
The Kookaburras start their campaign on Friday against Belgium, to whom they lost in the league's third round in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in June through a penalty shoot-out.
Among other favoured teams are the third-ranked Dutch, who won silver at the London Olympics. "This tournament will give us a good idea of how good we are before the World Cup," said head coach Paul van Ass.
Former world champions India, who qualified for the finals only by virtue of being the hosts, get a chance to make a mark in the big league under new coach Terry Walsh of Australia.
The Times of India
Charlesworth expects battle
Kookaburras' coach highlights Belgium's all-round quality as danger for opener
The Kookaburras will open the World League Finals on Friday against a now familiar foe in Belgium, and Aussie Head Coach Ric Charlesworth is well aware of the qualities the Belgians possess.
Speaking on the eve of the match, Charlesworth said, “We’ve had a number of tough matches already against Belgium so we greatly respect them. The plan…we want to score more goals but we’ll have to see how we go.
“They have a lot of good players. They have a good corner; they have some dangerous strikers who are all capable of scoring, some very good midfielders. They have a very balanced team. The goalkeeping is good. You don’t play as well as they have without having all round quality. So, in each of those areas you have to do well.”
The fifth ranked Belgians have been one of the biggest movers in men’s hockey in recent years. Coached by former Netherlands international Marc Lammers – who took the Dutch women to Olympic gold in 2008 - their attacking brand of hockey has proved as exciting as any around.
The two sides have already met twice in the World League competition after being drawn together in the same pool at the semi-final tournament in Rotterdam. After a 3-1 Belgian win in the opening game of that tournament they met again in the final (check out the video above) where a 2-2 draw sent the match to a thrilling shoot-out that the Belgians eventually won 7-6 (video below). By then, however, both sides had done enough to qualify for the Finals in New Delhi and for the World Cup in the Hague.
The Belgium side that competes in New Delhi is hugely experienced, with eight players having surpassed the 100 international appearances mark – John-John Dohmen (251 caps), Cedric Charlier (169), Thomas Briels (195), Jeffrey Thys (101), Felix Denayer (163), Simon Gougnard (138), Alex de Saedeleer (161) and Tom Boon (142). Despite their vast on-field experience, the fact that this group does not contain anyone over the age of 26 suggests that this pool of players is likely to remain together for many years to come. Although they were narrowly beaten by Olympic champions Germany in the final of the Tri-Finance EuroHockey Nations continental championship last year, Belgium come into the Hockey World League Final as another of the tournament favourites.
Looking further ahead in the competition, Charlesworth was asked who he believes to be the toughest opponents. “Who knows,” he said. “Whoever you meet in the quarter-final. And if you win that match then whoever you meet in the semi. It’s impossible to say from the quarter finals [owards]. As you saw in the Junior World Cup you had two surprises and two you expect so that can happen.”
One to watch: Tom Boon. Every great team contains a great striker, and Belgium are certainly no different. Tom Boon is an extraordinary goal-scorer who regularly finds the net with explosive finishes from open play and penalty corners. Expect him to be among the front runners for tournament top scorer.
Watch the Kookaburras v Belgium live online at YouTube.com/fihockey from 7:30pm AEDT / 4:30pm AWST on Friday (2:00pm local time in India). And watch the whole match on ABC 1 at 11:35pm.
Follow the live twitter commentary by following @Kookaburras and using the hashtag #HWL.
Keep up to date with reports, results and fixtures from all of the matches at the World League Finals by visiting the FIH website at www.fih.ch.
Hockey Australia media release
Black Sticks men looking to start year strongly
BRENDON EGAN
STRIKE FORCE: Experienced striker Phil Burrows will be integral to New Zealand chances at the World League final tournament in India. ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ
The Black Sticks' men will be out to build momentum and confidence at the World League final tournament which starts in New Delhi tomorrow.
New Zealand have been out of action for the past two months after last appearing at the Oceania Cup in Stratford, where they were thumped 5-2 in the final by Australia.
The side had a break for Christmas and the New Year before flying out to India, which marks the start of a hectic season.
After the World League final, the Black Sticks barely have time to draw breath. They will compete in the second-tier Champions Challenge tournament in Malaysia in April, which is followed by the glamour event of the World Cup in the Netherlands in late May. Then on to Glasgow in late July for the Commonwealth Games, where they will aim to improve on their bronze medal effort in 2010.
Veteran Black Sticks' striker Phil Burrows acknowledged that the World League final was not the biggest tournament of the season, but stressed it was still an important one. The Black Sticks had a disappointing 2013 campaign and will be eager to fine tune combinations, develop consistency and grow a winning culture.
"Every time you play for New Zealand and go to a tournament like this, you want to do well," Burrows said.
"I think it would be great to break into the top four [at this tournament], but our goal is top six."
New Zealand have been drawn against world number one and reigning Olympic champions Germany in their opening pool game tomorrow. It will be a huge task for the Black Sticks, but Burrows believed it might be an opportune time to face them.
"Whatever German team turns up is always going to be pretty strong. I don't mind getting them first up, they might be a little sluggish from the Christmas period. It's nice to play them first and see where we're at."
New Zealand then take on India and England to round out group play - games the team will be targeting as winnable contests.
All eight teams advance onto the second round, but the Black Sticks want to finish as high as possible to avoid a match-up with the top-seeded teams in the other group.
Burrows expected the Black Sticks' squad to be highly motivated at the World League final with players effectively fighting it out for spots at the World Cup and Commonwealth Games later in the year. New Zealand still have Nick Wilson, Brad Shaw, Cory Bennett and Shay Neal recovering from injuries.
Experienced defender Andy Hayward has recovered from a fractured finger, but was left out of the travelling squad because of a lack of recent game time.
The 33-year-old Burrows, who is the most capped Black Sticks' men's player in history with 306 caps, spent the New Zealand off-season playing in the Netherlands first division with HGC. It was his ninth campaign in the Dutch league after an initital season with Breda and five years at HC Rotterdam.
Last season, 11 New Zealand players suited up for teams in the Dutch competition - a record number- and Burrows hoped that would only increase in the coming years.
New Zealand's domestic hockey league only runs over a two-week period, which was not long enough, Burrows said.
"It's almost a must these days. The New Zealand hockey competition isn't great. It's over and done within a few weeks.
"When you play in the Dutch competition you play international quality standard games every week. Trainings are intense. I think it's a great experience for guys to get over here and really see how hockey can be played."
Stuff
Couzins happy to hit champs first
Black Sticks captain says beating slow-starting Germans would be ideal way to open world league campaign
By David Leggat
Striker Simon Child returns after missing the world league semifinal in Rotterdam in June. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Here's the conundrum; you've drawn the game's best team in your pool. Would you rather face them first up or with a game or two under the belt?
In New Zealand's case, they start their world league final tournament in New Delhi early tomorrow against Olympic champions Germany.
It's 16 years since the Black Sticks have beaten the Germans, although they drew 5-5 at the London Olympics in a frenetic contest and lost 3-2 at the Champions Trophy in Melbourne 13 months ago.
Captain Dean Couzins fancies getting into Germany first up.
"I don't want to jinx us but traditionally Germany have been quite slow starters," Auckland veteran defender Couzins told the Herald from Delhi.
"Obviously they finish tournaments well because usually they either win them or make the final. So I don't think it's a bad thing playing them first.
"It's always been a great test against them but the focus is on what we're doing and improving our game."
Seventh-ranked New Zealand lost both warmups, 2-0 to No5 Belgium, then a disappointing 3-1 to fourth-ranked England on Wednesday.
New Zealand led 1-0 through Stephen Jenness, but produced a poor second half.
That said, Couzins knows the team - who have not played an international since the Oceania series in Taranaki at the start of November - will be the better for the workouts.
"Ideally you'd have more time but we're not the only team in that position. You think of the Europeans where it's very cold so the quality of their training (has been affected).
"We've just got to get on with that attitude of not having any excuses."
Tournament management will be a key factor for coach Colin Batch, making sure his key players are not over-burdened before the clutch games in latter stages.
Couzins, who plays his 291st international against Germany, believes a minimum expectation of finishing in the top six of the eight-team world league is realistic; a top four finish would be an impressive achievement "but it's certainly something we're capable of if we play well".
Couzins has played the Germans many times and expects they'll allow New Zealand room down the flanks but will jam up the middle, making delivery into threatening areas challenging.
"They're very strong in the midfield and don't need many chances.
"They seem to take them well. I'd expect them to be really physical in and around the circle."
The Black Sticks have quality striker Simon Child back, after he missed the world league semifinal in Rotterdam in June. Hugo Inglis is making rapid strides as an attacker and Couzins said much emphasis had gone into working collectively to create opportunities rather than rely on individual efforts.
There had been one injury-enforced change in the squad, with North Harbour's Joe Bartholomew replacing provincial teammate Cory Bennett, who broke his thumb.
The key game for the Black Sticks could be their last pool match against England. They will bank on beating the Indians who, at No10, are the lowest ranked team in the tournament.
Hockey New Zealand have appointed Australian Terry Evans as high performance director. Evans has spent seven years as Hockey Australian Capital Territory chief executive and has filled several high performance roles within Hockey Australia.
Final tournament
New Zealand World League final squad
Dean Couzins (c), Simon Child, Marcus Child, Devon Manchester, Arun Panchia (Auckland), Joe Bartholomew, Steve Edwards (North Harbour), Nick Haig (Canterbury), Phil Burrows, Blair Hilton, Alex Shaw, Stephen Jenness, Jacob Smith (Capital), Hugo Inglis, Hamish McGregor, Kane Russell, Blair Tarrant (Southern), Shea McAleese (Central)
Pool A schedule:
Tomorrow: v Germany (1), 1.30am NZT
Sunday: v India (10), 3.30am
Monday: v England (4), 9.30pm
Jan 15-16: Quarter-finals
Jan 18: Playoffs
Jan 19: Final
Pool B: Australia (No 2), Netherlands (3), Belgium (5), Argentina (11)
The New Zealand Herald
Tim Whiteman makes his international debut
Tim Whiteman for Beeston
Tim Whiteman, player for the England Men senior squad, will make his international debut at the Hero Hockey World League Final, which takes place from 10-18 January.
From an early start at age six playing for Harleston Magpies, Tim stayed there for 12 years before moving to his current team Beeston. Even while studying for a BA in History at Nottingham Trent, where he got a 2:1, Tim stayed on playing for Beeston.
After university he worked at Repton school for three years, teaching History and Politics while also coaching an U16s squad. In July 2013 he moved down to Wycombe to join England Hockey's centralised programme and now he's reached his international debut, playing India - in India.
When asked about making his debut, Tim said, "I'm feeling incredibility excited about Friday's game and I can't wait for the opportunity to play against India, in India. To be making my international debut just makes it even more special. It's always an exciting game against them, given the style of hockey we both play and we've been playing and it's been good to play Australia and New Zeeland in training matches this week ahead of the opening game."
England’s first match is against hosts India on 10 January at 14:30 (UK time). This is a big game against the tournament's hosts, and will no doubt be played to a sold-out stadium. India will be hoping for a strong start in front of the home crowd, while England will be planning to put their best foot forward for the viewers back home.
England Hockey Board Media release
Tim Whiteman set for England Debut
By Graham Wilson
Tim Whiteman will join the England side in his eagerly awaited debut against India [GETTY]
IT has been a long time in the making but Tim Whiteman is set for his England debut today (Friday) in the Hero World League Final in New Delhi.
He could not have asked for a more exciting initiation - he will be playing against the hosts India at their national stadium.
Whiteman is an interesting character. He taught history and politics at Repton School for three years, where the director of coaching there, former international Martin Jones, has been producing internationals by the bucket load. Defender Whiteman plays for English champions Beeston and is making his England debut quite late in the sport at the age of 26.
He said: "I'm feeling incredibility excited about Friday's game and I can't wait for the opportunity to play against India, in India. To be making my international debut just makes it even more special. It's always an exciting game against them, given the style of hockey we both play."
England must also play Olympic champions Germany and New Zealand in the top-eight event while in the other pool are Netherlands, Argentina, Australia and Belgium.
Daily Express
Germany:Several stars missing yet top billed for title
B.David
Glimpses of the German power, precision and speed were on show on Wednesday, as the Olympic champions entered the final leg of preparations in their quest to become the first-ever winners of the inaugural Hero Hockey World League.
The Germans here without a couple of stalwarts, including injured captain Max Muller and Christopher Zeller -- and no stars from gold winning Junior World Cup --but are longing to win the League finals which begin at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium here on Jan 10.
An hour’s training session in the morning showed their mettle. Practice game may not have revealed much of their strategy or set-piece drills but for sure the well-oiled German juggernaut is here to challenge.
The Netherlands and the Aussies are raring to stop the Germans and hosts India and fast-improving Belgium will be the dark horses.
The other star who will be missing the League will be 2012 FIH Player of the Year Moritz Furste, who opted to represent Germany in the EuroHockey Indoor Championship in Vienna.
Oliver Korn will now lead the squad and the 29-year-old attacking midfielder with over 150 caps for Germany will be the player to watch.
"At this level all the teams are strong and we cannot take any team lightly. Hockey strategy changes from match to match and we are confident. The team is fit and we will strive our best,’’ said the German captain after the Trophy was unveiled at a star hotel here in the afternoon.
The team though has six experienced players who have more than 100 caps in whom coach Markus Weise put his faith to take home the trophy.
"All the teams are coming with a strong line-up and these are teams we will see in World Cup. So this tournament is very important for us as we prepare for the World Cup,’’ said Weise.
Beside the experienced players like Linus Butt (104 caps), Martin Haner (118), Oskar Deecke (157), Tobias Hauke (214), Bengamin Wess and Martin Zwicker, the Germans will have the giant killer whose stunning golden double in the final denied the Netherlands an Olympic gold in London 2012. Power maestro Thilo Stralkowski and the magic scorer Florian Fuchs, the FIH Young Player of 2012, will complete the line-up.
Dan Nguyen Luong with just 8 appearances for Germany is the youngest player at 22 years and the stalwart who guarded the German bar for many a title win will be the senior most player at 34 years. It is a surprise that none of the under-21 boys who won the Junior World Cup here last month are in the senior squad.
Germany won the Hockey World League semifinal at Johor Bahru last year will play New Zealand in Pool A on Jan 10 at 4pm. Then they will play England on Saturday and India, next Monday.
Stick2Hockey.com
Well-prepared Orange brigade look confident
s2h team
Delhi - Ahead of their opening Pool B match against Argentina, the Netherlands coach Paul van Ass expressed caution while speaking of their good chances to win the first game at the Hero World Hockey League Final at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here on Friday. But anyone who saw them train for the last few days would know that the Dutch are no pushovers this time.
"We just need to be careful. We are very confident of winning,’’ he said. Yesterday the Orange brigade caught the eye of the connoisseur with their well-charted training session which included a one-on-one two-hour session by a trainer for a "special individual’’ player, which was video recorded with a camera-mounted stick for later analysis. The hard session left the player sweating and fretting with hardly a rest of one minute between the drills, the training helped one understand how determined are the Dutch team to become the first-winners of the World League. The rest of the team team too had innovative training workouts, penalty corner drills and goalie training separately.
They will have to ward off a tough challenge from the Germans and the Aussies if they have to turn the tide of recent losses in the finals of big events. For that they have to go with all the seriousness in the first game what with Argentina known for their giant-killing acts in the openers.
"We have a good chance to win beat Argentina but we will have to be careful and carry our job well to make sure that the opponent team does not get any chances. The practice sessions have helped the injured players to come back. No doubt, it will be a tough game and we are well prepared and ready."
Skipper Robert van Der Horst was more positive: "Good training and hard work always yields good results. We focused on all important aspects like free hits, off the ball running around the circle and short corner variations. Working on such details and polishing the skills during the trainings always shows a good result in the games we play.’’
"We have been undergoing sustained training sessions including some practice games and have been working out all the winter. We also practiced in Holland and even went to Valencia and Spain,’’ he added.
"Argentina showcased good skills during the practice sessions here and they have excellent players in the team. We respect them and it won’t be an easy game today. Having said that we are here to win and we will put in our best."
Argentina may be the lowest ranked team featuring in the tournament but coach Carlos Retegui sees this as an important part of his team's learning curve. "This is a very important tournament for us because we will be playing against the best teams in the world. Playing these teams will help us grow and become better; essential if we are to rise up the international rankings," he said a couple of days back.
Recent performances by Argentina suggest that they are more than capable of playing above their rankings. In the World League Semifinal in Johor Bahru, they pushed Germany all the way, eventually losing 4-2.
Stick2Hockey.com
Promote the style of hockey that is `Brand India': Walsh
s2h team
New Delhi, 9 Jan 2014: The Indian Chief coach Terry Walsh, a former Aussie Olympian, is from a generation who had Indian hockey in high esteem and as youngsters yearned to achieve those magic dribbling skills.
On Thursday, the 60-year old tactician, an attacking player is his hey days, reminisced about the style of Indian hockey.
"We have to promote a style of hockey that is brand India. Our players understand it and love it. My memory of Indian hockey is very, very powerful. The artistry, the competence and the elegance… its fantastic. We have to bring that to the fore. We have that style and skills and we should make sure we get results,’’ he said at the Pre-event press conference.
But he has his feet firmly on the ground. He has no dreams to bring back that pure style. "For quite a long time, India had tried a mixture of both that old style and some modern traits. We should have a judicious mix which can fetch us results,’’ he added. "Everyone is expecting results. We understand that and we continue to build blocks for our development,’’ he promised.
"We have to make sure that we don’t bring a completely foreign style,’’ he stressed. The Montreal Olympics silver medalist said that he has been focusing on four areas to improve the Indian hockey team; Phsyiological, psychological, tactical and playing basic sills under pressure.
He has no high expectations. His only expectation from this tournament is to measure the improvements. "If we aim for the top-four here or if we finish in top-4 does not mean that we will be in the semifinals of the World Cup. Such expectations are not realistic. If we finish 9th here, my expectation for the Senior World Cup would be to finish in the top-8,’’ he said. Humble beginnings always provide strong foundations.
"We have got a training methodology in place which permits us to work in these four areas. We will also be looking at the level of performance of players and evaluate where they are both as individuals and collectively as a team."
Walsh has introduced many new things after taking over a couple of months back and his first big tournament will be the World League final where he would assess the team’s strength.
India's vice-captain and goalkeeper P R Sreejesh is in no mood to think too far ahead and said their present focus is on Friday's game.
"The first match of every tournament is very important. We just need to concentrate on the match and give confidence to the junior players," he said.
"There won't be much pressure because we have got a strong mid-field. We also have got experienced fullbacks. We just have to guide the young forwardline."
Walsh will be evaluating the team on the improvement that they have shown in the League and how well the team handled the pressure during the tournament. This tournament will help us see if the boys will be applying the techniques that they have learnt over the training sessions with them”.
“The training protocols used internationally are highest rate in top nations and which are completely different from ours. We are trying to bring many of those things in our system especially the physiological part. I know this cannot be done overnight but the team has already started implementing it."
Meanwhile, India’s opponents in the first match on Friday will be England, who had a good practice session today.. "The team is all geared up for match against India,’’ said chief Coach Bobby Crutchley.
“All the training work is done for the league and team is prepared for Friday’s game with India. No one is injured and the team is ready with their final preparation. We need to focus and use our strength well. Penalty corner is very important as India usually produces good penalty corners. Tomorrow we are expecting huge crowds in India’s support and we will enjoy that moment as that will also boost us to play better”.
England Captain Barry Middleton said: “Everybody is fit. We will play our natural game with full strength. India is a great team with very good and talented players. We will play with our full squad tomorrow. We aim and have good chance to play in semi finals and finals. We will play our best to achieve the goal”.
Stick2Hockey.com
HWL ideal preparation for Team India
Uthra Ganesan
Much of India's fortunes will depend on skipper Sardar Singh's skills and how he leads the team. Here he is seen at a practice session on Thursday. Photo: R.V. Moorthy
With a busy year ahead in 2014 — there would be the World Cup, the Commonwealth Games, the Asian Games and the Champions Trophy — Indian hockey could not have had a better start than the Hockey World League (HWL) Final that starts at the National Stadium here on Friday.
The grand finale of the two-year long competition would see India and the top seven teams in the world battle it out for the honour of being crowned its inaugural champion.
This would be the first outing for the national team after the Asia Cup in August last year and the players are expected to take some time getting into a rhythm, especially in the opening match against England.
“We last played here in 2010 and the result was not what we would have liked so hopefully this time it will be better,” said England coach Bobby Crutchley. England lost to India on penalties in the semifinals of the Commonwealth Games.
Slow starter
The format of the HWL, which ensures all eight teams would play the quarterfinals, may benefit India, traditionally a slow starter in competitions. Led by Sardar Singh in the midfield and accompanied by junior captain Manpreet Singh and Dharamvir Singh, the team’s strength would be in defence.
V.R. Raghunath and Rupinderpal Singh would have to shoulder the bulk of responsibility at the back, more so given the inexperienced attack. The duo would also be in charge of penalty corners.
Except for S. V. Sunil, the rest of the forward line — Yuvraj Walmiki, Affan Yousuf, Nikkin Thimmaiah and Mandeep Singh — is yet to prove itself consistently.
The tournament would also be the first with new coach Terry Walsh in charge and it would be interesting to see what changes the Australian has made, given his insistence on developing the basics.
Several key members of the side played the junior World Cup recently and were guilty of mis-trapping and wrong passing.
India has nothing to lose and everything to gain from this tournament. Participating only by virtue of being the host, the team has no ranking points to gain.
The team has already qualified for the World Cup.
Playing against the world’s best teams would give it valuable match practice and help identify weaknesses ahead of a packed year.
The biggest concern for the team management would be the health of its players. Injuries ruled out five of its key players, four of them strikers, even before training began.
A day ahead of the competition, at least three more — Rupinderpal, Manpreet and Mandep — were struggling to recover from sore throat.
“Nothing serious but yes, we are not at optimum fitness. Hopefully everyone will be ready to go by the time the match starts,” said Sardar.
Interestingly, India last played England in its tournament opener at the Champions Trophy in 2012, winning 3-1. India reached the semifinals then and a similar result this time would be a great achievement for the host.
Friday’s matches: Australia v Belgium, The Netherlands v Argentina, Germany v New Zealand, and India v England (8 p.m.).
The Hindu
Hockey World League Final: India's chance to bridge the gap
Jaspreet Sahni
Photo Credit: Hockey India
New Delhi: Expert advice overflows in the Indian camp these days, but whether the presence of as many as four coaches of international repute helps India bridge the gap is what will be analysed with keen interest over the next 10 days at Hockey World League (HWL) Final.
Newly appointed chief coach Terry Walsh has a tough first assignment, but there's enough local help at hand. MK Kaushik and Vasudev Baskaran are assisting Walsh and overseeing the three is Hockey India's High Performance Director Roelant Oltmans. The quartet may sound oversized for a normal coaching bench, but all complaints will be hushed if India land a few knock-out punches over the coming days.
Scrolling the finger through the team names gives an idea of the enormity of challenge India face. Germany, Australia, Netherlands, England, Belgium, New Zealand and Argentina: top five ranked FIH teams, Olympic champions, European champions, Pan American champions; the hockey world will be present in its full might at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium.
In hindsight, it provides India the perfect platform to size themselves up for the big one - the World Cup at The Hague, Netherlands, later this year. And India are lucky to get that opportunity, for they are not playing this event on merit.
The Indian team, ranked 10th, failed to qualify for the Final, finishing sixth at the HWL Semi-Final held at Rotterdam. Top three teams and a highest-ranked fourth-place finisher from the two Semi-Finals at Rotterdam and Johor Bahru progressed to the summit clash. But since India were the hosts, they had a seat reserved, completing the eight-team line-up.
Indian hockey has seen more valleys than peaks since their last Olympic medal in 1980, and this tournament will act as another gauge metre for a side that, despite having sparks like Sardar Singh, has failed to consistently perform as a unit to challenge the European and Australian powerhouses.
Under the spotlight will be India's defence that appears to have gathered some muscle in the form of VR Raghunath and Rupinderpal Singh, but they too have been guilty of leaving gaping holes and committing elementary errors that have cost India dearly in the past.
The forwards will be under the scanner for their trapping, ball-receiving and finishing skills, which have been frustratingly below par at times and not befitting of an international team that has a more than adequate coaching set-up in place.
The Spotlight will thus also be on the coaches, with HI looking to put a stop at the musical chairs and get a man for the long term. Will Walsh be that man, we will get a glimpse of that over the next 10 days.
The format is such that each of the eight teams are assured of a quarter-final after going through a league phase, where the teams are divided into two pools of four each. India are clubbed with Germany, England and New Zealand in Pool A. On the other side of the draw are Australia, Netherlands, Belgium and Argentina in Pool B.
India start off against England on Friday, followed by games against New Zealand and Netherlands, respectively, before the quarter-finals that will be played on January 15.
IBNLive
India look for improvement in Hockey World League Final
Biswajyoti Brahma
NEW DELHI: In the Hockey World League Final, most of the teams have fixed their eyes on podium-finish. Indians, however, are seeking a different goal, that of improvement.
One can't blame new coach Terry Walsh for not expressing his desire openly to win a medal in the HWLF, which is beginning in the Capital on Friday, as recent history shows most predictions about Indian hockey have gone horribly wrong.
The event would be Walsh's first big assignment since taking over from fellow Australian Michael Nobbs a couple of months back and he would be testing waters at the HWLF with some major events including the World Cup scheduled to be held later this year.
"Our goal is improvement as we go through the tournament. We want to see improvement in four areas -- physiological, psychological, tactical and basic skills," Walsh said on Thursday.
Apart from World No. 4 England, the other two teams in India's group are No. 1 Germany and No. 7 New Zealand. India, who are world No.10, did not qualify for HWLF but made it to the tournament as hosts.
India suffered a setback even before the start of the tournament as some key players are either injured or going through rehab. Their 18-member squad included six players from the team that played in the junior World Cup last month, where India finished a disappointing 10th.
"We were really sad with what happened in the junior hockey World Cup, but this is another huge opportunity for those six players," Walsh said.
India and England last played against each other in a major tournament in the 2012 Champions Trophy in Melbourne where India won 3-1.
England captain Barry Middleton said his side is aiming for a berth in the final. "Everybody is fit. We will play our natural game with full strength. India is a great team with very good and talented players.
"We have a good chance to play in the semifinals and final. We will play our best to achieve the goal," he said.
Today's matches: Australia vs Belgium 2pm; Netherlands vs Argentina 4pm; Germany vs New Zealand 6pm; India vs England 8pm. Live on Ten Sports.
HOCKEY WORLD LEAGUE FINAL
Pool A
Germany (Ranking: 1); How they qualified: 1st place in Hockey World League Semifinal, Johor Bahru (Malaysia); England (4) How they qualified: 3rd place in Hockey World League Semifinal, Johor Baru; New Zealand (7) How they qualified: 4th place in Hockey World League Semifinal, Rotterdam (Netherlands); India (10); How they qualified: Tournament hosts
Pool B
Australia (2), How they qualified: 2nd place -Hockey World League Semifinal, Rotterdam; Netherlands (3), How they qualified: 3rd place in Hockey World League Semifinal, Rotterdam; Belgium (5), How they qualified: 1st place in Hockey World League Semi Final, Rotterdam; Argentina (11), How they qualified: 2nd place in Hockey World League Semi Final, Johor Bahru
The Times of India
Improvement is India coach Walsh's main goal in HWL Final
NEW DELHI: The inaugural Hockey World League Final is chief coach Terry Walsh's first real test with the Indian team and the Australian sounded realistic about his side's chances, saying he was eyeing nothing but "improvement" from his wards in the tournament.
India got a chance to play in the HWL Final by being the hosts and placed along side Germany, England and New Zealand in Pool A while the Pool B consists of Australia, Netherlands, Belgium and Argentina.
India will open their campaign against England at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here tomorrow.
Asked Walsh about his expectations from the tournament, he replied: "The goal is improvement. Improvement in four basic areas of our performance -- physiological, psychological, tactical and basic skills."
"Expectations for me is measurement. To measure our steady rate of improvement, to evaluate where we are physiologically. To evaluate where we are in terms of handling pressure," he said.
"That's realistically what we are doing. We have got a training methodology in place which permits us to look at those things. We will also be looking at the level of performance of players and evaluate where they are both as individuals and collectively as a team."
Since taking over the reigns of the team only in last November, Walsh has introduced many new things and the Australian said HWL Final will give him an opportunity to judge where the team stands presently.
"I think we have (implemented some changes) but it will be interesting to see whether or not we can apply them on the pitch. In our practice games we had a mixture," he said.
The HWL Final is being treated as a perfect build-up for India ahead of the World Cup to be held later this year at The Hague, Netherlands.
"It (HWL Final) would be advantageous but certainly not compulsory. If we finish in top four in this tournament that necessarily doesn't mean we will finish top four in the World Cup. There is a co-relation but there is not a direct relationship," the coach said.
India has fielded six junior players in the squad for HWL Final and Walsh said the event will provide the youngsters a chance to showcase their mettle, especially after the disappointment of Junior World Cup.
"We were obviously disappointed with the outcome of the Junior World Cup but it's a huge opportunity for the six junior players we have in the team," he said.
Walsh feels the need of the hour for India is to promote local style of hockey.
"We have to promote a style of hockey which is Indian. It has to have some of the components of Indian way, Indian psyche and Indian culture. That's really important because that's what these guys understand and love, that's why they play," the Australian said.
"We have to make sure that we totally don't bring a foreign style of play."
India's vice-captain and goalkeeper P R Sreejesh is in no mood to think too far ahead and said their present focus is on tomorrow's game.
"The first match of every tournament is very important. We just need to concentrate on the match and give confidence to the junior players," he said.
"There won't be much pressure because we have got a strong mid-field. We also have got experienced fullbacks. We just have to guide the young forwardline."
The Times of India
New-look India aim for credible show at HWL Final
NEW DELHI: A relatively new-look India would be gunning for glory on home turf under new coach Terry Walsh in the inaugural Hero Hockey World League Final where the team will open their campaign against higher-ranked England at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium on Friday.
The tournament will provide India a perfect build up for the World Cup to be held later this year at The Hague, Netherlands.
With the world's top seven teams in fray here, India could not have asked for better preparation for the quadrennial event.
India should consider itself lucky to be one of the participating teams in the HWL Final. Having failed to qualify directly, India managed a place in the event by the virtue of being the host.
India is also slated to host the prestigious Champions Trophy later this year and now it is high time the past masters of the game take advantage of these big-ticket opportunities.
The HWL Final will provide the Sardar Singh-led side an opportunity to prove to the world that Indian hockey is on course to regaining its past glory.
Apart from the silver medal in the Asia Cup, India didn't have anything major to show in 2013.
The Indians finished a disappointing sixth in the HWL semifinals in Rotterdam, but the HWL Final provides the eight-time Olympic champions a perfect stage to prove their detractors wrong.
But for that, they will have to overpower formidable opponents such as Germany, Australia and Netherlands.
India are placed in Pool A along side reigning Olympic champions and world number one Germany, world No. 4 England and seventh-ranked New Zealand. Pool B consists of Australia, Netherlands, Belgium and Argentina.
So, understandably it won't be a cake-walk for the Indians, who are ranked 10th in the world, and Walsh's boys will have to perform superbly if they desire to progress to the knock-out stage.
Having taken charge of the team only in November from compatriot Michael Nobbs, the HWL Final will be the first real test for Walsh and his support staff.
Plagued by injuries to some key players, India fielded a relatively new-look team for the HWL Final. Forwards SV Sunil and Yuvraj Walmiki have made comebacks after sitting out for close to one year due to injuries and poor form.
While Sunil came back into the team after recovering from the elbow injury he sustained before the Asia Cup in August, Walmiki made a return to the side after the FIH Champions Trophy in 2012.
India's forward-line sports a fresh look as apart from Sunil and Walmiki, the selectors have put faith in youngsters like Nikkin Thimmaiah, Mandeep Singh and Affan Yousuf.
For Affan, who was vice-captain of the Sultan Johor Cup winning side but was later ignored for the Junior World Cup, it is a maiden call-up to the senior side.
Another rookie entry to the senior side is goalkeeper Harjot Singh, who replaced PT Rao. Experienced custodian PR Sreejesh has been entrusted with the responsibility to share Sardar's leadership responsibility.
With Sardar at the helm, the Indian middle-field comprising SK Uthappa, Dharamvir Singh, Manpreet Singh, Chinglensana Singh and M B Aiyappa, sports a solid look.
India's backline has always been a problem and it remains to be seen how Birendra Lakra, Rupinderpal Singh, VR Raghunath, Kothajit Singh and Amit Rohidas live upto their jobs.
But the most promising aspect of the team is the presence of three penalty-corner specialists. Raghunath, Rupinder and Rohidas will form a potent force when it comes to penalty corner conversions.
The Indians will be desperate to open their campaign on a winning note against England on Friday before they square off against New Zealand on Friday and Netherlands on Sunday.
But it won't be easy as England are no pushovers and their world ranking suggests their constant upward movement in world hockey.
India captain Sardar Singh, however, promised to spring some surprises in the HWL Final.
"We have a young and talented team in transition. We need to do the basic things right. The biggest advantage that we have is that we have world's best coach in Terry Walsh. We have good mid-field and some very attacking players upfront. We need to tighten up our defence and then we will be in a position to defeat major teams in the world," Sardar has said.
England qualified for the HWL Finals by finishing third in the HWL semifinal in Johor Bahru, Malaysia.
England, who finished fourth at the EuroHockey Nations, will be bolstered by the return of striker Ashley Jackson who will certainly add some teeth to their attacking force.
Meanwhile, in other matches of the opening day, Australia will play Belgium, Netherlands will face Argentina and Germany will take on New Zealand.
The Times of India
India better than their hockey ranking: England coach
NEW DELHI: England's chief hockey coach Bobby Crutchley believes that eight-time Olympic Champions India are much better than their World No.10 ranking.
World No.4 England and India are clubbed in the same group with Olympic champions and World No.1 Germany and New Zealand in the Hockey World League Final that starts here Friday at the Dhyan Chand National Stadium.
England start their campaign against India and Crutchley, who was appointed last year, feels that the hosts can hope to reclaim their lost glory only gradually.
"India's ranking doesn't reflect its true potential. They have the talent but they cannot dream to become the No.1 team overnight but have to take gradual steps to improve," the 43-year-old Crutchley told IANS here on the sidelines of a practice session.
The Briton said both India and England lack consistency and that is hurting them a lot.
"Both India and England struggle to achieve consistency. It will be interesting to see whether we can maintain conwistency in the tournament. We would like to keep up our performance at the top level even if we are not getting the results. The focus will be on developing performance and then the results will come. The challenge for India is to focus on those little small improvements without thinking of becoming No.1 tomorrow," said Crutchley.
The former England international said that India captain Sardar Singh stand out in the Indian team even though there are some good players. Crutchley said England would try to restrict Sardar's movement Friday in their opening encounter.
"India have a number of top players but I think Sardar is the best. He has been consistently good for a number of years. Some of the other players have shown glimpses of real quality but if a few players could match his consistency and performance, then that would make a big difference," said Crutchley, who had 80 international caps.
Going into Friday's game, Crutchley feels both England and India are at par due to lack of match practice.
"We are probably a bit like India; not played many matches recently. But we have done quite a lot of training. Our strategy will be just about focussing on our game and to give our best performance out there, not worrying too much about India," said Crutchley.
"If India play well then they would be putting us under enough pressure but our challenge would be to play our quality ball game and show the ability to play at high intensity. We are trying to get into the tournament with a good start and then trying to build that momentum throughout."
The Englishman finished off by saying that he hasn't set any goals coming into the tournament.
"We are not setting any goals. Our target is to be highly competitive in every game and consistent play high level hockey. If we can do that, we will get good results," he said.
The Times of India
Coach the coaches, say Baskaran and Kaushik
“Hockey changes every two years. Whatever you see now will be different after two years. So, one has to keep oneself up-to-date,” V. Baskaran told The Hindu. File Photo: R.M. Rajarathinam
When Indian hockey is grappling with grassroots issues, including coaching the coaches and the youngsters, it is heartening to see two stalwarts V. Baskaran and M.K. Kaushik, who were part of the National side that won its eighth and last Olympics gold in Moscow 34 years ago, assisting India’s chief coach Terry Walsh and High Performance Director Roelant Oltmans.
As the Indian team prepares for the Hockey World League final (scheduled to start here from Friday), Baskaran and Kaushik are sharing their experience with the players.
“Hockey changes every two years. Whatever you see now will be different after two years. So, one has to keep oneself up-to-date,” Baskaran told The Hindu.
“Today the game has become more and more physical. Besides, there are a lot of tactical things in the game now. For example, if the Europeans play fast then they need space for that. We need to block the space and for that we have to be physically stronger.”
Kaushik added: “There is no age when you cannot learn. Everyday you learn about hockey as well as life.”
In their 60s, Baskaran and Kaushik begin the day at 7.30 a.m. and pack up at 11 p.m. “There are a lot of behind-the-scenes activities such as meetings, analysis, training sessions, etc.,” said Baskaran. He agreed that the biggest challenge was educating coaches and players at the grassroots level. “If I coach Sardar Singh here, why cannot I coach him in the Haryana team? But it is not simple.
“The main challenge is how to teach the coaches who are employed with the Sports Authority of India and various State governments.”
Kaushik did not see merit in teaching skills to the players of the National side. But he agreed that coaching the coaches at the local level was important. “Who will teach them? Everybody should come together and think about this,” he said.
Indian squad named
Forward Yuvraj Walmiki returns to national duty after more than a year while goalkeeper Harjot Singh was rewarded for his impressive performance as Hockey India named the 18-member squad for the World League Final.
The squad: Goalkeepers: P.R. Sreejesh, Harjot Singh; Defenders: Birendra Lakra, Rupinder Pal Singh, V.R. Raghunath, Kothajit Singh, Amit Rohidas; Midfielders: Sardar Singh, S.K. Uthappa, Dharamvir Singh, Manpreet Singh, Chinglensana Singh, M.B. Aiyappa; Forwards: Nikkin Thimmaiah, S.V. Sunil, Mandeep Singh, Affan Yousuf, Yuvraj Walmiki
The Hindu
Men's squad named for 2014 EuroHockey Indoor Championships
Reading and England star Darren Cheesman in action in the Maxinutrition Hockey 5s. (Ady Kerry/England Hockey)
Ahead of the men’s 2014 EuroHockey Indoor Championships, England [Indoor] Head Coach Andy Halliday has selected his squad of 12 players to take part in the tournament which runs from 17-19 January in Vienna, Austria. The tournament will be played under the new 5-a-side format.
With 18 members of the England centralised training squad out in India getting ready for the World League Finals the tournament provides a great opportunity for players on the fringe of the centralised group to experience indoor hockey against seven of the world’s best teams.
Speaking about the tournament ahead, Halliday said; “We go into this tournament with one clear aim which is to finish in the top six and retain our top division status. Finishing top six will also qualify us for the Indoor World Cup in Germany next year, which would be a fantastic achievement; however I do think we have to enter this tournament with realistic aspirations as well. We have a very inexperienced indoor team, with just over 50 indoor caps between the 12 selected players.”
Of the 12 athletes, eight are uncapped indoors, and four will make their international debuts; Harry Gibson and Chris Griffiths from Loughborough Students, Sam Ward from Beeston and Chris Newman from Reading.
Beeston’s Sam Ward is an out and out goal scorer, currently sitting top of both the outdoor and indoor tables with 15 and 26 goals respectively. He will be joined in attack by another prolific goal scorer, Simon Egerton, who is currently playing his club hockey for HGC in The Netherlands [outdoor] and Bowdon [indoor].
Egerton, alongside Richard Lane [Holcombe], David Cooper [Hampstead & Westminster], Richard Springham [Reading] and David Beckett [Cannock], bring some vital experience to the squad and will no doubt play a key part to England’s progress. Reading Captain Springham, who has 15 indoor caps, will take charge of England during the tournament.
Although several players will be making their indoor international debuts, the likes of Ben Arnold, Darren Cheesman, Beckett and James Bailey are all familiar names from the GB & England centralised training squad. Bailey has been in great form for Reading in the Maxinutrition Hockey 5s between the posts and with the new 5 a-side rules he will be vital to England’s chances of finishing in the top six. Finishing seventh or eighth will mean relegation from the top flight.
England has been drawn in Pool A and has an unenviable task of battling it out against current World and European Indoor Champions Germany, The Netherlands and Russia.
Speaking about the draw, Halliday added: “As indoor draws go it doesn’t get much tougher than meeting these teams. The Netherlands have a separate indoor team which obviously gives them an advantage coming into the tournament because their selection is not affected by outdoor commitments. Germany’s strength in depth allows them to always field a strong team in any competition and as defending champions they will be seen as favourites to finish top. And Russia, like many of the Eastern European countries have a strong indoor hockey set-up due to the nature of their long winters.”
Ahead of the Europeans, England travel to Brussels this Friday for a Tri-Nations tournament against Belgium and Scotland who are also preparing for European competition. The matches will be capped and results and match reports for these games will be on the England Hockey website.
The schedule is as follows:
Date: Time - Match
11 January:
10:30 Scotland v England
14:00 Belgium v Scotland
17:00 England v Belgium
12 January:
08:30 England v Scotland
11:30 Belgium v England
England's first game will be against the Netherlands at 10:10 (UK time) on Friday 17 January: a full round-up or results, scorers and reflections on the game will be available at englandhockey.co.uk.
To read more information on the 2014 EuroHockey Indoor Championship, see below.
2014 EuroHockey Indoor Championship Pools
Pool A
Germany
Netherlands
Russia
England
Pool B
Czech Republic
Austria
Poland
Sweden
EuroHockey Indoor Championship match schedule
England Men’s Squad for the 2014 EuroHockey Indoor Championship
Name - Current Club
Ben Arnold - Beeston
James Bailey - Reading
David Beckett - Cannock
Darren Cheesman - Reading
David Cooper - Hampstead and Westminster
Simon Egerton - HGC (NED) – Bowdon (indoor)
Harry Gibson - Loughborough Students
Chris Griffiths - Loughborough Students
Richard Lane - Holcombe
Chris Newman - Reading
Richard Springham - Reading
Sam Ward - Beeston
England Hockey Board Media release
Order Team Clothing from HockeyFactoryShop.co.uk
(Image by Jos Dielis (CC))
Just a quick update to let you know that you can now order team clothing from Hockey Factory Shop (http://www.hockeyfactoryshop.co.uk). In addition to being one of Europe’s leading field hockey equipment suppliers they can now kit out your whole team with kit, clothing and any personalisation requirements you might have. Hockey Factory Shop stock all the big name brands including TK Hockey, Gryphon, Gray’s and many more, with thousands of items in stock they’ll have everything you might need. To make an enquiry simply drop them an email on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or give them a call on +44 (0)1162421060. They’ll try their best to meet your needs and to have your team looking great for a very reasonable price. Why not check out their site and get in touch today.
National Teams in Spain
Both Ireland's National Teams are in Spain over the next few days on a warm weather training camp at Terassa. Both sides will compete against Spain in test matches.
Ireland v Spain - match schedule (all Spanish Times)
11th January
Men Ireland v Spain 15.30 Junior Futbol Club (Sant Cugat)
Women Ireland v Spain 18.00 Terrassa Estadium (Terrassa)
12th January
Women Ireland v Spain 14.00 Terrassa Estadium (Terrassa).
13th January
Men Ireland v Spain 15.30 Club Egara (Terrassa)
14th January
Women Ireland v Spain 12.00 Terrassa Estadium (Terrassa)
15th January
Women Ireland v Spain 11.30 Terrassa Estadium (Terrassa)
Men Ireland v Spain 15.30 Atletic Terrassa Hockey Club (Terrassa)
Irish Hockey Association media release
Thrilling finals at U21 indoors
New South Wales sweep the board at the U21 Indoor National Championships
Photo: Action in Focus photography
There was more indoor success for New South Wales on Friday as both their U21 women’s and men’s sides picked up the silverware at the U21 Indoor National Championships in Wollongong.
In the women’s event, ACT took home silver while Western Australia overcame Victoria to win bronze.
And in the men’s competition Queensland were the beaten finalists in a thrilling match, losing 9-6 to New South Wales, while Western Australia picked up the bronze medals by beating Victoria.
Two goals from Kizziah Plumb helped the NSW girls to grand final victory over ACT after Nicole King had given the hosts an early lead from a penalty corner. Plumb’s first just two minutes later put NSW in the driving seat before Stef Kindon pulled one back for ACT just before halftime. Midway through the second half Plumb bagged her second, a third for NSW, and sealed yet another indoor championship title for the girls in sky blue. 3-1 the final score.
In the women’s bronze medal match goals from Katy Symons, Natasha Del Borrello and Ashleigh Quartermaine put WA three goals to the good inside the opening quarter of an hour. The lightning quick start ultimately proved too much for Victoria for whom Anna Moore scored early in the second half. 3-1 the final score.
NSW and QLD played out a thriller in the men’s final with the hosts coming out on top 9-6. Even early exchanges saw the opening four goals traded inside eight minutes as the match quickly went to 2-2, including the first goal of Jack Hayes’ (NSW) hat-trick. Scott Govers’ second goal put NSW back in front and they extended their lead to 6-2 through Christopher Whitehall and Hayes (2). QLD looked set to mount a fight back through Patrick Krusi and Tom Madden but Blake Govers got in on the act with two goals of his own, supplemented by Christopher Whitehall’s second for NSW to lead 9-4. Two late strikes from Queenslanders Adrian Cross and Scott Boyde narrowed the deficit but they could not prevent the clinical NSW men from taking the title.
In the men’s bronze medal match two early WA goals from James Naughtin and David Richardson put them in the driving seat over Victoria with Michale Nicoli and Joshua Byrne-Quinn doubling the lead to 4-0 with six minutes remaining. Although Oscar Allen struck for Victoria with five minutes remaining it was no more than a mere consolation goal in the 4-1 finish.
U21 Women’s Indoor National Championships
Final: NSW 3-1 ACT
Bronze: WA 3-1 VIC
U21 Men’s Indoor National Championships
Final: NSW 9-6 QLD
Bronze: WA 4-1 VIC
Thanks to Action in Focus photography for the main image. Visit their website to see more at www.actioninfocus.com.au.
Hockey Australia media release
MJHL provides chance to unearth fresh talents
By S. Ramaguru
A file picture of the SSTMI-Thunderbolt team after they were crowned champions of the MHC-Milo-NSC Malaysia Junior Hockey League (MJHL) last season.
KUALA LUMPUR: The MHC-Milo-NSC Malaysia Junior Hockey League (MJHL), which begins on Friday, will kick start the domestic hockey season for this year and provide valuable insight into the talents available for the new national junior squad.
The Project 2013 team have now progressed to the next level after finishing fourth in the Junior World Cup last month.
Next up is the Project 2016 squad – and potential candidates will be selected from the MJHL.
The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) have formed an ad hoc Project 2017 team but the players will be absorbed into the 2016 squad.
The players in the 1MAS programme will also be scrutinised when they play in the MJHL.
There is no doubt that the talent is there, although what remains to be seen is how many from the MJHL have what it takes to make the training squad.
A record number of 30 teams have entered for this year’s competition and it is evident that the MJHL remains relevant for the development of the game.
With each team registering at least 20 players, there will 600 players in action each week.
As this is also the Malaysia Games (Sukma) year, almost all the states have entered a team in the MJHL, except for Sabah and Sarawak.
The MJHL has, over the years, grown with the increasing number of sports schools and hockey centres of excellence joining in the fray. It also provides teams the chance to gauge their standards and capabilities.
SSTMI-Thunderbolt are the team to beat in Division One this year as they seek to defend their league and overall titles.
There are seven teams in this division. The other teams are Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL), Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ), Malacca High School, Anderson-Perak SEDC, SSTMI Juniors and KLSS Juniors.
UniKL and MBPJ are the only other teams in Division One to have won the league title.
Previous double champions like Bukit Jalil SS and Olak are now in Division Two – and hoping to get back among the elites.
There is a good chance the two teams can make it back to the top as the MHC have decided to have 10 teams in Division One next year.
That means four teams from Division Two will gain promotion instead of the usual two.
As such, only four Division One teams will now make the cut for the knockout stage while the other four teams will come from Division Two.
Overall, there will not be much excitement in Division One as the teams will only play six matches each.
SSTMI coach Wan Mohamed Roslan pointed out that “this means there will be no room for mistakes right from the start”.
“You need to be on your toes from the first game. Even a draw at any stage will be bad for your title hopes. So, we plan to take it one match at a time and ensure we collect maximum points each time. There is no room for mistakes ... there’s no second chance,” he said.
“We have a strong squad but there are at least two or three teams with an equal chance of winning the title. I’m sure it will be a close fight this year.”
The Division One action will start with the battle between the two sports schools – SSTMI and SSTMI Juniors – in Taman Daya, Johor Baru.
Perak’s Anderson are the only Division One team to play two matches this weekend. They take on Malacca High School away on Friday and face MBPJ here on Saturday.
Thus, their title chances will hinge greatly on the outcome of their matches in the first weekend.
With the chance of getting selected to the National Juniors squad, the players will need no extra motivation to prove their worth.
The Star of Malaysia
VPT takes third place in hockey tourney
Chairman in-charge of Visakhapatnam Port Trust R.P.S. Kahlon presenting the third prize trophy to Visakhapatnam team at the port stadium in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday.
The All-India Major Ports Hockey Championship ended on an exciting note at the port stadium here on Wednesday with host Visakhapatnam Port Trust fighting till the last minute to clinch a victory over last year’s winner Kolkata or at least draw the match.
However, the host was unfortunate to lose 1-2 and take the third place. It finished in the same position last time. Kolkota was the winner and VO Chidambarnar, Tuticorin was runner-up. S. Ramakrishna of Visakhapatnam was adjudged the best goalkeeper of the tournament.
Visakhapatnam made the final in the football championship, edging out Paradip in the sudden death after the penalties in the tie-breaker failed to break the stalemate. Paradip had earlier pushed last year’s winner Kolkota to the second place in the league phase but the host played well in the semi-finals to contain Paradip and make the final. It takes on Cochin in the final on Thursday.
Chairman in-charge of Visakhapatnam Port Trust R.P.S. Kahlon gave away the trophies and individual special prizes. VPT Chief Vigilance Officer Mujib Pasha Shaik, honorary secretary of Hockey Andhra Pradesh M. Niranjan Reddy, executive president of Hockey Visakhapatnam District S.K.E. Appa Rao, Deputy CVO of VPT S.V.S. Sudhakar, Deputy CME and working president of VPSC P.V.V.P. Harihara Rao, Sports Officer and secretary of VPSC M.V. Manikyalu, Sports Officer Ch. Benerjee Babu participated.
The Hindu
Don't link Dhyan Chand to awards
Shashank Shekhar
On Wednesday, a group of about 500 hockey lovers held a protest rally in the Capital to demand the Bharat Ratna for hockey legend Dhyan Chand. A memorandum was also submitted at the Prime Minister's office in this regard.
This was the latest episode in the ongoing fight by a dedicated bunch of hockey lovers, led by 'Hockey Citizen Group,' aimed at getting the highest honour of the country for the great man.
This agitation went on the upswing when the government, in a snap decision, bestowed the award on Sachin Tendulkar on November 16, the day the batsman retired. It took most by surprise but for those who were campaigning for Dhyan Chand to be the first sportsperson to receive it, it came as a jolt.
It was as if they were made fools of by the government which had given the impression that it was indeed serious on honouring the late hockey wizard with the Ratna.
The sports ministry had even recommended his name for the award many months back. In a way, hockey lovers felt scandalized. Hence this frustration, leading to strong sentiments aired publicly by former stalwarts of the game and some Olympians from other disciplines.
However, those demanding the honour for Dhyan Chand would do well to remember that linking his immense contribution to the game and Olympic movement in India to just an award, howsoever big it is, is avoidable.
It will be a great day for sports if Dhyan Chand is given the honour. But will it add value to his persona or will it be a vindication of sorts? Will it help the game of hockey in India in any significant way?
As it is, sarkari decorations no longer have the respect and stature they once had. They are now mostly seen as favours doled out by the government of the day to acolytes.
What is also important for all those associated with this protest is to desist from giving it an anti-cricket or anti-Tendulkar colour. There have been voices questioning the wisdom of giving the award to Tendulkar. Many names have been put forth, all illustrious, suggesting that they were better qualified for the Ratna.
Of course, Dhyan Chand's name figures at the top in most such lists. Everyone knows that the hurried decision to give the award to Tendulkar was more a political move than anything else.
It was a wishful attempt by an unpopular government to ride the Tendulkar wave at that time and exploit it to gain some goodwill with an eye on the upcoming elections. Giving Dhyan Chand the award wouldn't have given the government any mileage.
That said, Tendulkar cannot be blamed if the government decided to give him the award. And he cannot be blamed for turning out to be a cricketer and not a footballer, hockey player or a tennis star.
He did his job with distinction and brought great joy to the country for so long. He also cannot be blamed him if forces of history 'conspired' to make cricket a religion in India.
Dhyan Chand, who died in 1979, remained a humble man despite his exceptional achievements and his immense popularity. He himself would have, one can be sure, scoffed at the idea of someone denigrating a sport or a sportsperson to get him an award. A true sportsperson always respects another. It will be in the fitness of things if those fighting for this 'cause' remember this.
As it is, a better tribute to the memory of Dhyan Chand, for many India's greatest-ever sportsperson, will be helping India bring back the glory days on the world stage.
Bharat Ratna will not serve any purpose in this regard which is not to say that Dhyan Chand should not get it. It will indeed be high recognition of his immense contribution. But it still is a very academic thing. How will hockey benefit?
The Times of India