News 14 January 2014
All the news for Tuesday 14 January 2014
Teams prepare for mouth-watering quarter finals at Hero HWL Final
Host nation takes on world champions; Olympic finalists resume competition – hockey doesn't get better than this
Black Sticks Stephen Jenness and Dean Couzins get ready for the quarter final. (Photo: FIH / Grant Treeby)
In the quarter finals of the Hero Hockey World League Final to be played on Wednesday, group leaders England and Australia will face Belgium and India respectively. The surprise package Argentina will face New Zealand, while Germany and the Netherlands take up where they left off at the 2012 Olympics. Some mouth-watering encounters lie in wait for hockey fans around the world.
England v Belgium
Looking to the quarter finals, coach of the England team, Bobby Crutchley, is still not happy with the way his charges are playing and knows that the players cannot afford the numerous errors that have hallmarked their first three games in Pool A. "The other pool is tough and all four teams are very good sides," he said. "We have to build momentum but make no mistake, this is a good opportunity to take on some of the best teams in the world." Ashley Jackson, who scored two goals in yesterday's match against New Zealand, added that the team had shown a lot of resilience in the pool matches and this was an attitude that they must continue to demonstrate. Their opponents in the quarter finals, Belgium, are confident that the improvement in performance that saw them draw with the Netherlands will stand them in good stead. Tom Boon, who is currently top scorer in the tournament on four goals, said: "We will be watching videos of the England game and analysing them. England are the in-form team in this tournament, but we know we can beat them. All the previous results will mean nothing if we win at quarter final stage."
Germany v The Netherlands
Second place in Pool A went to Germany, the Olympic champions, and they will face their close European rivals the Netherlands in the quarter finals. Coach of the Netherlands Paul van Ass said: "We need to play the same system but play it more aggressively and we have to play with more rhythm. This is what we didn't do against Belgium. We always look forward to playing Germany. Netherlands captain, Robert van der Horst, said "Every team here will be challenging, because the best teams are competing here." If anyone doubted the importance of these matches to the players, then the words of German goalkeeper Tim Jessalut would reassure them: "We made mistakes in the match against India, but we only make mistakes once. Playing the Netherlands is the only motivation we need."
Argentina v New Zealand
New Zealand, who finished the pool stages in 3rd place will face the tournament's dark horse Argentina. Black Sticks coach Colin Batch spoke of the need for his team to stick to their game plan for "the whole 70 minutes," and Phil Burrows added: "We have to change a few things. But of course we are sure we can make the top four otherwise we wouldn't send a team in the pitch." Talking about the prospects for the quarter finals, Argentina's Gonzalo Peillat said "We know that we have to do much better than tonight." His coach, Carlos Retegui agreed "We are super satisfied with the group stage, because we are playing against the best teams in the world."
Australia v India
World champions Australia will play the home nation India. Russell Ford said: "We need to play with high intensity and need to put as much pressure on the opposition as we can." Ford's team mate Daniel Beale added: “I went to the Junior World Cup and we got beaten in the quarter final so I know how tough that can be. This is just another final; we’ve pretty much got three finals in a row. We’re definitely taking it like the grand final.” Terry Walsh, the coach of India, is looking forward to his encounter with the Australian team. He says that his team are on an upward curve and are learning all the time. "We played well tonight, and I hope that we can take the energy and vibrancy into the quarter finals, but this is all part of a growing process for this team."
Eight teams all taking one more step towards making their mark on the Hero Hockey World League Final.
FIH site
India hold Olympic champions to a draw and England top table
Pool A throws up shock result in Hero Hockey World League Final
India provide home crowd with triple delight. (Photo: FIH / Grant Treeby)
India twice led against the Olympic champions before finishing their final pool game with a 3-3 draw. In the earlier pool A match England retained their unbeaten record at the Hero Hockey World League Final in New Delhi when notching up their third victory in this competition, thanks to a solid 5-1 win over New Zealand which has left them top of pool A.
Both teams played expansive and open hockey in the middle of the pitch but solid defending resulted in few shots on goal in the opening 25 minutes.
The competitors from both sides worked hard in all areas of the pitch to gain valuable possession and at the end of the first half England had a slight advantage. Bobby Crutchley’s team turned this possession into a goal when Ashley Jackson (30’) scored from his team’s second penalty corner.
In the second half, against the run of play, the world No 4 team doubled their lead. Jackson (44’) flicked in another penalty corner making him joint top scorer in the Hero Hockey World League Final with three goals.
Mark Gleghorne (50’) scored from another penalty corner extending the lead. The Black Sticks’ consolation goal came from a penalty corner converted by Hugo Inglis (57’).
Two further goals from Tom Carson (67’) and Barry Middleton (70’) sealed the victory and guaranteed England top-of-the-pool status.
“This is a very disappointing result. We gave up at the end and this is not what we should have done”, Blacksticks player Phil Burrows said after the game.
Jackson said that he did not expect to stay as top scorer for long: "Tom Boon will soon overtake me, he is a specialist penalty corner taker." In fact, that happened just two games later when Boon scored in the Pool B match against the Netherlands.
Despite the win, England's coach Bobby Crutchley was far from pleased with his team's performance: "We were sloppy, particularly in the first half. In fact I would say that the scoreline flattered us. Our penalty corners went well, which meant New Zealand had to step out and chase the game. This left us with space."
In the second Pool A match, India delighted the home supporters by scoring 3 goals to record their first points and earn a 3-3 draw against Olympic champions Germany in the final Pool A match of the Hero Hockey World League Final.
India took the lead in the 19th minute after a shot was deflected into the German goal by Benedikt Furk. The response from the enthusiastic crowd lifted the Indian team and the next few minutes saw some entertaining end-to-end hockey being played.
Germany were first to take advantage of a quick counter-attack, with captain Oliver Korn (24') equalising from open play.
The game see-sawed from end-to-end and it was further nine minutes before India's Rupinder Singh (33') broke the deadlock to score from a penalty corner strike.
The second half began at a great pace, but Germany's structure began to find holes in the India defence. A penalty corner was fired wide, before a hard pass into the circle found the merest touch of an Indian stick for the second own goal of the match (41').
India continued to play with inventiveness, and the German goalkeeper Tim Jessulat was called to make two saves in quick succession. This pressure turned to a goal when Dharamvir Singh (52') converted a penalty corner into a 3-2 lead.
Indian hearts were broken when Thilo Stralkowski (68') scored the equaliser from open play, with just 2 minutes left on the clock.
Coach of India, Terry Walsh, said: "We have tried to bring on improvement. Where we are now that is good, but we won't always be on an upward curve. The players are trying to learn what I want and that is not easy."
But added Walsh, "I am really proud of my team today. They played with the energy necessary for this level. The defence was solid and the attack was vibrant."
The German goalkeeper, Jessulat said: "We didn't play well today, but with our team we only make the mistake once."
And captain Oliver Korn added: "India played very well, but we played very badly. We made it too easy for India in the early parts of the game. Today's game was not a step forward so we must take a look at why."
At the end of the match a protest was lodged by India. The protest was dismissed by the Tournament Director.
FIH site
Australia win Pool B, with Argentina surprise runners-up
The Netherlands finish third while Belgium are last in pool B at the Hero HWL Final
Australia won a tough challenge against Argentina. (Photo: FIH / Frank Uijlenbroek)
A last minute goal for the Netherlands to earn a 2-2 draw leaves Belgium bottom of Pool B, while a Kookaburra goal-fest ended Argentina's unbeaten record at the Hero Hockey World League Final, as the world champions beat the 11th ranked team 6-1.
Both pool B matches promised much with the current world champions facing the unbeaten Los Leones of Argentina, while a local derby between the Netherlands and Belgium threw up many connotations for the men in orange. A win by a higher margin for the Netherlands would have left the Olympic silver medallists in first or second place, while a loss would leave them bottom of the pool. As it turned out, the draw left them in third.
In the first match, the Kookaburras set out their stall early on as Dean Beale (3') stole possession and slotted home a reverse stick goal. After Beale's opener, Mark Knowles (11') scored from the penalty spot after a foul in the circle saw umpire, Roel van Eert, pointing to the spot without hesitation. And then Kieran Govers (14') added to his overall tally of tournament goals with a well taken shot from wide of the goal.
Argentina appeared shellshocked by the speed of the Australian attack, but in the 18th minute they scored, only to see the goal overturned after a successful Australian referral. A succession of Australian penalty corners and a lot of possession by the Kookaburras failed to yield a goal, and it was Los Leones through Facundo Callioni (32') who eventually found the back of the net after a quick break.
The final minute of the first half saw Govers (35') double his match tally with a penalty corner strike.
In the second half, Australia extended their lead through two goals scored from open play. First Russell Ford (44') followed up on a shot that had been saved by Juan Manuel Vivaldi in the Argentine goal, and then Kiel Brown (48') made it six for the Kookaburras.
In the second pool match, the Netherlands walked away with a 2-2 draw in their last pool match against Belgium to finish third in pool B. Although the Red Lions gained their first point in the Hero Hockey World League, they remain last in the table. This means Belgium will take on pool A winners England in the quarter final.
Dutch coach Paul van Ass said: “Overall we are more disappointed. We were not aggressive enough today.”
The crowd witnessed an entertaining first half with both teams fighting really hard. Belgium goalkeeper Vincent Vanash was called into action a few more times than his counter-part Pirmin Blaak, who made his first appearance in the starting 11.
Constantijn Jonker (31’) struck late in the first half to open the scoring, when he got the final touch on a great pass coming from team-captain Robert van der Horst. However, Belgium equalised very quickly when top-scorer Tom Boon (34’) flicked home a penalty corner. Having scored four goals in the Hero Hockey World League Final now, the Belgian striker leads the top scorer list.
The second half continued with high intensity being shown by both sides. This time Belgium moved into lead through a superb shot highly into the net from captain Felix Denayer (52’).
The Olympic silver medallists played with great urgency in an attempt to regain the initiative but the Belgian defence stood strong until Jeroen Hertzberger (66’) equalised from open play. “If we had played ten minutes longer I’m sure we would have won it”, said Dutch captain Robert van der Horst. “This was a real hockey fight. It was a match both teams wanted to win.”
Belgian Elliot van Strydonck said after the game: "We are taking a lot of positives from this game. In the previous match against Argentina we lost our structure. We had a team meeting after that game and everyone said we would play better."
His teammate Boon added that, although the team lost, they had gone on the team with much more energy and aggression. We played with real intent."
FIH site
India earns a draw with Germany
Uthra Ganesan
Tumble and fall: Argentina's Luacas Vila is in a bit of spot with the Australian defenders. Australia was ruthless in the demolition of Argentina. Photo: R.V. Moorthy
India earned its first point in the Hockey World League Final with a well-fought 3-3 draw against Olympic champion Germany on Monday.
It was the best performance by the host in the tournament so far and though the Indians finished at the bottom of Pool A, they would take away a lot of positives from the game.
Rupinderpal Singh and Dharamvir scored for India while one was an own goal. For Germany, Thilo Stralkowski and Martin Haner scored while India conceded an own goal as well.
Australia thrashes Argentina
Earlier in the day, World No. 2 Australia finally proved its class, after two matches that saw it struggling to score, with a 6-1 thrashing of Argentina in its last Pool B league match of the Hero Hockey World League at the National Stadium here on Monday.
With this win, Australia also climbed to the top of Pool B with six points, same as Argentina but with a better goal difference.
It was also a reality check for the Pan-American champion Argentina, which had been unbeaten in the tournament so far.
The goal-fest began in the third minute when Daniel Beale slammed a backhand shot high into the net from the top of the striking circle.
The kookaburras scored field goals and converted penalty corners and strokes to be up 3-0 inside 15 minutes of play.
Argentina, which had been impressive with its attacking play in the previous two games, was clueless in the face of the relentless attack. Australia scored at will, piercing the defence with sharp passes. The experienced Glenn Turner and Russell Ford kept played their role of providers to perfection.
The Australians played at a pace that left their opponents struggling to play catch-up. The lone goal for Argentina came when Facundo Callioni beat Australian goalkeeper Tyler Lovell in the 32nd minute with a low shot from the left.
In another Pool B match, the Netherlands and Belgium played out a 2-2 draw to complete their league engagements. Belgium earned its first point in the competition while the Netherlands finished third ahead of the quarterfinals.
Talismanic Belgian striker Tom Boon went on top of the goalscorers’ table with his fourth goal of the competition, level with Govers.
Earlier, England continued to be the lone undefeated team in the competition when it beat New Zealand 5-1 in Pool A.
While the teams were content playing a midfield game in the first half with only one goal scored – Ashley Jackson converting a penalty corner in the 30th minute – they went on all-out attack in the second. England dominated the proceedings to finish on top of the pool with nine points.
The results:
Pool A: India 3 (Rupinderpal Singh, Dharamvir Singh, Own Goal) drew with Germany 3 (Thilo Stralkowski, Martin Haner, Own Goal).
England 5 (Ashley Jackson 2, Mark Gleghorne, Tom Carson, Barry Middleton) beat New Zealand 1 (Hugo Inglis).
Pool B: Australia 6 (Kieran Govers 2, Daniel Beale, Mark Knowles, Russell Ford, Jason Wilson) beat Argentina 1 (Facundo Callioni).
The Netherlands 2 (Constatijn Jonker, Jeroen Hertzberger) drew with Belgium 2 (Felix Denayer, Tom Boon).
The Hindu
India hold Olympic champions Germany 3-3 in Hockey World League
Biswajyoti Brahma
NEW DELHI: A valiant India played out of their skins and held Olympic champions Germany to a 3-3 draw in their final group match of the Hero Hockey World League Final on Monday.
It was an inspired performance by the hosts who almost stunned the World No. 1 team but settled for a draw after conceding a late goal.
The Indians had the Germans on the back foot for most part. They were cruising towards a well-deserved victory, leading 3-2 with just three minutes to go, when things suddenly went awry.
Defender VR Raghunath was shown a yellow card for a foul and sent to the bench giving the Germans the opportunity to level the score. An uncharacteristic error by captain Sardar Singh, who failed to connect while trying to clear the ball from the D, helped Germany make it 3-3.
A win on Monday would have helped India avoid world champions Australia in the quarterfinals and would have pitted them against World No. 11 Argentina. But that was not to be.
India's performance against Germany was quite in contrast to their two earlier games. After a tentative start, the hosts got into the groove and attacked incessantly.
They improved their performance by a few notches to trouble their rivals. The defence was firm, the midfield worked effectively and the strikers were back in rhythm as they gave it all in their effort to earn their first points of the tournament.
They forced their first penalty corner in the 12th minute but that was foiled by the German goalkeeper. Then, India got a free-hit from outside the German circle when Dharamveer Singh was fouled and VR Raghunath's powerful shot inside the 'D' touched a German defender's stick before getting into the net.
Oliver Korn's equalizer failed to dampen Indian spirits as they worked hard to take the lead again. Rupinderpal Singh's goal from a penalty corner ensured India went to the break with a 2-1 lead.
The Indians were little scratchy at the beginning of the second half and it allowed Germany to up the ante and earn a penalty corner. Though Germany could not score from the set-piece, they managed to level the score when Indian conceded an own goal. India dominated the game thereafter, but somehow failed to tame the Germans.
Earlier, Australia bounced back following their narrow loss to the Netherlands on Saturday to trounce Argentina 6-1. The Argentines, who had some big wins in the tournament including one over the Dutch, were no match for the mighty Australians. The win made the Aussies the table toppers in their group. Kieran Govers scored two goals for the winners.
The Netherlands and Belgium finished third and fourth respectively in their group after playing out a 2-2 draw n their last league match. Belgium finished their league engagements without a win.
Ashley Jackson scored a brace to help England top the Pool B with a 5-1 rout of New Zealand. England, the only unbeaten team in the tournament so far, finished the league stage with nine points.
RESULTS: India (OG 19, Rupinderpal 33, Dharamveer 52) drew Germany 3-3 (O Korn24, OG 41, Stralkowski 68); Belgium drew with Netherlands 2-2; Australia beat Argentina 6-1; England beat N Zealand 5-1;
QUARTERFINAL LINEUP: India vs Australia; Germany vs Netherlands; England vs Belgium; New Zealand vs Argentina
The Times of India
India draw Germany 3-3 in Hockey World League Final
NEW DELHI: India came up with a spirited performance to draw with Olympic champions Germany 3-3 and register their first points at the Hero Hockey World League Finals on Monday.
India left behind the memories of their opening two defeats against England (0-2) and New Zealand (1-3) and dished out a much-better display to hold the world number one opponents to a draw at the floodlit Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium.
Unlike their previous two games, the Indians looked far more organised and coordinated against the reigning Olympic champions and were the better side throughout the match.
If not for a late defensive lapse from skipper Sardar Singh, India could have pocketed full three points from their final Pool A game.
Thilo Stralkowski saved Germany from defeat by slotting home from close range in the 68th minute after Sardar failed to make an easy clearance inside the circle.
Unexpectedly, the Indians were the better side on display in the first half and dominated the share of possession.
The Indian midfield and the forwardline combined to create a number of opportunities, which were missing in the first two games against England and New Zealand.
The defence, which is India's perennial problem, too lived upto the expectations to deny Germany any major inroads at least in the opening 35 minutes.
India pressed hard and got the first scoring opportunity in the 12th minute when they earned their first penalty corner but the German goalkeeper Tim Jessulat was upto the task to deny VR Ragunath.
The Germans were not to be left behind as four minutes later they earned their first penalty corner but Indian custodian P R Sreejesh came up with a fine save to deny Thilo Stralkowski.
The Indians deservingly took the lead in the 19th minute when Raghunath's hit in from outside the circle went inside the goal after getting a deflection from a German defender.
Germany, however, drew level in the 24th minute from their second penalty corner which was perfectly converted by Martin Haner.
India, thereafter, earned two more penalty corners in quick succession and Rupinder scored from the second opportunity with a powerful grounded flick to give the home team a 2-1 lead at the halfway mark.
Down by a goal, the Germans pressed hard after the change of ends and managed to earn their third penalty corner just three minutes into the second half which was shot wide by Haner.
The Germans, however, drew parity in the 41st minute courtesy an own goal from the hosts.
Despite the equaliser, India continued to press hard with relentless attacking forays. Their efforts bore fruit in the 52nd minute when Dharamvir Singh scored from a rebound after Raghunath's flick was saved by Jessulat from the hosts' fourth penalty corner.
As always has been the case, some last minute lapse of concentration from the Indian defence resulted in the equaliser for Germany.
With just one point from three games, India finished at the bottom of Pool A and will now take on Pool B toppers Australia in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, while second-placed Germany will face third-ranked team of Pool B, the Netherlands, in the last eight stage.
The Times of India
I am happy the way India improved: Walsh
New Delhi: Terry Walsh, the Indian Chief Coach was a disappointed man who blasted his own players on the second day after defending their lousy game on the opening day. But today, the boys executed his plans, may be in part, but that was good enough to give shivers to the German giants who are the World’s top-ranked team and they are also the Olympic champions.
“I have quite happy with the team’s performance today. It was a quality game. The team was composed and showed a lot of synergy. Defence was organised and the attack was electric. Young players played really well. We are consistently improving and will continue to fight and play the same way in the next match as well. We need to keep ourselves motivated and improve with every game,’’ he added.
"India did several things that were better than the first two games. We were consistent in several things we wanted to improve. But one has to understand that it is a learning process. It is a fantastic tournament for us in terms of exposure. It’s especially important, because we are playing teams ranked in the top-5 in the world. We don’t get this opportunity every day,’’ the coach felt. "While expressing that some skills like sudden acceleration or change of speed which we were trying to imbibe was seen in today’s game,’’ he said.
When asked how long it would take for the team to implement the new things he was trying, the Indian coach said: "Frankly, I don’t know. It may take 6 to 9 months.’’
When another reporter brought to his notice the comments of Australian coach Ric Charlesworth who said: "India can do anything. They can beat any team in the world. But do they have the belief to do it,’’ Walsh felt the team is slowly gaining back the self belief. Today’s game is a proof of it,’’ he said before asking Saradara Singh to respond. The captain in turn explained how the team is working on different psychological aspects including rebuilding confidence and self belief.
Walsh continued: "In India everybody thinks the Indian hockey team should win every match they play, every time. Whether it is Asian Games or Olympics. They don’t realize winning at Asia level events is a different ball game. Now we are focusing on the big events. Slowly the results will come but one has to be realistic and patient.’’
"We have to genuinely produce quality games over a period of time. We have very good juniors who are talented. But they have to settle down in the senior team and learn to play their normal game and implement the plans on field when under pressure of playing big teams or when the chips are down,’’ that is what I want to do, said the Australian who is an Olympic silver medalist.
Markus Weise, Coach of the German team said: “it was a bad performance from our side. I am not satisfied the way we played today. There were a lot of mistakes in the field from our end. India lost first two games so they had to put a lot of effort and they did. India did a good job in the field with counter attacks and defended very well. They deserved the draw. Henceforth, we will focus game to game in this tournament as for us it’s a trial for World Cup.’’
Stick2Hockey.com
Walsh satisfied with India's performance
NEW DELHI: India dished out a superlative performance to hold Olympic champions Germany to a 3-3 draw and chief coach Terry Walsh said his wards played much better hockey against a quality opponent.
India left behind the memories of their opening two defeats against England (0-2) and New Zealand (1-3) and produced a spirited performance to hold the world number one side at the floodlit Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium on Monday.
"We did several things better today. We were trying to improve in different areas. We played better against a quality opponent like Germany. I think the opponents didn't play that well today," Walsh said at the post-match press conference.
"We were fighting to give us an opportunity to play against Argentina which didn't materialise. We played with much more authority and quality. The defence was very well organised," he added.
India conceded goal in the dying stages of the match, courtesy a defensive error, to split points with Germany and captain Sardar Singh admitted that it was solely his mistake.
"I accept it was my mistake. I was in two minds. First, I thought I will clear the ball but later realising that there was no one near me, I thought of just stopping the ball but I missed it," he said.
Germany coach Markus Weise said his side didn't play to its strength.
"We had an awful game. We made plenty of technical errors in the first half."
Weise praised India for their performance especially after losing the first two games in the tournament.
"India put in a lot of effort. They did a good job. They played hard game and deserve at least a draw," he said.
The Times of India
Still a long way to go, insists coach Walsh
Biswajyoti Brahma
NEW DELHI: India's chief coach Terry Walsh asked the fans not to get carried away by India's impressive show against Germany as the team was still working on improving its performance.
"The improvement was not an overnight thing. But you have to remember that one bright sunny day does not make a good summer. We still have a long way to go.
"It would be nice to think we are someway close to our goal, but we are not. You have to look at many things today. The Germans did not play one of their better games today, partly because of what we did on the field," Walsh said.
Walsh said he was not worried about how India were going to do in the quarterfinals as the tournament was part of a larger scheme of things for the Indian team.
"I am not worried about quarterfinals, or semifinals or the last match. I am taking this tournament as a building phase for us as we move forward. The major tournament is the Asian Games. And the critical tournament will be the World Cup where we hope to bring a level of performance that is of some quality."
The Times of India
England finish unbeaten in Pool A, Australia top Pool B
NEW DELHI: An impressive England spanked New Zealand 5-1 to finish on top of Pool A, while Australia thrashed Argentina 6-1 to emerge as the leaders in Pool B at the Hero Hockey World League Final, on Monday.
Irrespective of the result, it was New Zealand who had the first promising scoring opportunity in the match when Phil Burrows won the ball in the circle and his shot missed the net by centimetres.
Both teams played expansive and open hockey but solid defending resulted in few shots on goal in the opening 25 minutes at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium.
Both the teams worked hard but failed to break the deadlock till the 30th minute when England surged ahead through Ashley Jackson who converted his side's second penalty corner.
World No. 4 England doubled their lead in the 44th minute from yet another penalty corner conversion from Jackson.
England extended their lead six minutes later when Mark Gleghorne scored from another penalty corner.
The Black Sticks managed to pull one back in the 57th minute through a penalty corner conversion by Hugo Inglis.
But Tom Carson (67th) and Barry Middleton (70th) sealed the victory in favour of England by scoring two field goals in the later stages of the match.
Meanwhile in a Pool B clash, world champions Australia took the initiative in the first half by scoring four goals as against Argentina's one.
The Kookaburras set out their stall early on as Dean Beale (3rd minute) stole possession and slotted home a reverse stick goal.
After Beale's opener, Mark Knowles (11th) scored from a penalty spot after a foul in the circle. Kieran Govers (14th) extended Australia's tally with a well taken shot from wide of the goal.
Argentina, however, reduced the margin in the 32nd minute through a field effort from Facundo Callioni.
Australia pumped in their fourth goal in the final minute of the first half through Govers with a penalty corner strike.
In the second half, Australia extended their lead through two goals from open play.
First Russell Ford (44th) followed up on a shot that had been saved by Juan Manuel Vivaldi in the Argentine goal, and then Kiel Brown (48th) made it 6-1 for the Kookaburras.
England will play the bottom-placed team of Pool B in the quarterfinals which in this case is Belgium, while Australia will be up against the laggards of Pool A which will be either India or New Zealand, depending on the result of the final Pool A match between India and Germany.
The Times of India
England defeat Black Sticks to top Pool A
Ashley Jackson scores his second goal against New Zealand at the Hero Hockey World League 2014
England made it three wins from three with a confident 5-1 win over New Zealand in the Hero Hockey World League Final. It was the perfect outcome for England as they sealed another three points from their final group game against New Zealand at the Hero Hockey World League Final.
New Zealand 1 (0)
Hugo Inglis 57 (PC)
England 5 (1)
Ashley Jackson 30, 44 (PC, PC)
Mark Gleghorne 50 (PC)
Tom Carson 67 (FG)
Barry Middleton 70 (FG)
It was the perfect outcome for England as they sealed another three points from their final group game against New Zealand at the Hero Hockey World League Final. Ashley Jackson scored the only goal in a tight opening half, but England stepped up a gear in the final 35 minutes as the floodgates opened; Jackson added another to his tally, alongside Mark Gleghorne, Tom Carson and captain Barry Middleton to make it 5-1 and seal their place at the top of Pool A.
The result means that England will face the fourth place finishers from Pool B which will be decided after the rest of today’s matches; at the moment their opponents could be Australia, the Netherlands or Belgium.
The Hero Man of the Match award went to Holcombe’s Dan Fox and after the match he gave his thoughts on England’s performance and looking ahead to the crucial quarter-final battle: “It’s going really well so far and it’s great to finish top of the pool with three wins, but we know the big match is on Wednesday in the quarter finals. Every side in this competition is really strong, so I couldn’t pick out an opponent, but we’ll go into the game high on confidence and ready for the challenge.”
Adding his thoughts on England’s performances so far this tournament Fox added, “Our performances out here are down to the work we’ve been putting into our training over the last four months back home. We’ve been playing at a really high intensity for long periods to ensure that we can maintain the work rate across 70 minutes.”
New Zealand dominated play in the opening 15 minutes and created some good chances, but were unable to capitalise as England’s defence continued the strong form it has shown all tournament.
After a slightly nervous opening phase England found their feet and pulled the possession back in their favour. In the 30th minute East Grinstead’s Ashley Jackson scored his first of two drag-flicks, stepping in and firing the ball high past the left glove of a helpless Hamish McGregor in New Zealand’s goal to make it 1-0 at the break.
Another cagey opening spell ensued in the second half, but again England looked the more threatening on the attack. Jackson added a second to his tally in the 44th minute from another penalty corner; this time he pulled the ball low to McGregor’s right, wrong footing the New Zealand keeper to make it 2-0. Not to be left out on the action, club teammate Mark Gleghorne stepped up for England’s next penalty corner and in the same style to Jackson’s second his shot found the target and England were 3-0 up.
In the 55th minute George Pinner came off to allow Patrick Smith on to the field for his second cap in England’s goal. It was a tough start for the young keeper as New Zealand immediately won a penalty corner and after a scramble in front of goal, Hugo Inglis was credited with a goal to make it 3-1.
England didn’t panic and found the target twice more in the remaining 15 minutes. Jackson made a great run to find Tom Carson in the circle and a slick turn from Carson allowed him to create some space and fire home into an open goal after McGregor had already committed to saving from Jackson. Not content with a 4-1 victory England added a fifth in the final minute. Quick thinking from Reading’s Nick Catlin saw him disguise a pass into the circle to captain Barry Middleton who deflected the ball past a disgruntled McGregor to seal a 5-1 win and cement England’s place at the top of Pool A.
There’s a rest day tomorrow for the teams ahead of the all important quarter-finals on Wednesday. England’s opponents will be decided once the remaining Pool B fixtures have been completed today. All matches are being streamed live at www.youtube.com/fihockey.
England Hockey Board Media release
Impressive England finish top of the pile
By Graham Wilson
Ashley Jackson was one of England s most impressive players Ashley Jackson was one of England's most impressive players [AP]
ENGLAND finished top of the pool at the Hero World League Final in New Delhi after wrapping up a 5-1 win against New Zealand yesterday.
They had earlier secured a 2-0 win against the hosts India, claimed the scalp of Olympic champions Germany 2-1 but coach Bobby Crutchley will be pleased with a second-half performance that eventually overwhelmed the Black Sticks.
Also of importance will be the showing of Ashley Jackson, who has been gradually finding his form after flying home from the semi-finals in Malaysia in July for ankle surgery.
He will have done his confidence the world of good after converting two penalty corners and the highlight, laying on a passback after a stunning dribble for Tom Carson to slot home a simple goal three minutes from time.
He had left another corner for his East Grinstead team-mate Mark Gleghorne to convert in the 50th minute to make it 3-0 while captain Barry Middleton finished the scoring in the last minute deflecting home a Nick Catlin turnover and through pass.
Man of the match, Holcombe’s Dan Fox, said: “Our performances out here are down to the work we’ve been putting into our training over the last four months. We’ve been playing at a really high intensity for long periods to ensure that we can maintain the work rate across 70 minutes.”
That intensity will be put to the test in the quarter-final knockout stage tomorrow where England face Belgium, the team that beat them 3-0 in the European Championship semi-final in August.
Crutchley said: “The aim of this tournament was to continue to improve our performances and getting to play Belgium will be interesting to see how far we have come since losing to them in the Euros.”
England striker Alex Danson scored in the dying seconds to give Reading a 4-3 win over Slough in the semi-final of the women’s Maxinutrition Hockey 5s indoor championship.
They will meet Bowdon Hightown in the Wembley Arena finals on Sunday, February 2.
Bowdon needed a penalty shootout to beat Canterbury after their game finished 5-5.
Daily Express
Black Sticks Men lose to England
The Black Sticks Men have lost 1-5 to England in their final pool game at the World League Final in New Delhi tonight. With games being played overnight it is still to be confirmed who the Kiwis will face in the do-or-die quarter final match this Thursday.
“We played really well in the first 15 minutes, but then England came out strong and we lost our way and didn’t stick to our game plan. England is a very disciplined and hard-working team, we had a couple of chances in the first half and we needed to finish those off,” said head coach Colin Batch.
In the first quarter of the game, the Black Sticks Men played some of their best hockey of the tournament tackling well, pushing forward with confidence and giving themselves every chance of getting on the board early. The closest opportunity came when stalwart Phil Burrows received a cross, but he knocked it wide.
Throughout the rest of the first half, shots on goal and possession were close to even between the two sides however as England started to settle and take control of the game, it was Ashley Jackson who converted a clinical penalty corner in the 30th minute.
Two minutes into the second half, New Zealand were given a chance through a penalty corner but Kane Russell’s drag flick was well blocked by England’s defence.
With 26 minutes remaining, Jackson scored his second penalty corner and then team mate Mark Glenhorne backed it up six minutes later, getting his first goal of the tournament and stretching their lead to 3-0.
The Black Sticks had a chance to get back in the game when a penalty corner goalmouth scramble resulted in Hugo Inglis pushing the ball over the line. Despite the Kiwis efforts, the fourth ranked team continued to make their mark and Tim Carson and captain Barry Middleton slotted home one each in the final three minutes giving their side an unassailable 5-1 victory.
New Zealand finish pool play with three points. In the other Pool A contest, Germany are currently on three points and are the favourites against home side India. There is a battle in Pool B for top of the table - Argentina are on six points, Australia and Holland are on three points and Belgium are still to win a game.
RESULTS:
Full time: 1-5 to England
Half time: 0-1 to England
England goal scorers: Ashley Jackson x2, Mark Glenhorne, Tim Carson, Barry Middleton
New Zealand goal scorers: Hugo Inglis
Hockey New Zealand Media release
NZ suffers loss to England
By David Leggat
Hugo Inglis in action for New Zealand during their defeat to England. Photo / Mani Lamba
New Zealand suffered a disappointing 5-1 loss to England in their final pool A game at the world hockey league finals in New Delhi last night.
The defeat, which comes after a 6-1 drubbing from world No 1 Germany and a 3-1 win over hosts India, means New Zealand will face Argentina in the quarter-finals. Argentina finished second in pool B after losing 6-1 to Australia in their final group match.
The first half was an even contest and New Zealand had their chances to score.
Veteran attacker Phil Burrows was guilty of butchering a clear opening in front of goal after fine work down the left by strikers Simon Child and Hugo Inglis.
England, ranked No 4, went ahead nine minutes before halftime through a penalty corner by Ashley Jackson and he increased the margin eight minutes into the second spell.
Captain Dean Couzins was yellow carded for a trip on England skipper Barry Middleton and Jackson scored from the resulting penalty corner.
Mark Gleghorne added the third from another penalty corner, when New Zealand goalkeeper Hamish McGregor might have done better, low to his right before New Zealand's only goal 19 minutes from the end.
Inglis was on hand to scramble the ball into the England goal after the Black Sticks' second penalty corner.
However Tom Carson and Middleton added more goals for England in the last four minutes to blow out the scoreline.
New Zealand defenders Alex Shaw and Blair Tarrant did good work at times when the goal was under pressure while Child, Inglis and Arun Panchia were prominent.
As well as Couzins sitting out five minutes, the Black Sticks lost Steve Edwards for five minutes late on for a second green card.
England had 15 shots on goal to New Zealand's eight, 22 circle penetrations to 18 by the Black Sticks and 54 percent of possession in the opponents' half.
New Zealand will have some hard thinking ahead tomorrow before Wednesday's quarter-finals. For starters they have managed only two goals from nine penalty corners in the tournament.
New Zealand must win the quarter-final if they are to achieve the goal of a top four finish.
The New Zealand Herald
Tough quarterfinal draw for Black Sticks
The Black Sticks men's hockey team have drawn Argentina in the quarterfinals of the World League Final tournament in India.
New Zealand lost their final pool game against England 5-1 late last night. In their earlier group games, they were thrashed by world No 1 Germany 6-1, but recovered to beat hosts India 3-1 in their second game.
With all eight sides at the tournament advancing to the quarterfinals, New Zealand will now play Argentina on Thursday (NZ time).
Argentina, who finished second in the other pool, are ranked 11th in the world and have been something of a surprise package at the tournament, beating the Netherlands and Belgium in their opening two games before being brought back to earth in their final pool game, losing 6-1 to Australia.
New Zealand coach Colin Batch was happy with the way his side started against England, but said they were punished in the opening 15 minutes of the second half, where England scored two goals to race out to a convincing 3-0 lead.
"We played really well in the first 15 minutes, but then England came out strong and we lost our way and didn't stick to our game plan," Batch said.
"England is a very disciplined and hard-working team. We had a couple of chances in the first half and we needed to finish those off."
In the first quarter of the game, the New Zealanders played some of their best hockey of the tournament, tackling well, pushing forward with confidence and giving themselves every chance of getting on the board early. The best opportunity came when stalwart Phil Burrows received a cross, but he knocked it wide.
Throughout the rest of the first half, shots on goal and possession were close to even between the two sides, but as England started to settle and take control of the game, it was Ashley Jackson who converted a clinical penalty corner in the 30th minute.
Two minutes into the second half, New Zealand were given a chance through a penalty corner, but Kane Russell's drag flick was well blocked by England's defence.
With 26 minutes remaining, Jackson scored his second penalty corner and then team-mate Mark Glenhorne backed it up six minutes later, getting his first goal of the tournament and stretching the English lead to 3-0.
The Black Sticks had a chance to get back in the game when a penalty corner goalmouth scramble resulted in Hugo Inglis pushing the ball over the line.
Despite the Kiwis' efforts, the fourth ranked English continued to make their mark and Tim Carson and captain Barry Middleton slotted one each in the final three minutes to blow out the final margin.
Stuff
The scoreline flattered us but we were sloppy: England coach
s2h team
Despite the huge win which kept England remain unbeaten and at the top of the Pool, England coach Bobby Crutchley was not happy with the team’s play. He said: "We were sloppy, particularly in the first half. In fact I would say that the scoreline flattered us. Our penalty corners went well, which meant New Zealand had to step out and chase the game. This left us with space."
England’ star striker and drag-flick specialist who came back after a long lay-off of over a year due to an ankle surgery was back in goals immediately. He is now joint top scorer with three goals. When queried he said that he did not expect to stay as top scorer for long. "Tom Boon will soon overtake me. He is a specialist penalty corner taker," Jackson added.
Jackson also felt that the games in this tournament should be used to develop the strategies and tactics. "We have to use the tournament to test and improve our skills and develop for the World Cup,’’ he added.
But he felt that despite winning all the three pool games, the team still made too many mistakes. "We have to improve these areas and we have to rise our game,’’ he said.
Talking about the Black Sticks’ consolation goal from a penalty corner New Zealand player Burrows said; “Hope came back but unfortunately we didn’t add another one.”
“This is a very disappointing result. We gave up at the end and this is not what we should have done,” Burrows felt.
Stick2Hockey.com
A strange format: Jackson
Priyansh
Three wins out of three and yet, the mood is not as ecstatic as one would expect. “Doesn’t matter,” quipped Ashley Jackson. But, he offered a more serious reply immediately after.
The ongoing Hockey World League’s format has befuddled many as all teams, irrespective of their performance in group matches, go through to the quarterfinals.
“We trained hard in dark and wet weather before the tournament. These six games here will serve as good preparation for the World Cup. It’s a strange format,” said Jackson.
The 2009 FIH young player of the year converted two penalty corners as England trounced New Zealand 5-1 at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here on Monday.
But, if Jackson is to be believed, his side is yet to play its best hockey. “We have played good bits through the games. In our previous match, there were periods when Germany was better than us.
“We struggled with our energy, especially at the start. But we defended for our lives and held on.
“We showed a bit of class today (against NZ), scored a lot of goals,” he said.
England meets Belgium in the quarterfinals and seems a good bet to win a medal. Jackson is certainly driven to win silverware here, claiming that the experience of playing in the 2013 Hero Hockey India League has given him the motivation to excel.
The 26-year-old underwent surgery last summer after playing with a bad ankle for almost a year. The midfielder has three goals to his credit already in this tournament, all from penalty corners.
“I’m reasonably happy with my performance. Before scoring against Germany, I hadn’t scored for a long time. The surface is a bit wobbly and harder here.
“It’s very easy to flick the ball off the surface. It’s very skippy as well, when the ball is injected on a penalty corner. So, it’s difficult to trap the ball.”
The Hindu
Dominant Kookas turn it on
Kookaburras hand Argentina heavy defeat to go top of Pool B
A lightning quick start launched the Kookaburras to the top of Pool B ahead of Wednesday’s World League quarter finals with Queenslanders Daniel Beale and Mark Knowles, and New South Wales’ Kieran Govers all on target inside the opening 15 minutes of a 6-1 win over Argentina.
Govers’ second strike, a deflected penalty corner on the stroke of half time restored the three goal advantage the Kookaburras required to ascend the table after Facundo Callioni had pulled one back for Argentina.
The Kookaburras emerged early for the second half and immediately showed their intent, demonstrating their free-flowing attacking hockey to devastating effect. Close range goals from Victorian Russell Ford and Queenslander Jason Wilson ultimately took the Australian advantage to 6-1 as Argentina struggled to cope with the marauding men in gold.
The result sealed first place in Pool B for Ric Charlesworth's side, who finished ahead of second placed Argentina on goal difference, two points ahead of third placed Netherlands and five ahead of Belgium in fourth.
Kookaburras Head Coach Ric Charlesworth said afterwards, “We haven’t been playing badly. We’ve been making chances but we haven’t been finishing them and so that’s the frustration. So you get six [goals] from one game and you get three from two [games]. Maybe that’s the way it sometimes happens but I’m happy with the result. We relaxed a bit in the end; I don’t like that but it happens. We got a good start and sometimes it makes all the difference.”
Commenting on the impact his less experienced players are having in the tournament so far, Charlesworth added: “I believe we have a good deep squad and I’m pleased when the younger ones do well. Beale, Zalewski, White and people like that are very new and are doing fine.”
The Hero Man of the Match was Australia's Russell Ford. Speaking after the presentation of a cheque for 25,000 rupees (approximately $450) he said, "It was a hard-fought match, but then we always expected it to be a tough match. Today we really put pressure on them. It is always tough coming back after a defeat, as we had lost 1-0 to the Netherlands but we did well today."
Youngster Daniel Beale set the scene with a superb tomahawk strike after just three minutes and when captain Knowles doubled the advantage with a penalty stroke the Kookaburras were already in control.
Kieran Govers netted his first of a brace with a powerful tomahawk into the corner before Callioni pulled one back for Argentina after a quick counter attack. Govers’ second, his fourth of the tournament, was perfectly timed, restoring the three goal advantage on the stroke of half time.
After a lengthy video referral delay, Russell Ford was awarded the Kookaburras’ fifth goal after showing excellent reactionary control to pull down a bouncing ball and knock home from close range.
And Jason Wilson signed off the Australian goal scoring as he finished off a flowing counter attack with excellent perseverance. Wilson had twice been denied by the Argentinian goalkeeper Juan Vivaldi before forcing the ball through the goalkeeper’s legs Wilson’s with teammate Kiel Brown in close attendance to ensure the ball crossed the line.
Late on, the Kookaburras were forced to defend a series of penalty corners after lapses allowed Argentina into the Australian circle but they held on to record the joint highest victory of the tournament.
Despite the margin, it is still possible for the Netherlands to overtake the Kookaburras with a high scoring victory over Belgium later. The Netherlands require a seven goal margin to leap frog the Kookaburras. So long as Australia finish top of Pool B they will play the fourth placed team in Pool A, currently India. A second placed finish would mean a quarter final against the third placed side in Pool A, currently New Zealand.
World League Finals, Men
Pool B
New Delhi, India
On Twitter: @Kookaburras, #HHWL
KOOKABURRAS 6 (4)
Daniel Beale 3 (F)
Mark Knowles 11 (PS)
Kieran Govers 14,35 (PC,PC)
Russell Ford 44 (F)
Jason Wilson 48 (F)
ARGENTINA 1 (1)
Facundo Callioni 32 (F)
Pool A Standings (completed)
1. England (9 pts, 3 matches)
2. Germany (4 pts, 3 matches)
3. New Zealand (3 pts, 3 matches)
4. India (1 pts, 3 matches)
Pool B Standings (completed)
1. Australia (6 pts, 3 matches)
2. Argentina (6 pts, 3 matches)
3. Netherlands (4 pts, 3 matches)
4. Belgium (1 pt, 3 matches)
Kookaburras squad v Argentina
(listed alphabetically by surname)
Name (Hometown) caps/goals
Started
Daniel Beale (Brisbane, QLD) 17/5
Kiel Brown (Toowoomba, QLD) 141/4
Tim Deavin (Launceston, TAS) 80/3
Russell Ford (Eltham, VIC) 140/66
Kieran Govers (Wollongong, NSW) 80/38
Tyler Lovell (GK) (Perth, WA) 11/0
Mark Knowles (Rockhampton, QLD) 221/18
Eddie Ockenden (Hobart, TAS) 196/51
Simon Orchard (Maitland, NSW) 137/43
Tristan White (Wollongong, NSW) 18/1
Jason Wilson (Kingscliff, QLD) 93/33
Used Substitute
George Bazeley (GK) (Melbourne, VIC) 67/0
Nick Budgeon (Hobart, TAS) 11/2
Joel Carroll (Darwin, NT) 93/2
Liam De Young (Brisbane, QLD) 293/34
Glenn Turner (Goulburn, NSW) 99/73
Jake Whetton (Brisbane, QLD) 43/17
Aran Zalewski (Margaret River, WA) 23/3
Hockey Australia media release
Kookaburras to face India
Hosts India will be the Kookaburras' quarter-final opponents on Wednesday
The Kookaburras will face the hosts India in the quarter-final of the World League Finals in New Delhi on Wednesday night.
The last eight match-up was confirmed after the Australian men beat Argentina 6-1 to top Pool B while India finished bottom of Pool A despite a 3-3 draw with Olympic champions Germany on Monday.
The match – the 101st between two of international hockey’s most decorated teams - will pit India’s Australian Head Coach Terry Walsh against Kookaburras coach Ric Charlesworth, who has also coached in India in the Hockey India League and who acted as technical advisor to the Indian national teams in 2008.
The two sides last met at the same stage of the World League Semi-Final tournament in Rotterdam in June when the Kookaburras ran out 5-1 winners.
Quarter-final 4
Wednesday 15 January
Kookaburras v India
8pm local time / 1:30am AEDT Thursday / 10:30pm AWST
Quarter-Final Fixtures – Wednesday 15 January
1:15pm: England v Belgium (1st in Pool A v 4th in Pool B)
3:30pm: Germany v Netherlands (2nd in Pool A v 3rd in Pool B)
5:45pm: Argentina v New Zealand (2nd in Pool B v 3rd in Pool A)
8:00pm: Australia v India (1st in Pool B v 4th in Pool A)
All times local time. New Delhi is 5.5 hours behind AEDT and 2.5 hours behind AWST.
All fixtures and times subject to change by tournament organisers.
Hockey Australia media release
Argentina coach is as cool as a cucumber despite the huge loss
s2h team
Argentina's coach Carlos Retegui was as cool as a cucumber despite the 1-6 thrashing they received at the hands of World Champions Australia on Monday. He was quite relaxed about the result and said that the two victories are good and "we will come back’’. "We are not too much worried about this loss,’’ he quipped.
"We have six points and we are happy so far with how things are going. Australia played better than us today but we are playing against the best in the world. We will regroup and prepare for the quarterfinals,’’ he added.
Argentine defender Gonzalo Peillat, one of the senior members of the team, said: "Australia scored two early goals and we could not fight back. They had a very good game but in general we are very happy with our performance."
Hero Man of the Match Australia's Russell Ford said: "It was a hard-fought match, We expected a tough match from Argentina but today we really put pressure on them. It is always tough coming back after a defeat, as we had lost 1-0 to the Netherlands but we did well today."
Australian coalch Dr Ric Charlesworth who was frustrated with the team’s lack of implementation of the plans on field in the previous matches was relieved a bit. “We haven’t been playing badly. We’ve been making chances but we haven’t been finishing them. So you get six goals from one game and you get three from two games. Maybe that’s the way it sometimes happens but I’m happy with the result. We relaxed a bit in the end; I don’t like that but it happens. We got a good start and sometimes it makes all the difference.”
After a rest day on Tuesday, the teams return to play the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Stick2Hockey.com
Ireland 1-3 Spain Men's Hockey
Ireland played 8th ranked Spain in their second test as part of the warm weather training they are currently undertaking in Terrassa, Spain.
Ireland went 1-0 down early on in the match in just the 11th minute before the hosts doubled their lead thanks to Santi Freixa in a half that the Spanish mostly dominated, despite two scoring chances in the first half from Ireland.
Spain widened the gap making it 3-0 when Roger Padros converted the penalty corner set piece before Ireland got their consolation goal after a great counter attack from Ireland and good work from Ireland’s Michael Robson and Nick Burns setting up marksman Shane O’Donoghue to covert to close the game out 1-3.
Ireland will play Spain again on Wednesday at 2.30 (Irish Time).
Ireland 1 (0) Shane O’Donoghue 59m (op) Spain 3 (2) David Alegre 11m; Santi Freixa 26m; Roger Padrós 56m (pc)
MEN’S SQUAD
Ireland Squad – Spain 2014: David Fitzgerald (Monkstown); Stephen West (TRR); Richie Shaw (Glenanne); Stephen Brownlow (Glenanne ); John Jackson (Reading); Mark Loughrey (Pembroke); Drew Carlisle (Banbridge); Michael Robson (Annadale); Peter Brown (UCD); Jason Lynch (Lisnagarvey); James Corry (Instonians); Nick Burns (UCD); Ross Canning (UCD); David Carson (Monkstown); Shane O’Donoghue (UCD); Jeremy Duncan (UCD); Kirk Shimmins (UCD); Harry Spain (Pembroke Wanderers); Mark Ingram (Pembroke Wanderers); Gary Shaw (Glenanne)
Irish Hockey Association media release
Champions’ might: Strathmore ladies thrash Kampala as Simba are held
By Elizabeth Mburugu in Kampala
Strathmore University ladies thrashed Kampala Hockey Club of Uganda 11-0 in the ongoing Africa Hockey Club Championships in Lugogo National Hockey Stadium in Kampala, Uganda.
The Kenyan girls, making their second appearance in the continental showpiece, made their intentions known from the first whistle, dominating the entire match.
Strathmore head coach Meshack Senge told FeverPitch: “We played according to our plan but there is still room for improvement.”
“We lost many scoring chances and we need to work on that for our next match,” he added.
Lucy Wanjiku put the students in the lead with her 11th minute field goal from a Laura Gichau pass.
Wanjiku then scored four more goals in the 35th, 57th and 60th minutes before Vyvonne Wanjiku netted a hattrick in the 15th, 48th and 53rd minutes.
Laura Gichau made sure her name was on the score sheet scoring in the 18th minute goal. Linda Ayodi, Caroline Njoki and Eva Nkatha scored a goal each to seal their big victory.
In the men’s encounter between Nairobi Simba and Yobe Warriors of Nigeria, Simba came from 2-0 to hold Yobe to a 2-2 draw.
The Nigerian Warriors went up in the ninth minute with Idris Dakumi converting a penalty corner.
Simba came back into the game but lost focus in the 22nd minute when Jauro Aliyu punished the Kenyans by slotting in their second in the 22nd minute for a 2-0 scoreline at half time. Simba came into the second half a composed side, keeping the Nigerians at bay but failing to convert.
They played well and their efforts paid off in the dying minutes of the game, pulling one back in the 54th minute through Haggai Sikhila.
National team forward George Mutira leveled the score in the 58th minute to share the spoils with the Nigerians.
Simba team manager Kalpesh Solanki blamed his side’s performance saying: “The match was delayed and that had a negative impact on our players.”
The match was delayed for about an hour as Yobe had not arrived.
He also said their aim is to win their next match against Golden Sticks and earn three vital points.
“We look forward to our next match, which is a must win,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kenya Police will today battle it out with Egypt Police in the ongoing Africa Hockey Club Championships at Lugogo Stadium in Kampala.
The two clubs tie on three points but Egypt are second in group ‘B’ table on goal difference.
Kenya Police head coach Kenneth Kaunda says the men in uniform must win their match against the Pharaohs to keep their title dream alive.
“We have to win every match we play if we have to keep our hopes of winning this title alive,” he said.
“We have trained intensely for this tournament and we will play our best,” he added. The law enforcers will be fighting for their second win having won their opener against Union Bank of Nigeria.
The Standard Online
Maxinutrition Hockey 5s Women’s Semi Final: Bowdon Hightown 5-5 Canterbury (2-1 after shootout)
Canterbury's Susie Rowe is challenged by Bowdon Fay Nash during their Maxi 5s semifinal at Kettering
Goalkeeper Amy Tennant was her side’s hero as she saved twice in the shootout to seal a 2-1 win for Tina Cullen’s side, sending Bowdon Hightown to the Wembley final for the first time since 2011.
Tennant kept out Jen Wilson and Nikki Lloyd to secure a 2-1 win in the shootout after the sides could not be separated during normal time, drawing 5-5.
Canterbury struck first with an early goal from Scotland Star Nikki Kidd who linked up beautifully with Lloyd before slotting the ball calmly into the bottom corner. Bowdon hit back, forcing a penalty corner, but Michelle Liptrot’s flick was kept out by Helen Fagg in the Canterbury goal. Jen Wilson’s side then extended their lead with a well-worked goal in the 11th minute. Kidd turned provider this time, breaking forward on the right and sliding a perfect pass into the D to Anna Baker who produced a lovely first time finish making it 2-0.
Sally Walton, in fine goal scoring form in the league phase of the competition was then frustrated twice by terrific saves from Fagg to keep out two almost identical penalty corners.
Canterbury could have made it 3-0 but Wilson’s shot on the turn from the top of the D beat Tennant but rolled agonizingly wide of the post. With six minutes left in the half Walton finally got the better of Fagg, beating her at the near post with a low drag flick. Canterbury were unlucky not to re-establish their two goal cushion moments later as Lloyd fed Kidd whose first time shot cannoned back off the post. With three minutes left in the half, parity was restored. Former Canterbury captain Susannah Townsend turned well on the left of the D and found the far corner to tie the game up.
It looked like the sides would go in at the break level, but Tina Cullen had other ideas. On the stroke of half time she collected the ball on the left side with her back to goal. Cullen beat Susie Rowe with an outrageous piece of skill before calmly slotting the ball into the far corner to give her team the lead.
Both sides came out strongly at the start of the second half. Kidd went close with a penalty corner before Liptrot was denied by an excellent goal line clearance by Susie Rowe, who showed impeccable cricketing technique to repel the chance.
With Canterbury increasing the pressure in search of an equaliser, Hightown swept forward on the counterattack. Walton drove down the right and slipped a lovely cross-field pass into Cullen who made no mistake, grabbing her second and Bowdon’s fourth.
Two minutes later Canterbury clawed themselves back into the match as Mel Clewlow buried a low penalty corner. They continued to press higher up the pitch in search of the equaliser. Tennant showed great agility to deny Lloyd twice in quick succession and then blocked from Kidd to preserve the lead. However, with five minutes left Lloyd fed Rowe on the right. Her cross fell to Captain Grace Balsdon who finished well from near the top of the D to make it 4-4.
With three minutes left, the momentum swung again as Hightown were awarded a penalty stroke which was despatched by Walton, seemingly giving her side a place in the final. However, Canterbury were not finished yet. Wilson seemed to be penned in inside the D but found a superb through the legs pass to Kidd who steered a precise finish into the far corner to tie it up at 5-5. There was still time for the Kent side to force a penalty corner with the last play. Kidd rounded the goalkeeper and shot only to see Liptrot produce an excellent block on the line to take the game into a shootout.
Kidd went first and scored before Cullen showed her class and beat Fagg with ease. Tennant then did well to keep out Wilson before Fay Nash; the Hightown captain buried her effort from the top of the D. That left Nikki Lloyd who had to score but Tennant tracked her well to the left and made the block to send Bowdon to Wembley and Canterbury out in agonizing fashion.
Afterwards, Canterbury’s Mel Clewlow told England Hockey:
“From a spectator perspective the game had everything. It swung backwards and forwards, which is what indoor is all about. We’re disappointed not to make the final. Hitting the post and missing a corner at the end shows we could have made it but Bowdon showed their class in the shootout. For us to even get a 5-5 draw after losing 9-5 in the league we’re chuffed with the progress we’ve made. It’s a shame to fall at the final hurdle like that but hopefully we’ll be back next year.”
Bowdon Hightown Skipper Fay Nash was delighted with her side’s efforts in reaching another Wembley final:
“I’m so proud. We went into the game with a lot to prove, but we all did our jobs. We did it the Hightown way, made it difficult for ourselves but I suppose it’s exciting for the crowd that way. I watched last year’s semi-final last night before I went to bed. There was no way I was letting that happen again. It motivates us all in different ways, but this year we believed in ourselves and it paid off in the end.”
Nash also paid tribute to goalkeeper, Amy Tennant who saved twice in the shootout:
“She is such a quality indoor player and a quality goalkeeper. You forget how young she is when you think of what she’s achieved already. We know we can rely on her. We know she’ll do the business. She’s only 20, but you look on her like you do some of our senior players. She’s a class goalkeeper, which she showed again tonight. We’re all so proud of her.”
England Hockey Board Media release
Maxinutrition Hockey 5s Women’s Semi Final: Reading 4-3 Slough
Alex Danson at the Maxinutrition Hockey 5s Semi-Finals
A last-gasp strike from Alex Danson with just seconds left on the clock broke Slough’s hearts and sent Reading marching on to Wembley to face Bowdon Hightown in a repeat of the 2011 final.
Reading raced into a three goal lead in the first half with goals from Helen Richardson-Walsh and a brace from Alex Danson, but a spirited second half display by Slough had threatened to take the game to a shootout until Danson’s dramatic late strike.
Reading dominated the opening exchanges. Danson fed Helen Richardson-Walsh inside the D but her snap shot was well saved by Maddie Hinch.
Ashleigh Ball was trying to impose herself and went close in the opening five minutes, breaking two tackles on the left before Sarah Ellis raced from her line to make an excellent block near the top of the D. At the other end, Danson was narrowly wide with a reverse scoop but it remained goalless until the ninth minute. Kate Richardson-Walsh showed good vision to fire a long pass out from the back right through the middle of the pitch, finding Helen Richardson-Walsh unmarked at the top of the Slough D. She turned and slotted the ball past Hinch to break the deadlock. Minutes later, with Slough slow to react, Leah Wilkinson took a quick free-hit and found Danson on the right of the D. The Great Britain star rolled the defender beautifully and slid the ball past the advancing goalkeeper to make it 2-0.
Reading were threatening to run away with the game and it was largely the brilliance of Hinch that kept them at bay. Ellie Cockburn was denied by the former Leicester goalkeeper who recovered to get across the goal and smother the follow up from Helen Richardson-Walsh. There was little Hinch could do to keep out a fierce penalty corner from Danson, making it 3-0 but Slough returned fire with a well worked penalty corner of their own from Mel Ball to make it 3-1. On the stroke of half time, Slough were denied a second as Alex Scott’s drag flick crashed against the post and bounced to safety, ensuring Reading’s two goal cushion remained intact at the break.
Slough started the second half with a renewed optimism. Scott saw her early penalty corner well blocked by Sarah Ellis and then scooped a good chance over the bar. Ellis had to be at her best again as another slick penalty corner presented Harriet Cunningham with a chance, but her lofted effort was bravely blocked by the Reading No1 using her body. Steve Bayer’s side threatened on the break and could have gone further ahead from a Sam Quek drag flick which was brilliantly touched away by Hinch, diving full length to her right. Hinch then bettered that save, somehow getting up from a prone position on the floor to get a glove on Susie Gilbert’s lob with a stunning piece of athleticism.
Slough pressed again, desperately trying to find their second goal, however after Wilkinson cleared off the line from Mel Ball it looked like it was not to come. With Reading seemingly having weathered the storm, Slough made it 3-2 after 32 minutes. Ashleigh Ball’s low penalty corner snuck past Ellis and found the backboard just inside the far post.
With just four minutes remaining Slough’s pressure told and they tied the game up at 3-3. Ashleigh Ball’s shot from the top of the D was saved but fell to Scott, who showed excellent composure to lift the ball over Ellis into the roof of the net, sending the Slough fans wild.
The Sonning Lane side steeled themselves and not for the first time, Hinch saw them off, smothering well from Helen Richardson-Walsh and then making a fine double save from Danson and Kate Richardson-Walsh.
With the crowd preparing themselves for another shootout there was time for one final twist. Quek drive down the right with the clock running down, she cut the ball back to Danson who had peeled away from her marker; she made no mistake and fired a lovely low shot past Hinch to send Reading to Wembley for the fourth consecutive year.
Slough’s Great Britain international Ashleigh Ball told England Hockey: “All credit to Reading; they deserve their place in the final after a well-fought game. We did our utmost to beat them but in the end we just couldn’t quite manage it.” She added: “If we’d come top we might have got a favourable draw as first plays fourth but, we beat Reading in the league and we were confident today we could beat them again. It came down to a very small margin of defeat in the end.”
Reading Captain Emma Thomas was overjoyed at the prospect of another Wembley final for her team, saying:
“The great thing about indoor hockey is you only need a few seconds to score a goal and we’re fully aware of that. We’ve seen the men score three in 30 seconds, so when you only need one; there really is no excuse not to keep going until the final whistle, which is exactly what we did.” She continued: “We’re obviously absolutely thrilled to be going back to Wembley, but Slough deserve a lot of credit, they were outstanding and put up a really strong fight. They came back in the second half and made it really difficult for us. They showed what an excellent team they are and they showed us some things we need to work on between now and the final.”
England Hockey Board Media release
Akhtar vows positive steps, hard work for hockey revival
Mohammad Yaqoob
LAHORE: President of the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) Olympian Akhtar Rasool has avoided announcing any specific target for his four-year tenure but says he will ensure that hard work and positive steps would be visible in his actions aimed at winning back laurels for the country.
Addressing a ‘Meet the Press’ programme, organised by the Lahore Press Club here on Monday, Akhtar said: “In modern age, hockey has become an unpredictable game and no team can claim to win every title. Even the underdogs can beat some of the favourites. However, as for Pakistan hockey, I will ensure that all positive steps are taken and hard work is put in by everyone to keep the national flag flying in world of hockey.”
Akhtar has been elected as the PHF president for a four-year term ending in 2017.
Learning a lesson from the last Qasim Zia regime which seemed overly keen in setting different targets after every failed campaign, Akhtar has preferred to avoid setting any definite goals for himself and his regime.
“Our focus will be to increase the number of domestic competitions at national, varsity, college and school levels for which a comprehensive programme is being designed,” said Akhtar.
He said at international level, the PHF had made contacts with Hockey India to revive the bilateral series after many years.
“We are in negotiation with Hockey India for the bilateral series and we have also offered them to come to Pakistan,” he said.
He said the PHF was also planning to host the Prime Minister Gold Cup, both at national and international level. He said the security situation in Pakistan was improving, moreover Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had also ensured fool-proof security to all foreign teams and hopefully a good number of international hockey activities would be held in Pakistan in the near future.
To a question about not enjoying the support of the senior Olympians who refused to accept the results of the recent PHF elections, Akhtar said he personally visited Islahuddin Siddiqi and Shahnaz Sheikh while also making contact with another senior Olympian Samiullah, offering them to join hands and work with him for the betterment of the game.
“I will give all of them complete authority to execute the plans they have in their mind for national hockey,” he said.
Akhtar disclosed that he along with his secretary Rana Mujahid had met Sports Secretary Ijaz Chaudhry at Islamabad recently and handed over to him the activity plan of the PHF for which it needs financial help from the federal government.
“We have requested the government to make PHF’s grant amounting to Rs500 million as part of the country’s annual budget,” he said.
He added that the PHF was in dire need of funds and hopefully the government of Punjab will help the PHF in this regard.
“The PHF requires an amount of Rs650 million every year and in case the federal government offers to provide Rs500 million, the federation will generate the remaining amount through sponsorships.
Akhtar revealed that the PHF had decided to re-introduce the national selection committee which was disbanded during the past when he was the team’s head coach.
“The step of restoring the selection committee is being taken to involve the hockey think-tank in the affairs of the national team and in the next ten days, the new selection committee and team management will be announced,” he said.
Asked why the PHF has not been contacting the genuine body of the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) led by retired Gen Arif Hasan which has the authority to enter the Pakistan team in the Commonwealth Games-2014 and the Asian Games-2014, Arif said since the government provides a huge grant to the PHF, it could not ignore its instructions to avoid any dealing with Arif’s POA.
However, he expressed hope that the POA dispute would soon be resolved and the Pakistan team would take part in both the events.
He said the academies set up by previous president Qasim Zia would continue but a strict system of check and balance over the affairs of the academies would be introduced.
To a question, he admitted the PHF had less influence over the FIH unlike the previous years.
He disclosed that the audit of accounts for the Qasim Zia tenure had been done by the Auditor General of Pakistan.
Dawn
PHF in serious financial crunch, says Akhtar Rasool
LAHORE: Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) chief and former Olympian Akhtar Rasool Chaudhary has said that the national federation is facing serious financial crisis and Rs.650 million are needed to launch a rearguard action for the revival of the game. He was speaking at a meet the press programme at Lahore Press Club here on Monday. “We are facing a huge financial crisis and we are looking towards the federal government to lend support the way it did in the past for achieving lost glory,” said Akhtar.
The PHF president said he had requested the federal government to earmark a sum of Rs.500 million annually to the PHF to ensure smooth running of the national federation and participation of national teams in international tournaments abroad. “We will be making efforts to generate the remaining amount of Rs.160 million from the sponsors and with the allocation of required funds we will be able to evolve a comprehensive activity programme for lifting the game out of present gloom,” he maintained.
Akhtar said to revive the Pakistan-India hockey bilateral hockey series, the PHF had restored talks with the Indian hockey authorities and it was hoped that there would be a positive outcome.
“It is imperative to revive Indo-Pak hockey. And we are confident that with both countries playing on home and away basis, hockey will flourish in the sub-continent. Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif has assured that fool proof security will be provided to the Indian team during their visit to Pakistan.”
The PHF chief attributed the downfall of the national sport to many reasons including lack of hockey activities in educational institutions. “In the past, domestic hockey was very strong and a lot of tournaments were used to be played round the year across the country and players were able to lift the level of their game by taking part in eight to ten domestic tournaments. But now players are not getting ample hockey activity at national level,” said Akhtar. “I have taken both the points into consideration and will be working on them to expand the base of the game by finding new hockey talent with the involvement of the educational institutions.” He said the PHF would organise ten domestic hockey tournaments in a year and they need government support in this regard.
The Daily Times
PHF plans to hold bilateral series with India
LAHORE - The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has planned a bilateral hockey series against India to bridge the gap between two nations through sports and also urged the government for Rs 650 million grant to promote the national game across the country.
Speaking at meet the press gathering here at the Lahore Press Club on Monday, PHF president Akhtar Rasool said: “The federation has chalked out a plan to conduct 10 national tournaments to promote hockey at the grassroots level and also decided to revive hockey at school, college and university level.”
“We are expanding the horizon of consultation and for the purpose, a selection committee of senior former Olympians to have their say in the selection of the teams,” the PHF chief said and added: “I have no issue with any former hockey legend rather I have invited all of them to come forward to play their important role in developing and promoting the game to the highest level.”
He said that he had met with minister for Inter Provincial Coordination (IPC) Riaz Hussain Pirzada and had discussed in detail the team’s forthcoming international assignments and the national tournaments the PHF had lined up.
As of the accounts of the PHF under former officials, he said that Auditor General Pakistan had already done the audit of the PHF accounts. “We should move forward instead of mingling around in the past,” he stated.
The PHF president said that no department could progress without support of the government especially sports, which need its special attention. He added academies should be there to groom players but now the federation was introducing a system of check and balance. “We will take into account results of the academies and take action against those which do not work properly,” he added.
Akhtar Rasool said that Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif, who is also patron of the PHF, had been asked to have Rs 500 million in the country’s budget so that no president of the federation had to rely on other sources for support.
He said that talks with the government were underway for the team’s participation in international events like the Asian Games and hoped that issues would be resolved soon after the talks with the IPC and Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) officials.
To a query regarding series with India, Rasool said: “A letter has been sent to the Indian federation and we are hoping for a positive result. The Indian team will visit Pakistan first and then we will make a trip across the border.”
The Nation
Pakistan keen to have bilateral hockey series with India: PHF
KARACHI: The Pakistan Hockey Federation said it has resumed talks with the Indian hockey authorities to have a bilateral series as soon as possible.
PHF President, Akhtar Rasool told a media briefing in Lahore yesterday that he was keen to have a bilateral series with India in both countries not only to improve the financial health of Pakistan hockey but also to revive interest in the sport in the country.
"The inconsistent performance of our team since last year has hit the popularity of hockey in the country and we need a series to lift its sagging image among the people," Rasool said.
He said it was difficult to get sponsorship and people to the stadiums for hockey unless people followed the sport like they used to do in the past.
"That is why we are keen to revive bilateral ties with India and we have initiated talks with them," he said.
The former Pakistan captain said that the PHF was keen to first have the Indian team play in Pakistan.
"We will then willingly go to India. We know there will be questions and debate about the security but we firmly believe that if the Indian hockey federation is on board with us this series can be made possible very soon."
Rasool said Pakistan hockey was facing a financial crisis for which he had asked the government to help with a special grant of 650 million rupees.
"We are also trying very hard after involving the government to ensure our team can play in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games this year," he said.
A rift between two parallel national Olympic bodies has led to the refusal by organizers to include the Pakistan team in the hockey event of the Commonwealth games and Asian games.
The Times of India
Northern Railways down RCF to clinch inter-railway hockey title
MUMBAI: A superb, last-minute goal by Poonam, which she scored just seconds before the final hooter, helped underdogs Northern Railways score a 2-1 win over last year's runners up Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala, and lift the 35th All-India Inter-Railway Women's Hockey championship title on Monday.
RCF had their chances but they missed those, including a penalty stroke awarded in the 50th minute of play, which was muffed by right half Rozalind Ralte with a wide push at the Mahindra Stadium.
RCF, in fact, took the lead through a fine field goal by Anuradha Thokchom in the 23rd minute of play.
Northern Railways tried to turn the tide through incisive attack by the experienced duo of Ritu Rani and Rani Rampal. But it was a penalty corner, which finally yielded them the equaliser in the 48th minute when Harpreet Kaur scored by beating RCF goalkeeper Harmanjeet Kaur.
After RCF missed their golden chance to extend the lead, Northern went on the attack, but Harmanjeet foiled their plans on a couple of occasions, while Ritu Rani shot a reverse hit straight into her pads.
Finally it was the reverse hit by Poonam which gave Northern the title after four years. She moved in swiftly from left to hammer the ball home from a narrow angle much to the joy of her teammates.
In the all-Mumbai match for third position, hosts Central Railways surprisingly beat last year's winners Western 4-1.
Western led through a 17th minute goal by Anupa Barla but thereafter it was all Central with goals coming from Vandana Kataria (34, 45th), Saundarya (44th) and Kavita Vidyarthi (62nd).
The Times of India
Annie scores a first for the fairer sex
By S. Ramaguru
Annie Thomas is the first woman to umpire a match in the MHC-Milo-NSC Malaysia Junior Hockey League (MJHL). She also became the first woman to officiate in a men’s tournament at national level.
KUALA LUMPUR: Annie Thomas has scored a first for women umpires in the country.
On Friday, the 30-year-old became the first woman to umpire a match in the MHC-Milo-NSC Malaysia Junior Hockey League (MJHL). She also became the first woman to officiate in a men’s tournament at national level.
Annie, who started her umpiring career while studying at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), is among the five women umpires identified to officiate in this year’s MJHL. The others are Ernawati Mahmud, Norasyikin Shariudin, Norhafizah Azman and A. Kannagi.
Annie, an international class umpire, officiated in the Division Two clash between OLAK-PKT and KLSS-MSSWP game. Annie, who is working with the KL Customs department, aquitted herself well and did not show any jitters. And it is likely that she will see more matches coming her way.
The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) decided to use women umpires in the MJHL due to the increase in the number of teams taking part. On Friday, there were nine matches and 27 umpires were required.
Kannagi, a former international, was the other women umpire who saw action over the weekend but she ran straight into a controversy. She is also listed as an official with the KLSS Juniors-MSSWP team and she may not be able to officiate any more in the league. The competitions committee are trying to sort out the matter.
The Star of Malaysia
Field Hockey heads to Hollywood
Former US Men’s National Team Member and Assistant Coach Binh Hoang has a new impressive title to add to his resume. Over the last six months, Hoang has worked with various production companies in Los Angeles as a Field Hockey Technician for television series and movies.
Throughout his experience, Hoang worked with ABC’s Switched at Birth and NBC’s Bloodlines. Although Bloodlines was a pilot show not picked up by the network, Switched at Birth will be featuring field hockey in its third season premiering tonight, January 13. Hoang also assisted on the set of the independent film “Sisters”, premiering in February.
The companies were scouring the Internet for local field hockey coaches when they came across Hoang, who is currently a coach for Bulldogs Field Hockey Club located near Moorpark, Cali.
As a Field Hockey Technician, Hoang primarily worked with actresses as a coach, focusing on fundamental skills. The camera also does a lot of the leg work to help make actors look like professionals. Some scenes were filmed without a ball or very close up where the television audience cannot actually see the ball. Occasionally, body and stunt doubles were used for actors who were unable to do a specific skill or in scenes with falls. Oversized Wiffle balls were even used as fake field hockey balls.
For Hoang, a day on set usually began with an early morning “call time”, consisting of checking in on site by 7 a.m. Once on set, the entourage of cast and crew came flooding in for rehearsal where actors reviewed their lines and did a walk-through rehearsal prior to a final costume change.
Hoang’s main responsibility was to ensure that all aspects of the sport were displayed correctly in the scenes. Prior to filming, Hoang usually received a script and was able to modify any terminology or action during the rehearsal. He was able to recommend various field hockey scenarios for different scenes, depending on whether it was a corner, a penalty stroke or field play. The directors would then pick and choose scenarios that worked best for the camera.
On the set of ABC’s Switched at Birth, Hoang was able to work with the actresses and extras prior to filming to practice skills and drills necessary for their scenes. The series’ actresses Vanessa Marano and Katie Leclerc were some of Hoang’s favorite people to work with as they really enjoyed the game.
“Working on the sets was a lot of fun,” said Hoang. “The most difficult part for me was to watch the field hockey filming and not be able to say or do anything so as to not interfere with the take. It’s equivalent to coaching without being able to talk during a game.”
Don’t miss Season 3 of Switched at Birth featuring field hockey!
USFHA media release
Death Notice of Joan O'Reilly
The death has taken place of the renowned Irish international hockey player Joan O’Reilly.
A member of the Irish Triple Crown-winning team in 1950, O’Reilly collected 34 caps over the course of a glittering career as an attacking player.
Noted for her outstanding speed and flair, she also toured South Africa, England, America and Holland with the Irish team.
After her retirement, she was an international umpire and also served as president of the Irish Ladies Hockey Union.
In 2006, she became one of the first inductees into the Irish Hockey Hall of Fame.
O'Reilly was also an All-Ireland 100 yards dash champion and was selected to take part in the 1948 London Olympics but was prevented from participating in those games due to the prevailing attitudes to women's sport at the time.
She passed away on Friday at Belmont House Nursing Home in Stillorgan.
(Information with thanks to rte.ie)
Irish Hockey Association media release