News 18 January 2014
All the news for Saturday 18 January 2014
Black Sticks and Oranje to compete Hero Hockey World League Final
England and Australia will play off for bronze medal after tough semi final encounters
The Netherlands defeated Australia to reach the final of the Hero Hockey World League Final. (Photo: FIH / Frank Uijlenbroek)
New Zealand and the Netherlands are through to the finals of the Hero Hockey World League Final after hard-fought semi final matches. England will play Australia in the bronze medal match. The Black Sticks came into their semi final match hoping to reverse the 1-5 defeat at the hands of England in the pool match earlier in the Hero Hockey World League Final. In fact, at full time both teams were level pegging, but Colin Batch's men were cooler in the shoot out and emerged 7-6 winners to qualify for the final.
New Zealand's Simon Child, who was the Hero Man of the Match said: "We were really disappointed with our first match against England, losing 1-5, so we are pleased to have turned that around." The Black Sticks certainly started more dangerously, winning four penalty corners in quick succession but George Pinner, in the England goal, made some sharp saves to keep the ball from the back of the net.
The England defence was breached finally by Marcus Child (12'), who fired a hard shot home from wide of the goal. New Zealand were unlucky not to double that scoreline when an unmarked Simon Child hit the side netting. England bounced back through after Harry Martin (23') dived full-length to score from a cross from Mark Gleghorne.
It was England who took the lead in the second half when Gleghorne (49') fired home from the right-hand side of the circle. New Zealand refused to give up and continued with their attacking style of play, stretching the England defence. The Black Sticks were rewarded with two goals in quick succession, firstly from Stephen Jenness (61') and then Hugo Inglis (62'). Ashley Jackson (64') scored England's equaliser after Barry Middleton was fouled en route to goal.
In the shoot out, the sides remained level after the first five attempts, and it all came down to sudden death. Both sides remained neck and neck until Harry Martin missed for England and Phil Burrows became the Black Sticks hero alongside the keeper Devon Manchester.
The England coach, Bobby Crutchley, said: "I thought the shoot out would last forever, but that shows the high quality. The pressure under which both teams played in the shoot out was impressive. I am not totally happy with today's performance." And winning coach Batch said: "We are doing well on shoot outs, it was the difference between winning or losing. The shoot out lasts so long because the players are technically good and the goal keepers are getting better and better. Devon Manchester was outstanding. After our poor start, a lot of people will be surprised to see us in the final."
New Zealand will be joined by the Netherlands in the final after they won their semi final 4-3 against Australia. Constantijn Jonker (12’) opened the scoring at the beginning of the first half when his reverse stick shot found its way into the net and the Dutch doubled their lead when Mink van der Weerden’s (20’) dragflick left the Aussie keeper Tyler Lovell stranded.
The match swung Australia's way in the second half. The first Kookaburra goal came out of two minutes of intense Aussie pressure on the Dutch goal and Kieran Govers (42’) was able to capitalize on a penalty corner. Five minutes later Russell Ford (47’) levelled the score to 2-2 when deflecting a long pass into Jaap Stockmann’s goal. The world champions fought hard to get another one and it came courtesy of Govers (55’) who fired home a penalty corner. This was his sixth goal in this competition making him the new top scorer of the Hero Hockey World League Final.
Jeroen Hertzberger (62’) brought the Netherlands back into the race by equalising from open play. With four minutes remaining van der Weerden (66’) put the game beyond Australia’s reach when converting his second penalty corner. Hero Man of the Match, Van der Weerden said: "It was a great game, we all played well, and when necessary we fought back very well. Australia played a great game." Bob de Voogd added: "We knew that Australia would press in the second half, but we reacted in time and didn't panic."
Speaking about the forthcoming final match against New Zealand de Voogd said: "We haven't played New Zealand yet, but they are like Australia, straight forward and direct. We need to stick to our game plan." The Australian captain, Mark Knowles, said: "When you play in a semi final you always want to win. We played with courage, but we also gave them some easy options."
Govers said: "This tournament has been a massive learning curve. We had some new players in our squad so it was good for them to be exposed to playing some of the best players in the world." Both Govers and Knowles said they were looking forward to tomorrow's match against England for third place.
FIH site
India shock Germany while Belgium claw their way to victory
Germany and Argentina to contest 7/8 place in the Hero Hockey World League Final
India shocked Germany by sending them to the 7/8 playoff. (Photo: FIH / Frank Uijlenbroek)
Playing in front of the largest crowd of the tournament so far, India secured their spot in Saturday’s 5th place play-off match after defeating Germany 5-4 in the 5-8 classification game. Rupinder Singh scored from a penalty corner securing India’s win in the last minute of the match. This means India will play Belgium for fifth place and Germany will play Argentina for 7/8 places.
A clearly-pleased coach, Terry Walsh, said: "We tried to play our game, and for large sections of the game we did. We certainly matched the Germans; either team could have won. We came back from being 0-2 down to win, that shows the calibre of these guys." Hero Man of the Match, triple goal scorer Mandeep Singh, said: "I had such great service from the team throughout the match." Singh's sharp-shooting won praise from his coach, who said: "When someone is as good in front of goal as this guy, we need to build our team around utilising that talent."
The Olympic champions, who had lost their quarter final 3-2 to the Netherlands, opened the scoring thanks to team-captain Oliver Korn (4’). Thilo Stralkowski (6’) doubled the German lead a couple of minutes later when scoring from a penalty corner. Mandeep Singh (18’) made the home crowd cheer when finishing a promising Indian counter-attack by a successful shot from the top of the circle. However, Benjamin Wess (27’) added another one for Germany.
"Getting structure is the key to development in this side. We need to find a way to combine Indian style and flair with technical structure” said Roelant Oltmans, India's director of performance, at half time.
India got off to a good start in the second half with a double-strike from Rupinder Singh (39’) and Mandeep Singh (41’) to level the score to 3-3. Mandeep Singh (53’) added his third goal of the day when putting India ahead 4-3. Germany then equalised through a penalty corner goal from Martin Häner (55’). “We lost control of the match and then India was there and their spectators as well”, German Tobias Hauke said. Coach Markus Weise agreed: “Today we beat ourselves. We didn’t use our chances.”
The second encounter saw Marc Lammers' Belgium beat Argentina 3-1 in a shoot out, after the match had finished 1-1. This means that Belgium have won their first match in the tournament and Argentina have lost their second shoot out of the tournament.
In the first half Argentina soaked up the Belgium pressure with goal keeper Juan Manuel Vivaldi being called into action to make several consecutive saves. Finally, after 25 minutes of unrelenting pressure from Belgium, Argentina broke down play and a quick counter attack led to Matias Rey (31') scoring the opening goal on his 100th cap.
Lammers summed up his team's problem at half time: "We are playing well, but we have forgotten to score, just like in the other games."
In the first 15 minutes of the second half, Argentina took a more commanding role, with a series of incursions into the Belgium circle. However, Belgium got back into the game, and their equaliser came from an own goal in the 56th minute. In the shoot out, Belgium won 3-1. One of the Argentinians who missed the goal in the shoot out was Agustin Mazzilli. He said: "It is a big disappointment to lose on shoot outs the second time out. We really need to work on it. And now we will give everything to finish seventh."
After the match, Lammers said: "We were better than Argentina but we needed to get more penalty corners. I am happy to be playing for fifth place now, but I think we had some bad luck in games earlier in this tournament." His counterpart, Retegui also felt he had suffered from some bad luck, but he added: "If you told me at the start of this tournament that we would beat the Netherlands and Belgium in the opening matches and only just lose to Australia, I would have not believed you. My players have grown in confidence over the tournament."
FIH site
Netherlands to face New Zealand in title clash of HWL Final
NEW DELHI: The Netherlands will face underdogs New Zealand in the summit clash of the Hero Hockey World league Final Saturday after the two teams eked out hard-fought wins over world champions Australia and England at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium on Friday.
The Netherlands defeated Australia 4-3 in a thrilling second semifinal after New Zealand pipped out England 7-6 via penalty shoot-out in a keenly contested first semifinal match.
The first semifinal went into the penalty shoot-out after both teams finished at 3-3 in regulation time.
Ric Charlesworth's Australia will now face fourth ranked England in the third-fourth place play-off match tomorrow.
In the second semifinal, Constantijn Jonker (12th minute) opened the scoring for the Netherlands at the beginning of the first half when his reverse stick shot found its way into the back of the Australian net.
The Kookaburras struggled to create serious opportunities in the early stages while the Dutch took their chances and doubled their lead through Mink van der Weerden's (20th) dragflick from penalty corner that left the Aussie custodian Tyler Lovell stranded to take 2-0 lead at the half-way mark.
After the change of ends, Australia came out like a wounded tiger and scored their first goal through Kieran Govers (42nd) who converted a penalty corner.
Five minutes later, Russell Ford (47th) levelled the proceedings to 2-2 by deflecting home a long pass.
The world champions fought hard to take the lead for the first time in the match, courtesy Govers (55th) who fired home another penalty corner.
This, incidentally, was Govers' sixth goal in this competition making him the new top-scorer in the eight-nation event. Jeroen Hertzberger (62nd) brought the Netherlands back into the match by equalising from open play.
With four minutes remaining Van der Weerden (66th) put the game beyond Australia's reach when he converted his second penalty corner of the day.
Earlier in the day, seventh ranked New Zealand came into the match with an aim to avenge their 1-5 drubbing in the pool match to England and as hoped they fought hard to secure the win over the fourth ranked team.
Colin Batch's men kept their cool in the shoot-out to emerge winners after both New Zealand and England were tied at 1-1 at the half time and then 3-3 at the final hooter.
Incidentally, it was New Zealand second win in the shoot-outs after having defeated Argentina in the quarterfinal.
The Black Sticks certainly were the sharper of the two teams in the opening exchanges by winning four penalty corners in quick succession but George Pinner, in the England goal, made some brilliant saves to keep the ball away from the back of the net.
The England defence was breached finally by Marcus Child (12th minute), who fired home a hard shot from wide of the goal.
New Zealand were unlucky not to double the lead when an unmarked Simon Child hit the side netting.
England bounced back through Harry Martin (23th) who dived full-length to sent home from Mark Gleghorne's cross as both the teams went into the breather locked at a goal apiece.
The second half witnessed a lot of end-to-end action, with both teams playing expansive hockey. Both teams mainly relied on strong defence and quick counter attacks.
It was England who took the lead for the first time in the match when Gleghorne (49th) fired home from the right side of the circle.
New Zealand, however, refused to give up and continued with their attacking style of play, stretching the England defence.
The Black Sticks were rewarded with two goals in quick succession, firstly a penalty corner conversion from Stephen Jenness (61st) and then a field goal from Hugo Inglis (62nd).
But Ashley Jackson (64th) scored England's equaliser from a penalty stroke after Barry Middleton was fouled inside the circle to take the game into shoot-out.
In the shoot-out, the sides remained level after the first five attempts, and it all came down to sudden death.
Both sides remained neck and neck until Harry Martin missed for England and Phil Burrows became the Black Sticks hero.
The Times of India
Kookaburras play for bronze
Aussie men go down to Netherlands despite fighting back to lead
The Kookaburras will play off for the bronze medal at the World League Finals in Delhi on Saturday night after losing narrowly to the Netherlands in a game that saw them fight back from two goals down to lead 3-2 but ultimately succumb 4-3.
Two penalty corner strikes from Kieran Govers either side of Russell Ford’s superb long range deflection had helped the Kookaburras fight their way into the lead after being 2-0 down at half time. But goals in the final ten minutes from Jeroen Herzberger and Mink van der Weerden consigned the Aussie men to the third place playoff.
There they’ll meet England who lost on a shoot-out to New Zealand’s Blacksticks after an entertaining 3-3 draw.
Kookaburras coach Ric Charlesworth said afterwards. “It was an exciting match. We’re disappointed, naturally. Throughout the tournament our defence has been leaky, we’ve given up goals just through our errors and we’ve given up three today. It’s hard to win the game when you do that. We had an own goal [credited to Netherlands’ Jeroen Hertzberger], we had the ball in the circle, and the last one we kicked the ball straight at an attacker when we could have played the ball anywhere. That’s loose and it’s not good enough and you get hurt when that happens.
“It was a good fightback and then in the end we constructed the best chance of the game and from point blank we range we went over the top. We’ve got a lot of things we can fix but I think that it’s our own fault. We had the opportunities but we didn’t take them and we made too many errors.”
Charlesworth was referring to an opportunity that fell to Liam De Young in the last minute of the match as he could only sweep the ball over the goal sliding to meet Jake Whetton’s pass.
As in Wednesday’s quarter-final against India the Kookaburras found themselves 2-0 down just over midway through the first half. First Constantijn Jonker took advantage as the Kookaburras turned over possession, sending a tomahawk high into the goal, before Mink van der Weerden unleashed a rocket penalty corner that left goalkeeper Tyler Lovell with no chance.
Early in the second half Kieran Govers halved the deficit with a low penalty corner flick that Jaap Stockmann could only parry into the ground as it flew beyond him into the goal. And five minutes later Russell Ford converted to level at 2-2 with a pinpoint long range deflection from Tristan White’s pass into the circle.
The Kookaburras were appealing for a penalty stroke with 15 minutes remaining but had to settle for a penalty corner, which Govers subsequently dispatched into the bottom left corner to turn the match on its head. It was the New South Wales man’s 40th strike for his country.
However, there was to be a sting in the tail for the Aussie men as the Netherlands equalised with eight minutes remaining – Jeroen Hertzberger credited with the goal from a cut-back - before a second Mink van der Weerden drag flick found its way beyond substitute goalkeeper George Bazeley.
De Young’s late chance almost forced a shoot-out but it the Dutch goal remained untroubled.
Afterwards, Charlesworth added, “We made too many errors in our defence, which is disappointing. Today is a further example of that and if you do that you get hurt. But our team will be much, much better in five months’ time [at the World Cup].
“We’ve come here to test our players and we’ve found out quite a lot about them. Playing in the sort of game that tonight was is a great experience for them and they learn a lot from that.”
Tim Deavin sat out the match after sustaining a hip injury earlier in the week.
The Kookaburras will play against England at 5:45pm local time on Saturday, 11:15pm AEDT, 8:15pm AWST. The Netherlands will meet New Zealand in the final at 8pm local time.
World League Finals, Men
Pool B
New Delhi, India
On Twitter: @Kookaburras, #HHWL
KOOKABURRAS 3 (0)
Kieran Govers 42,55 (PC,PC)
Russell Ford 47 (F)
NETHERLANDS 4 (2)
Constantijn Jonker 12 (F)
Mink van der Weerden 20,62 (PC,PC)
Jeroen Hertzberger 62 (F)
Classification & semi-final results
5-8th: Belgium 1-1 Argentina (Belgium win 3-1 on shoot-out)
5-8th: Germany 4-5 India
SF1: England 3-3 New Zealand (New Zealand win 7-6 on shoot-out)
SF2: Australia 3-4 Netherlands
Medal match and Classification Fixtures – Saturday, 18 January
7th/8th: Argentina v Germany
5th/6th: Belgium v India
3rd/4th: England v Australia
1st/2nd: New Zealand v Netherlands
Kookaburras squad v Netherlands
(listed alphabetically by surname)
Name (Hometown) caps/goals
Started
Nick Budgeon (Hobart, TAS) 13/3
Joel Carroll (Darwin, NT) 95/2
Russell Ford (Eltham, VIC) 142/69
Kieran Govers (Wollongong, NSW) 82/40
Mark Knowles (Rockhampton, QLD) 223/18
Tyler Lovell (GK) (Perth, WA) 13/0
Eddie Ockenden (Hobart, TAS) 198/51
Simon Orchard (Maitland, NSW) 139/44
Glenn Turner (Goulburn, NSW) 101/74
Tristan White (Wollongong, NSW) 20/1
Aran Zalewski (Margaret River, WA) 25/3
Used Substitute
George Bazeley (GK) (Melbourne, VIC) 69/0
Daniel Beale (Brisbane, QLD) 19/5
Kiel Brown (Toowoomba, QLD) 143/4
Liam De Young (Brisbane, QLD) 295/34
Jason Wilson (Kingscliff, QLD) 95/34
Jake Whetton (Brisbane, QLD) 45/18
Unused Substitute
Tim Deavin (Launceston, TAS) 81/3
Hockey Australia media release
Dutch dash Aussie hopes of World No.1
s2h team
New Delhi - The Netherlands are finally on course to make their mark on the inaugural Hero Hockey World League Final and want to become the first winners of the new Grade 1trophy of FIH. On Friday, they sent World Cup winners and No.2 ranked Australia crashing out with a hard-fought 4-3 victory at the Dhyan Chand Stadium here.
``Yes, we are losing in the finals. But here, we will play to our potential and focus on our strategy. New Zealand have surprised England, a better-ranked team, so we will not take them lightly. But it is good for us that are playing the Kiwis. Our approach will not change,’’ said the Dutch coalch Paul van Ass.
Australia will face England in the bronze-medal match on Saturday.
The Dutch began in an aggressive mood scoring in the very 12th minute when Constantijn Jonker sent in a fierce backhander to open the account. The Australian seemed to be out of sorts and their defence looked shaky. Their forwards missed easy chances and the coordination between the midfield and the strikers lacked the sting. The Dutch made the best use of this unusually soft Aussie attack and made it 2-0 when Mink van der Weerden, who was later declared the man of the match, shot home from a penalty corner as his drag flick brooked no answer from Aussie custodian Tyler Lovell.
Credit is also due to the strong presence of Jaap Stockmann under the Dutch bar where he managed to ward off a couple of sure-looking shots and a short corner after short corner.
The Netherlands went into the break with a psychological advantage of leading 2-0. Aussies applied tremendous pressure in the rival circle and it yielded in a their third short corner. The Kookas, unusually, wasted two short corners and not one more. Kieran Govers was on target pulling one back in the 42nd minute and it was Russell Ford, five minutes later, who brought in the equalizer at 2-2 deflecting a long cross from Stockmann.
In fact, the Kookaburras went ahead taking the lead for the first time and it appeared as if they would seal the issue. Kieran Govers sent in a powerful flick and the goal came in 55th minute which made him the top scorer of the tournament thus far with six goals.
The Netherlands continue to frustrate the Aussies and that they did with alarming regularity. This time it was Jeroen Hertzberger who drew level with 62nd minute goal after he was put in possession by Billy Bakker and with just four minutes remaining on the clock, Man of the Match Mink van der Weerden sounded the death knell for Australia converting from a set-piece drill and that turned out to be the match winner an it denied the Australians a chance to have a shot at the Number One ranking.
Ric Charlesworth, Chief Coach of the Australian team said, “We are very disappointed with the result. It was an exciting match. We recovered well and put up a great fight but could not change the outcome. When we miss so many chances, it is difficult to force a victory. We also committed a lot of mistakes. Our team appears to be unpredictable. It is good but we have to be consistent. Some minor unforced errors can completely change the course of the game.”
Paul van Ass, the Netherlands coach said: “We had a good fight today. We knew this would be an exciting match as Australia is a strong opponent and our team is in good form too. They kept pushing us to defence but we came back pretty well and maintained our lead.”
Stick2Hockey.com
Kiwis enter final, sudden death for England
B.David
New Delhi, 17 Jan 2014: Underdogs New Zealand put paid to the aspirations of 4th ranked England edging them out with a 7-6 scoreline in the shoot-out after the regulation time play resulted in a 3-3 deadlock at the Hero World Hockey League Final here on Friday.
After they lost to England 1-5 in the pool matches, the Black Sticks did a good job to score the equalizer to force a shoot out and then kept cool to win from the third attempt in sudden death.
The Kiwis should have taken an early lead after forcing four penalty corners in quick succession but English custodian George Pinner was up to the task thwarting all their attempts. However, in the 12th minute, Marcus Child provide the lead but failed to increase the margin hitting the side boards a few minutes later.
England restored parity in the 23rd minute when Harry Martin dived to reach a mark Mark Gleghorne cross and slammed it home.
Early in the second half, both the teams played defensive hockey waiting for the turn-overs and it was England who forged ahead in the 49the minute with a sortie from the right flank and Mark Gleghorne doing the honours this time around.
The reverse, forced the New Zealand players to increase the tempo and they switched over to attacking hockey and at the same time fell back in numbers to defend. The sustained attack got them two goals in the space of two minutes. First they earned a short corner in the 61st minute and Stephen Jenness made no mistake with the flick and a minute later Hugo Inglis put them in the lead scoring over the head of an advancing English goalie George Pinner.
But the lead failed to stand for long as a goal-bound English skipper Barry Middleton was obstructed, two minutes later, and the umpire showed towards the dreaded spot without any hesitation. Ashley Jackson found the net without any fuss to make it even stevens and it stayed 3-3 till the end.
In the shootout, both teams scored thrice and missed twice. Later, in the sudden death Ashley Jackson, Tom Carson and Nick Catlin scored for England while Hugo Inglis, Simon Child and Steve Edwards were successful for New Zealand. With both sides scoring thrice and missing once in the sudden death, it boiled down to the fourth attempt where Harry Martin missed for England while the Kiwis jumped in relief and joy as Phil Burrows took them to the finals and became the star for the Black Sticks with a successful conversion after his 8 second, one-on-one battle with the rival goalie, the new FIH invention instead of Penalty Strokes to attract more crowds.
Stick2Hockey.com
Black Sticks Men beat England in semi-final thriller
The Black Sticks Men celebrate after winning against England in the semi-final at the World League Final in India. Photo: Frank Uijlenbroek.
The Black Sticks Men have beaten England 7-6 in a nail-biting sudden death penalty shoot-out in the semi-final match at the Hero Hockey World League Final in India. New Zealand will now face the Netherlands in the gold medal match at 3.30am tomorrow (NZ time).
The score was locked at 3-3 at full time thanks to goals from Marcus Child, Stephen Jenness and Hugo Inglis, but it was Phil Burrows who secured the winning shot during the shoot-out to keep New Zealand’s gold medal chances alive.
It is the first time the Black Sticks Men have been in a final of an FIH tier one tournament (Champions Trophy, World Cup or Olympic Games) since the 1976 Montreal Olympics. The next best result was when New Zealand placed fourth at the 2011 Champions Trophy in Auckland.
“A lot of people will be surprised to see us in the final. We are very happy with that performance and looking forward to the match tomorrow. I was very pleased with how we played towards the end of the second half, Nick Haig, Phil Burrows and Simon Child provided a lot of opportunities for us and I thought Devon Manchester was outstanding in goal,” said head coach Colin Batch.
It is the second game in a row that the Black Sticks have won on penalty shoot-outs, they won the quarter-final against Argentina two days ago in a similar dramatic fashion.
"We are doing well on shoot outs, it was the difference between winning or losing. The shoot-out lasts so long because the players are technically good and the goal keepers are getting better and better,” said Batch.
The Black Sticks certainly started more dangerously, winning four penalty corners in quick succession but English goalkeeper George Pinner made some sharp saves to keep the ball from the back of the net.
The England defence was breached finally by Marcus Child in the 12th minute, who fired a hard shot home from wide of the goal. New Zealand were unlucky not to double that score when an unmarked Simon Child hit the side netting.
England bounced back when Harry Martin dived full-length to score from a cross from Mark Gleghorne in the 23rd minute.
The second half saw a lot of end-to-end action, with both teams playing expansive hockey. It was England who took the lead when Gleghorne fired home from the right-hand side of the circle. But the Black Sticks refused to give up and continued with their attacking style of play, stretching the England defence.
The Black Sticks were rewarded with two goals in quick succession, firstly from Stephen Jenness in the 61st minute and then Hugo Inglis in the 62nd minute.
The Black Sticks were no doubt hoping that was enough to secure the win, but two minutes later Ashley Jackson scored England's equaliser after Barry Middleton was fouled en route to goal.
In the shoot-out, the sides remained level after the first five attempts, and it all came down to sudden death. Both sides remained neck and neck until Harry Martin missed for England and Burrows became the Black Sticks hero.
Simon Child, who was the Hero Man of the Match said: "We were really disappointed with our first match against England, they are a really good team but we knew we were better than the 5-1 score line [during pool play]. We are a young team but we are growing in confidence and getting better and better with each game."
England will play Australia, who lost 3-4 to the Dutch in the other semi-final, in the bronze medal match tomorrow at 1.15am. All Black Sticks games, plus semis and the finals are LIVE on Sky Sport. All other games can be streamed live online at www.fih.ch.
For the latest results, photos and videos from the Hero Hockey World League Final, click here. To see a list of all historical Black Sticks Men’s results click here.
RESULTS:
Full time: 3-3 (7-6) New Zealand win
Half time: 1-1
New Zealand’s goal scorers: Marcus Child, Stephen Jenness, Hugo Inglis. Click here for full shoot-out results - http://events.fih.ch/new/match/5206#details
England’s goal scorers: Martin Harry, Mark Gleghorne, Ashley Jackson
Hockey New Zealand Media release
Thrilling match puts Black Sticks through
By David Leggat
Veteran attacker Phil Burrows scored the decisive goal to beat England. Photo / NZPA / David Rowland
Keeping a cool head did the trick for New Zealand as they clinched their place in the World League final after a sudden death penalty shootout against England in New Delhi today.
New Zealand ranked No 7, beat fourth-ranked England 7-6 after the teams were locked 3-3 at fulltime, then couldn't be separated during the penalty shootout. So it went to sudden death, where Hugo Inglis, Simon Child, Steve Edwards and finally Phil Burrows scored to send New Zealand to their first tier one International Hockey Federation final since winning the gold medal at the Montreal Olympics in 1976.
New Zealand will play world No 3 the Netherlands in the final early on Sunday morning after the Dutch eliminated Australia 4-3 in their semifinal.
England had beaten the Black Sticks 5-1 in pool play earlier in the week, but New Zealand played far better in a rousing contest. They had beaten Argentina in another penalty shootout in their quarter-final.
Once again, goalkeeper Devon Manchester had a fine game.
"We were really disappointed with our first match against England," man of the match Simon Child said.
"They are a really good team but we knew we were better than the 5-1 scoreline. We are a young team but we are growing in confidence and getting better and better with each game."
Coach Colin Batch was delighted with New Zealand's growing prowess in the penalty shootout phase.
"We are doing well on shoot outs, it was the difference between winning or losing," he said.
"The shoot-out lasts so long because the players are technically good and the goal keepers are getting better and better."
New Zealand's goals in regulation time came from Marcus Child early in the first half, then Stephen Jenness and Inglis in the space of a minute, nine minutes from the end, which had New Zealand 3-2 up.
However English star Ashley Jackson levelled it up a couple of minutes later, sending the contest to a nerve-rattling conclusion.
The shootout finished all square at 3-3, so the teams went to sudden death, where Burrows grabbed his chance after England player Harry Martin had been denied by the in-form Manchester.
"A lot of people will be surprised to see us in the final," Batch said.
Certainly on rankings they were not expected to make the title decider, but saved their best performance until the semifinal and got a terrific reward.
New Zealand last played the Netherlands in the third-fourth playoff at the World League semifinal stage in Rotterdamlast June, losing 4-1.
In other games, world No 1 Germany were surprisingly beaten 5-4 by hosts India while Belgium beat Argentina 3-1.
The Germans will now face Argentina in the playoff for seventh and eighth places, while Belgium and India will meet to decide fifth and sixth spots. Australia and England will contest the third-fourth match.
The New Zealand Herald
Black Sticks men into hockey World League final
The Black Sticks men advanced to the Hockey World League final after winning their second straight sudden-death shootout in India.
Phil Burrows' spin-move goal past England goalkeeper George Pinner in the 10th round earned the Kiwis a 7-6 shootout win, after scores were tied 3-3 after regulation time and 3-3 after the first five rounds of the shootout.
The result - two days after Colin Batch's side defeated Argentina 4-3 in the seventh round of the shootout and four days after losing 5-1 to England - sees New Zealand play the Netherlands in the final at 3.30am Sunday (NZ time).
Referring to New Zealand's poor start to the tournament, Batch said: "A lot of people will be surprised to see us in the final.
"We are doing well on shootouts, it was the difference between winning or losing. The shootout lasts so long because the players are technically good and the goal keepers are getting better and better. Devon Manchester was outstanding."
In the shootout, the sides remained level after the first five attempts, although Kiwi netminder Devon Manchester had two chances to put the result away.
With England shooting first as the shootout went to sudden-death, Hugo Inglis, Simon Child and Steve Edwards each made critical goals after England makes. In the seventh round of the shootout, after Manchester had poked the ball away on an England attempt, Blair Hilton missed a wide-open cage, which would have won the match.
Manchester forced England's Harry Martin wide in the 10th round, getting a glove on a shot to force it wide, before Burrows finished it off.
"It was pretty disappointing the first time we played the English and credit to them, they're a really good team," man-of-the-match Simon Child said. "But we knew we were better than that 5-1 scoreline. We're a young team but we're growing in confidence and getting better and better with every game."
Earlier, the Black Sticks certainly started more dangerously, winning four penalty corners in quick succession but Pinner made some sharp saves to keep the ball from the back of the net.
The England defence was breached finally by Marcus Child (12'), who fired a hard shot home from wide of the goal. New Zealand were unlucky not to double that scoreline when an unmarked Simon Child hit the side netting.
England bounced back through after Harry Martin (23') dived full-length to score from a cross from Mark Gleghorne.
The second half was saw a lot of end-to-end action, with both teams playing expansive hockey. Both teams rely on strong defence and quick counter attacks, making it a physical match between two sides.
It was England who took the lead when Gleghorne (49') fired home from the right-hand side of the circle. But New Zealand refused to give up and continued with their attacking style of play, stretching the England defence. The Black Sticks were rewarded with two goals in quick succession, firstly from Stephen Jenness (61') and Hugo Inglis (62').
Ashley Jackson (64') scored England's equaliser after Barry Middleton was fouled en route to goal.
Stuff
New Zealand enter final of Hockey World League Final
NEW DELHI: New Zealand eked out a hard-fought 7-6 win over England in the penalty shoot-out after both the teams finished at 3-3 in regulation time, to earn a place in the summit clash of the Hero Hockey World League Final at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium on Friday.
Ranked seventh in the world, New Zealand came into the match with an aim to avenge their 1-5 drubbing in the pool stages at the hands of England. Executing their plans well, they fought hard to secure a win over the fourth ranked team in the world.
Colin Batch's men kept their cool during the shoot-out to emerge victorious after New Zealand and England were tied at 1-1 at the half time and then 3-3 after final hooter.
Incidentally, it was New Zealand's second win in the shoot-outs, having defeated Argentina in the quarterfinals.
The Black Sticks certainly were the sharper of the two teams in the opening exchanges. They won four penalty corners in quick succession but George Pinner, in the England goal, made some brilliant saves to keep the ball away from the back of the net.
The England defence was breached finally by Marcus Child (12th minute), who fired home a hard shot from wide of the goal. New Zealand were unlucky not to double the lead when an unmarked Simon Child hit the side net.
England bounced back through Harry Martin (23th), who dived full-length to send home from Mark Gleghorne's cross as both the teams went into the breather locked at one-goal apiece.
The second half witnessed a lot of end-to-end action, with both teams playing expansive hockey, mainly relying on strong defence and quick counter attacks.
It was England who took the lead for the first time in the match when Gleghorne (49th) fired home from the right side of the circle.
New Zealand, however, refused to give up and continued with their attacking style of play, stretching the English defence.
The Black Sticks were rewarded with two goals in quick succession, firstly a penalty corner conversion from Stephen Jenness (61st) and then a field goal from Hugo Inglis (62nd).
But Ashley Jackson (64th) scored the equalizer for England from a penalty stroke after Barry Middleton was fouled inside the circle to take the game into shoot-out.
In the shoot-out, the sides remained level after the first five attempts, and it all came down to sudden death.
Both sides remained neck-and-neck until Harry Martin missed for England, while Phil Burrows became the Black Sticks' hero.
The Times of India
England to play for bronze after Black Sticks defeat
Iain Lewers has been a rock in England's defence this week at the Hero World League Final
Crutchley’s men came agonisingly close to reaching the World League Final today, but New Zealand took revenge on their earlier group defeat to England to clinch a 7-6 shoot-out victory and a top two finish.
ENGLAND 3 (1) (6 shoot-out)
Harry Martin 23 (FG)
Mark Gleghorne 49 (FG)
Ashley Jackson 64 (PS)
NEW ZEALAND 3 (1) (7 shoot-out)
Marcus Child 12 (FG)
Stephen Jenness 61 (PC)
Hugo Inglis 62 (FG)
It was tough to watch as England agonisingly lost out to New Zealand in the Semi-Final of the Hero Hockey World League Final. After 70 minutes of hockey there was nothing to choose between the two sides as the match ended 3-3. There were England goals for Harry Martin, Mark Gleghorne and Ashley Jackson, but with three more in reply from New Zealand the match would be decided by a shoot-out.
After the first round of penalties the scores were once again tied at 3-3 with Ashley Jackson, Tom Carson and Barry Middleton on target. As it moved into sudden death Jackson, Carson and Nick Catlin all found the mark, but after failing at his first attempt Harry Martin once again saw his shot saved and Phil Burrows was New Zealand’s hero as he scored the deciding goal to send them through to the final.
England will now face Australia in the bronze medal play-off at 12:15 tomorrow after they lost 4-3 to the Netherlands in the other semi-final of the day.
Click here to watch the highlights from today’s game.
Speaking after the game England Head Coach Bobby Crutchley said, “We’re gutted with the result. To lose that way in a shoot-out in the semi-final of a tournament is really hard to take, however we were a bit sloppy in our play across the 70 minutes which meant we couldn’t take the game away from New Zealand and that ultimately led to the shoot-out. We had more than enough opportunities, especially in the second half, but we just couldn’t get control of the game. All credit to New Zealand, they are quality side with some great talent and our 5-1 victory in the group stages didn’t really reflect the competitiveness of that game. They really came at us today and I wish them luck in the final tomorrow.”
“Overall I’m really pleased with the way we’ve played this tournament and a top four finish against the best sides in the world is a great achievement with this relatively new squad. The boys will regroup and we’ll do everything we can to come home with the bronze medal tomorrow.”
England Captain Barry Middleton added, “We’re very upset to lose like that when we had an opportunity to make the final, but we have to look forward and pick ourselves up for another big challenge against Australia tomorrow.”
The match started with both sides trying to push into their opposing circle and take an early lead. New Zealand looked the most threatening early on, as a series of penalty corners kept England in their own half, and in the 12th minute they opened the scoring with a reverse stick shot at the tightest of angles from Marcus Childs.
Not to be kept on the back foot for long England equalised to make it 1-1 in the 23rd minute. It was a welcome first goal of the tournament for Beeston’s Harry Martin who made a fearless dive towards the posts to deflect a pass from Mark Gleghorne over a sprawling Devon Manchester in the Black Sticks goal. After several other chances from both sides neither team could find the space to break away and the score remained level going into the break.
A change of ends saw a change of pace as the game opened up in the second-half. England had the edge on possession and in the 49th minute the provider of the first goal became the scorer of the second. After some fantastic advantage play from umpire Murray Grime, Gleghorne reacted quickly to a Middleton ball into the circle and fired home to give England the lead for the first time in the game. It was an advantage however that didn’t last long.
Ten minutes after Gleghorne had put England in front a penalty corner saw New Zealand’s Stephen Jenness react first to a rebound to score the equaliser and this was followed a minute later by a field goal for Hugo Inglis to turn the game on its head. With just six minutes to go a foul on Barry Middleton in the New Zealand circle led to a penalty stroke being awarded; Ashley Jackson stepped up and effortlessly slotted the ball past Manchester to draw the game back level at 3-3 and set the scene for a semi-final shoot-out.
Nick Catlin, Harry Martin, Ashley Jackson, Tom Carson and Barry Middleton stepped up to the 23 metre line to take England’s penalties and after the first five attempts there was once again nothing to pick between the two sides. England had missed their first two efforts through Catlin and Martin but Jackson, Carson and Middleton all delivered in style and with George Pinner in England’s goal thwarting two Kiwi chances the scores were tied at 3-3 which meant it was time for sudden death.
With a change to the England order Jackson stepped up and scored again, but this time Middleton’s effort was saved by Manchester and it needed Pinner to save from Blair Hilton, which he did to keep the scores level at 4-4. Next up Carson and Catlin both found the target as did their New Zealand counterparts, but at 6-6 a devastated Martin saw his shot saved and Pinner was unable to keep Phil Burrows out and New Zealand sealed a 7-6 victory.
England will play off for the bronze medal against Australia at 12:15 tomorrow. All matches are being streamed live at www.youtube.com/fihockey
In the afternoon session of the day Belgium needed a shoot-out to beat Argentina and set-up a 5th v 6th play-off against hosts India after their shock 5-4 victory against the world number one side Germany.
England Men’s Squad for the Hero Hockey World League Finals
Started
George Pinner – Beeston – Goalkeeper
Ashley Jackson – East Grinstead – Midfield
Michael Hoare – Wimbledon – Defender
Adam Dixon – Beeston – Midfield/Defender
Dan Fox – Holcombe – Defender
Iain Lewers – East Grinstead – Defender
Simon Mantell – Reading – Forward
Barry Middleton – Holcombe – Midfield/Forward
Henry Weir – Wimbledon – Midfield/Defender
Nick Catlin – Reading – Midfield/Forward
Mark Gleghorne – East Grinstead – Forward
Substitutes used
Tom Carson – Reading – Forward
Alastair Brogdon – Wimbledon - Forward
Harry Martin – Beeston – Midfield
David Condon – East Grinstead – Midfield
Ollie Willars – Beeston – Defender
Tim Whiteman – Beeston – Midfield/Defender
Did not play
Patrick Smith – Cannock – Goalkeeper
England Hockey Board Media release
Brave England denied after penalty shoot-out defeat to New Zealand
By Graham Wilson
England's Henry Weir tastes defeat as England lose 7-6 on penalties [GETTY]
THE DISTRESS on Harry Martin’s face was obvious. After failing with his second penalty shootout, England went out of the gold medal running to New Zealand in the cruellest of fashion, 7-6, after finishing the Hero World League semi-final deadlocked at 3-3 in Delhi.
Martin, 21, of England champions Beeston, had vowed to put behind him his Olympic disappointment when Great Britain came fourth in London 2012. Here he looked in a state of shock as they players tried to console him.
But, in truth, he could not be blamed. Besides the varying fortunes that a shootout brings, Bobby Crutchley’s men had already beaten the Black Sticks in the pool match 5-1 but found them a different prospect in this clash and, crucially, for all their possession they did not win a penalty corner.
Martin had even levelled a Marcus Child goal with his first of the tournament, diving in bravely to deflect a Mark Gleghorne pass.
England face the prospect of coming away without honours again as they play the bronze medal play-off today (Saturday) against world champions Australia, who were edged out by the Netherlands 4-3 in the other semi-final.
After Martin’s goal, England went ahead with a Gleghorne strike in the 49th minute but they conceded twice in two minutes just past the hour. England reacted immediately and captain Barry Middleton won a penalty stroke in the circle which Ashley Jackson converted to make it 3-3 with six minutes remaining. It was left to sudden death penalties to decide the issue and Phil Burrows put the Kiwis through.
http://cdn.images.express.co.uk/img/dynamic/4/590x/secondary/118626.jpg
New Zealand celebrate reaching the Hero World League final [EPA]
England coach Bobby Crutchley said: “We’re gutted with the result. To lose that way in a shoot-out in the semi-final of a tournament is hard to take. However, we were a bit sloppy in our play across the 70 minutes which meant we couldn’t take the game away from New Zealand and that ultimately led to the shoot-out. We had more than enough opportunities, especially in the second half, but we just couldn’t get control of the game. All credit to New Zealand.
They are quality side with some great talent and our 5-1 victory in the group stages didn’t really reflect the competitiveness of that game. They really came at us and I wish them luck in the final tomorrow.”
He added: “Overall I’m really pleased with the way we’ve played this tournament and a top four finish against the best sides in the world is a great achievement with this relatively new squad. The boys will regroup and we’ll do everything we can to come home with the bronze medal tomorrow.”
Daily Express
England heartbreak as New Zealand edge into final after New Delhi shoot-out drama
England coach Bobby Crutchley left feeling "gutted" after losing semi-final shoot-out at World Hockey League Finals
By Rod Gilmour
Shot down: England players were left dejected following their semi-final defeat to New Zealand Photo: FRANK UIJLENBROEK / ENGLAND HOCKEY
England men began the World League Finals admitting they were “entering the unknown”. Little did they know that they would reach another major semi-final as the only unbeaten side in New Delhi, only to lose out to New Zealand, a lower-ranked team, in a heartbreaking sudden death shoot-out.
Goals from Harry Martin, Mark Gleghorne and Ashley Jackson had helped England twice get back on track against the Black Sticks as a thrilling encounter ended 3-3 in normal time.
England were again behind in the shoot-out after Nick Catlin and Martin missed their efforts. Pressure from George Pinner in goal kept England in the tie, forcing sudden death, but despite Jackson securing his second, Martin failed, which left Phil Burrows to secure New Zealand’s surprise passage to the final.
England, who had beaten New Zealand 5-1 in the week, will now face Australia in the bronze medal match on Saturday. Bobby Crutchley, the national coach, will now have to lift his side sufficiently against the world No.2 side to stave off an unwanted fourth-place finish.
“We’re gutted with the result,” admitted Crutchley. “To lose that way in a shoot-out in the semi-final of a tournament is really hard to take, however we were a bit sloppy in our play across the 70 minutes which meant we couldn’t take the game away from New Zealand.
“Overall I’m really pleased with the way we’ve played and a top four finish against the best sides in the world is a great achievement with this relatively new squad. The boys will regroup and we’ll do everything we can to come home with the bronze.”
New Zealand had looked the more composed side early on - Iain Lewers and Michael Hoare both produced outstanding performances in England's defence - and took a deserved lead before Martin levelled with an incisive deflection.
In a tense second-half, England netted twice to edge ahead 2-1 before New Zealand struck back with two quick goals. A clinical penalty stroke from Jackson then squared the tie at 3-3.
Drama continued in the shoot-out and perhaps luck stayed with the Kiwis too; Simon Child converted a rebound off Pinner's pads with a reactionary lob, to the disbelief of the England bench.
Although Jackson coolly slotted home his two efforts, it was rising star Martin who failed with his second. The midfielder then had to be consoled by team-mates afterwards.
In the final, New Zealand will play Holland who beat Australia 4-3.
The Telegraph
India-Germany: Summer in Delhi on a coldest day
K. Arumugam
Delhites shivered through a cold, grey and damp Friday, with the temperature not rising beyond a numbing 12.9 degrees Celsius, the lowest maximum recorded this season, with early nigh temperature around 5-6 degree Celsius.
But the Indian team braved not only the coldest day of Day in this winter, but brought summer on the Dhyan Chand turf, with a heart-warming show against reigning Olympic Medallist Germany.
Sardar Singh's Indian team, an outfit that was at the hard end of the critic's stick, stunned Germany to post a comprehensive victory in the 5-8th ranking match on the penultimate day of the 10-day Hero Hockey World League Finals here today in Delhi
Its Sardar Singh, Mandeep Singh, SV Sunil and above all Rupinder Pal Singh who set the turf on fire from beginning to end, to end the long running reign of Germans on the fate of matches that fought against India.
India last defeated Germany in an FIH event in 2004 Champions Trophy at Lohore, Pakistan, under the coaching of German import Gerrard Rach.
But today was a special day, but the kind of things that would shape up the Indian morale was not seen early in the match
When Germany took a two-goal lead in first six minutes, what was expected was a washout on the lines of Australia match in the Indian quarterfinal, but thankfully, the team turned out a champagne stuff to dish out a heart warming 5-4 win, the winning goal coming off the stick of Rupinder just at the stroke of full time. Germany struck in the 4th and sixth minute with Oliver Korn and Thailo claiming a goal apiece, before Indian Mandeep Singh, who was finally adjudged the Man of the Match, coming up with a goal off the perfect pass of Rupinder to narrow down the score.
However, in the 27th minute, when Benjamin Wess easily made use of a goalie defence, India had to go for break with 3-1 disadvantage.
On resumption, after a brief even keel proceedings, Rupinder converted team's penalty corner to further narrow the margin, and the came the second goal of Mandeep in the 41st min.
And then the youngster came up with gem of a long pass to give India the lead for the first time.
Then came Martine Haner's gem of a stuff to sniff out Indian lead 15 minutes before the hooter.
There were hits and misses in this spell, with German weaving patterns, Indian struggling to hold the fort.
When a few seconds left for the final hooter, hardworking Sunil and Sardar launched a hard attack, which got India the last chance to make its history, with a penalty corner in the offing, and Rupinder in form.
When he converted it, Germans went for a referral, which they failed, and then came the Indian summer in the coldest day of Delhi.
This win and the possible fifth position in the world's top tournament will give India good points that can lift it from below 10th rank where it wallops for long.
Stick2Hockey.com
India stun World No. 1 Germany 5-4
Biswajyoti Brahma
NEW DELHI: A resurgent India stayed in the hunt for a top-five finish in the Hero Hockey World League Final stunning World No. 1 Germany 5-4 in a thrilling match at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here on Friday.
India, trailing 1-3 at half time, showed tremendous character to bounce back and beat the Olympic champions.
India scripted a perfect end to the dramatic match as they scored the winning goal in the final seconds of the match through Rupinder Pal Singh from a penalty corner to book a clash with Belgium for the fifth place. This was India's first win over Germany since blanking them 2-0 in the Punjab Gold Cup in 2009.
Mandeep Singh and Rupinder shared the spoils for India with three and two goals respectively. The earlier match between the two teams in the league stage of the tournament had ended in a 3-3 draw.
It was far from a good start for India as Germany started to put pressure on them from the first minute. The Europeans slammed home two goals in quick succession by the sixth minute and it seemed curtains for the hosts.
However, India regrouped and pulled one back in the 18th minute when Mandeep Singh hit the ball on the run after getting a pass from Raghunath inside the circle.
Germany stunned the crowd with a third goal to go to the break with a comfortable 3-1 lead. But there was a complete turnaround in India's fortunes in the second session as they came out a determined lot. They attacked the German with renewed energy and the onslaught resulted in India earning their first penalty corner four minutes into the second half.
There was no stopping India when Rupinder scored India's second goal from the set piece. Two minutes later India were level at 3-3, courtesy another Mandeep goal.
India had a great chance to go up when Yousuf Affan's deflection hit the bar in the 45th minute but Germany had their share of misfortune too as Tobias Hauke hit the only penalty stroke of the match wide.
India went for the kill scoring another field goal through Mandeep in 53rd minute, but the Germans levelled the score from a penalty corner two minutes.
With both teams trying hard to take the lead, the Tobias Matania made the mistake of committing a foul and was sent off with a yellow card. India's captain Sardar Singh too was ejected two minutes later with a yellow when India played with 12 players on the field for some time.
Another yellow to Thilo Stralkowski hurt the Germans hard. Germany and India played the last few minutes of the match with 10 and nine players respectively.
As the match headed towards a stalemate in regulation time, came the most dramatic moment in the final minute. India earned a penalty corner and Rupinder scored to make it 5-4. As the Indians started celebrating, the Germans called for a video review on the premise that the shot was not taken properly. The review, however, found it to be a valid goal.
In the other 5-8 classification match, Belgium beat Argentina in penalty shootout after both the teams ended at 1-1 in regulation time.
RESULTS: India (Mandeep Singh 18, 41, 53, Rupinder Pal Singh 39, 70) beat Germany 5-4 (Oliver Korn 4, Thilo Stralkowski 6, Benjamin Wess 27, Martin Haner 55)
The Times of India
India stuns Germany in HWL classification match
Uthra Ganesan
India's Mandeep Singh (C), who scored three goals, is being greeted by Rupinder Singh (L) during the match against Germany in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: R V Moorthy
Four minutes from time, the technical officials realised that India had 12 players on the field, holding up play for a while. This was only one of the dramatic events in a game that saw India bounce back from a two-goal deficit and stun Olympic champion Germany 5-4 in the fifth-eighth place classification match at the Hero Hockey World League Final on Friday.
India’s first win over the top-ranked side in five years was also its first in an FIH-ranked event in a decade, the last one coming at the 2004 Champions Trophy.
On Friday, Germany was keen to get off the mark and did so with an all-out attack. Captain Oliver Korn deflected the ball into the net in the 4th minute. Two minutes later, Thilo Stralkowski doubled the lead off a penalty corner.
In contrast, the Indians slowly pushed their way into the game, something the Germans traditionally do. There were no signs of desperation despite trailing 2-0 as India stuck to a plan.
In the 18th minute defender Rupinderpal Singh — the standout performer of the day — took the ball all the way from the Indian half, racing past the entire German midfield, before putting through an unmarked Mandeep Singh. The latter made no mistake. Benjamin Wess got Germany’s third goal to restore the lead going into the break.
The second half, however, was dominated by India. In the 39th minute when Raghunath sold a dummy and Rupinderpal converted the team’s first penalty corner.
India slammed in two more goals, both from Mandeep, to go ahead for the first time in the match. In between, Affan Yousuf’s strike came off the crossbar, while Dharamvir Singh shot just wide. The Indians were all over the struggling Germans.
A counterattack in the 55th minute earned Germany its third penalty corner and the equaliser.
The match was heading to a tie-break before Rupinder converted India’s second penalty corner in the final seconds for the winner.
India will next play Belgium for fifth place. The latter beat Argentina 4-3 on penalties after being tied 1-1 in regulation time.
It’s Netherlands vs New Zealand
The Netherlands inflicted a 4-3 defeat on Australia in the semifinals. The Netherlands will play New Zealand in the title clash after the latter edged past England in sudden death in the other semifinal.
It was a close game with Australia fighting back from being two goals down in the first half to level scores. It went ahead when Kieran Govers slammed home a penalty corner in the 55th minute. Jeroen Hertzberger and Mink van der Weeden scored for Netherlands twice in four minutes to ensure the Dutch victory.
Phil Burrows put New Zealand in the final when he successfully converted a penalty in the sudden-death after the teams were tied 3-3 at the end of regulation time.
The results:
Semifinals: New Zealand 3 (Marcus Child, Stephen Jenness, Hugo Inglis) bt England 3 (Harry Martin, Mark Gleghorne, Ashley Jackson) via tie-break; The Netherlands 4 (Mink van der Weeden 2, Jeroen Hertzberger, ConstatijnJonker) bt Australia 3 (Kieran Govers 2, Russell Ford).
5-8 place play-offs: India 5 (Mandeep Singh 3, Rupinderpal Singh 2) bt Germany 4 (Oliver Korn, Thilo Stralkowski, Benjamin Wess, Martin Haner); Belgium 1 (og) bt Argentina 1 (Matias Rey) via tie-break.
The Hindu
India stun World No. 1 Germany 5-4 at Hockey World League Final
NEW DELHI: The Indian hockey team pulled off a sensational come-from-behind 5-4 win over Olympic champions Germany after Mandeep Singh slammed a brilliant hat-trick in their fiercely-contested 5-8th place classification match of the Hero World League Finals on Friday.
World ranked 10th, India rode on Mandeep's (18th, 41st, 53rd) three field goals and Rupinderpal Singh's two perfect strikes from penalty corners to set up the fantastic win against the Germans, against whom India last won way back in 2004 in the Champions Trophy in Lahore, Pakistan.
In the end, it was a fair result for India who drew 3-3 against the Germans in the pool stages.
India will now face Belgium in the fifth-sixth place play-off match on Saturday, while Germany will take on Argentina to avoid the wooden-spoon in the eight-nation tournament.
In Friday's match, it was the world number one Germans who enjoyed the early share of exchanges by taking a two goal lead through skipper Oliver Korn (4th) and Thilo Stralkowski (6th) before Benjamin Wess (27th) made the scoreline 3-1 in favour of the world champions at half time.
After the change of ends, Germany found the back of the India net just once when Martin Haner converted a penalty corner in the 55th minute.
The Indians, however, were slow to get off the blocks as Germany took the initiative from the onset with relentless attacks.
The Germans put the Indian defense, their perennial problem, under tremendous pressure from the word go and surged ahead as early as in the fourth minute when captain Korn gently tapped home a pass from Tobias Hauke.
Two minutes later, Stralkowski doubled Germany's lead by perfectly converting their first penalty corner.
The Germans continued their aggressively style of play and created a couple of bright scoring chances only to waste them.
India, however, managed to pull one back in the 18th minute through Mandeep, who slammed home from the right corner of the German goal after receiving a through ball from Rupinderpal Singh.
A minute later, Germany got another scoring opportunity when they earned their second penalty corner but the Indian defense was up to the task this time.
Ten minutes from half-time, Indian custodian PR Sreejesh came to his side's rescue by pulling off a brilliant save with his legs to deny Tobias Matania from close range.
But Germany restored their two-goal advantage in the 27th minute through Wess, who scored from a rebound after Florian Fuchs initial shot was saved by Sreejesh.
Trailing 1-3, the Indians came out a completely different side after the crossover. Unlike the opening half, Sardar and Co. looked organised and coordinated, showing promise in their forays.
India built the pressure on the German defense from the opening minute of the second half and pumped in two goals in a span of three minutes to level the scores, much to the delight of the handful crowd present at the stadium.
India earned their first penalty corner just three minutes into the second half through a referral and Rupinder scored with a variation to reduce the margin.
Minutes later, Mandeep scored his second goal of the day after he was set up by a fine move from Birendra Lakra and SV Sunil from the right flank.
India, thereafter, came close on two occasions -- first when Affan Yousuf hit the top of the cross bar from Sunil's cross and secondly when Dharamvir missed a sitter from top of the circle after a brilliant run by skipper Sadar Singh on a counter-attack.
Germany also wasted a golden opportunity to score when Hauke shot wide a penalty stroke in the second half.
But Mandeep was brilliant upfront on Friday and scored his hat-trick in the 53rd minute by getting the faintest of touch to deflect in VR Raghunath's cross as India took the lead for the first time in the match.
But India's joy was short-lived as Germany equalised two minutes later when Haner scored from their second penalty corner with a powerful grounded flick to the left of an outstretched Sreejesh.
The Germans had the better share of possession in the last 10 minutes of the game and threatened India with continuous raids but the home team defense stood tall to keep the Olympic champions at bay.
Just when it seemed the match was heading for a penalty shoot-out, India earned their second penalty corner just 30 seconds from the hooter and Rupinder made no mistake in slamming home the ball to send the crowd into frenzy.
Meanwhile in the first 5-8th place classification match earlier in the day, Belgium defeated Argentina 3-1 in penalty shoot-out after both the teams were locked at 1-1 after the regulation 70 minutes of play.
The Times of India
I am proud of India's performance: Terry Walsh
B.David
New Delhi - ``I am very happy with today’s performance and I am very proud of the players. In different phases of the game, they did well and they did what needed to be done,’’ said Terry Walsh, the Indian Chief Coach after India handed out a 5-4 defeat to the World No.1 Germany, the shock of the tournament.
Germans are coming out an indoor season and are without only two of their regulars, but losing to India is definitely something that will make them analyse. If one discards the in 2009 Punjab Gold Cup, the last time India defeated Germany was in 2004 Lahore Champions Trophy when Sandeep Michael, Arjun Halappa and Vivek Gupta scored for a 3-1 victory.
``A performance like this against a world-class team gives the players a lot of confidence. It makes us believe in what we are doing. Against Australia were able to play good hockey for 25 minutes, today we played the same quality hockey for 70 minutes. Our goal is to implement what coach Terry Walsh is trying to train us for the last one month,’’ said Indian skipper Sardara Singh.
``I am happy with the way the team is implementing the plans but we are still trying to play to our strengths. Our players are defending one minute and at the top assisting attack and they did that for 70 minutes, which is a very considerable improvement,’’ added Walsh, a hockey Olympian from Australia.
Match report:
Playing scintillating hockey, the Indian team shocked Olympic Champions and World No.1 Germany 5-4 in a thrilling match that provided seat-edged excitement to over 5000 crowd at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here on Friday.
Indian rallied brilliantly after being down 0-2 and overcame their initial hiccups to match the might Germans and served them in their own style by forcing a last-minute penalty corner and Rupinder Singh converted it for the match winner.
Indian forward Mandeep Singh struck three goals and Rupinder earlier made good, a dummy played by Raghunath, to strike the first goal through an indirect variation for India in this tournament.
To top it India’s penalty corner conversion today was 100 per cent. India would take on Belgium for the 5th place on Saturday afternoon.
The Olympic champions, who had lost their quarter final 3-2 to the Netherlands, forged ahed in the very fourth minute when skipper Oliver Korn slammed home a rebound. Two minutes later, the match looked over for India when Thilo Stralkowski converted a penalty corner. But a rejuvenated India had other things in mind and made a brilliant recovery after the stunning dummy played by Raghunath and Birendra Lakra, the stopper set it up perfectly for Rupinder and his flick had no response for the German goalkeeper Tim Jessault.
The crowd cheered whenever, the Indians held possession and Mandeep Singh was the star of the day with three goals. But it was Indian captain Sardara Singh who played a superb game as the centre half distributing the ball to the forwards. He was up in the front one minute and back the other, defending dourly.
Benjamin Wess made it 3-1 for Germany in the 27th minute but within four minutes after the break India came back with a bang with Rupinder pulling one back converting a short corner.
India struck the equalizer within two minutes, with Mandeep Singh scoring a brilliant field goal within two minutes and put India ahead with another brilliant goal off a pass from Raghunath in the 53rd minute. The goal appeared to be scored by Yuvraj Walmiki but stands in the name of Mandeep as the official scorer credited it to him. (4-3)
Nevertheless it was a goal but the Germans bounced back immediately with another in the 55th minute through a Martin Haner short corner. After trying desperately, India got a penalty corner in the last minute and Rupinder sealed the issue with a perfectly time, powerful flick, ``All week, and all morning we were talking about getting a PC in the last minute,’’ quipped Terry Walsh, a happy man today.
Stick2Hockey.com
We needed such a big win to raise our confidence level: Sardar
NEW DELHI: Elated after scripting a memorable 5-4 come-from-behind win over world's number one team Germany in the 5-8th place classification tie in Hero Hockey World League Final, India captain Sardar Singh said his team needed this "big win" to raise its confidence level.
This is, in fact, India's maiden win in the tournament and first against Germany in the last 10 years. India had last defeated the Germans in the 2004 Champions Trophy at Lahore.
"We were waiting for such a win for a long time. If we can beat big teams like Australia and Germany, it will definitely raise our confidence level," Sardar said at the post-match press conference.
"But it is just the beginning because we made a lot of mistakes and we need to work on those grey areas," he added.
Mandeep Singh turned out to be the star for India, slamming a brilliant hat-trick, while Rupinderpal Singh converted two penalty corners as India came from behind to stun Olympic champions at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here.
Delighted with the result, India's chief coach Terry Walsh praised his boys for playing as a unit.
"It was a very commendable performance from us. We have done a lot of things right today. But the most important thing is that we played as a team," Walsh said about his first win as India coach.
"It was a very close game but we matched the Germans. I am very proud of the way the guys have adjusted to different things in the game. The win was important for the psyche of the group."
Applauding Mandeep, Rupinder and skipper Sadar for their stellar display against Germany, Walsh said, "We approached the game just like any other game. But we tried to use our strength today. Rupinder was fantastic with penalty corners and Mandeep showed his scoring abilities upfront. Sardar dominated the midfield, which is tough to do against Germany.
"All the players did a commendable job." India will now face Belgium in the fifth-sixth place play-off match tomorrow.
The Times of India
Belgium shoot-out Argentina
B.David
New Delhi - Belgium, ranked 5th in the world, played four matches till now and except one draw they lost all the other matches, after being in a position of strength. Against Argentina on Friday, one thought the same pattern would continue, but the Red Lions came back after being by a goal down and pushed the match into the shoot-out and comfortably won to be on course for a 5-6 placing match with Germany or India.
In the Hero World Hockey League Final here at the Dhyan Chand stadium, Belgium defeated Argentina 4-2 (1-1 in regulation time).
Belgium began aggressively and exerted a lot of pressure on Argentina in the first session with a series of raids up front but the Argentine defence stood well and their goalkeeper Juan Vivaldi effective in snubbing at least three sure shots on goal. However, Belgium paid a penalty when they allowed possession to the rivals, following an unforced error and the Argentine players executed a swift counter attack that resulted in a goal against the run of play.
It was centurion Matias Ray, who is playing his 100th game for Argentina, that scored the field goal in the 31st minute.
In the second half, it was the turn of Argentina who had a better share of exchanges. Buoyed by the goal, the Los Leones switched up gears and weaved round the Belgium defence but failed to increase the lead. They managed to get two short corners but could not convert them, with the second attempt from Sebastien Dockier hitting the right post. Goalkeeper Vincent Vanash stood like a rock and kept them in the game to gave their forwards a chance to equalize. And they did.
Midway through the second half, the equalizer materialized when Felix Denayer sent a long diagonal ball from the right flank, which rose into the goalmouth. Argentine custodian Juan Vivaldi, who lifted his stick to stop a defender get access, only managed to deflect the ball in for an own goal. Later, Belgium tried desperately in the last 15 minutes for an elusive match winner but won the shoot out.
Only Matias Parades was successful in the shoot out for Argentina while two Belgium players were successful before Gauthier Boccard, who took the last attempt earned a penalty stroke for Belgium and Tom Boon made no mistake from the spot for a 3-1 score in the set-piece.
Stick2Hockey.com
Kookaburras to face England - the tournament's 'best' team, statistically speaking
England has been one of the surprises of the tournament in New Delhi. The only undefeated side after five matches, they meet the Kookaburras in the bronze medal match having won four of their five matches so far.
They took maximum points in all three of their pool A matches to progress to the quarter-finals ahead of Olympic and European Champions Germany and tournament finalists New Zealand. A solid defensive performance in the quarter-final helped them to a 1-0 win over Belgium to reach the last four where they came up against the New Zealand Blacksticks. A thrilling 3-3 draw turned sour for England on the back of a shoot-out defeat that set up a bronze medal clash with the Kookaburras.
Their four victories is one more than finalists the Netherlands have achieved while their tally of 13 goals is third only to the Kookaburras and Germany, the number one and two sides in the world. Their tight defence has shipped just five goals in five matches, by far the best defensive record in the tournament.
England came into the Hero Hockey World League Final boosted by the return of two hugely important players. Classy midfielder Ashley Jackson and powerful attacker Mark Gleghorne both re-joined the squad following injuries that kept them out of England’s fourth place finish at the TriFinance EuroHockey Nations last year.
Goalkeeper George Pinner and defender Iain Lewers have been two of England’s star performers at the World League Finals, while in Ashley Jackson and captain Barry Middleton they have two genuinely world class pulling the strings through the middle of the park.
In Kieran Govers, the Kookaburras have the tournament’s top goal scorer. Five of his six goals so far have come from penalty corners while teammate Russell Ford has weighed in with four of his own, making him the equal second-top scorer.
Watch the match
England v Kookaburras
Saturday 18 January
5:45pm local time
11:15pm AEDT / 8:15 AWST
Live on YouTube.com/fihockey
Delayed on ABC 1 at 1:30am (Sunday 19th)
Hockey Australia media release
Indian hockey chief savages Ric Charlesworth as a 'loose cannon'
Narinder Batra says Australian hockey legend 'needs mental treatment' after comments on poor crowds at World League finals
Ric Charlesworth. Photograph: Annaliese Frank/AAP
India's hockey chief Narinder Batra has launched an extraordinary verbal attack on Kookaburras coach Ric Charlesworth, labelling the Australian a loose cannon and declaring he needs psychological treatment.
Batra was fuming after hearing of Charlesworth's criticism of the poor crowds at the inaugural World League finals in India.
Charlesworth, considered a legend of Australian hockey after a decorated playing and coaching career, also pointed out problems with the timing of the event, which he said was supposed to be played in December.
Batra said Charlesworth needed to be taught some manners.
"I don't react to what Ric Charlesworth says because he is a loose cannon," Batra told the Press Trust of India.
"He himself does not know what he is saying. I just ignore whatever he says.
"He might be a genius in hockey but, in communication skills, he is very poor. He needs to go back to school to learn basics. I think he needs to learn what language one speaks when he travels to a different country.
"We don't react or say something bad about a country when we see poor crowd turnout. It's that country's problem.
"That man needs some mental and psychological treatment."
Hockey Australia chief executive Cam Vale labelled the comments inappropriate, and said he would speak to Hockey India at the end of the World League finals to discuss the outburst.
Charlesworth had reportedly described the poor crowds as a disgrace.
"I take strong objection to it," Batra said.
"This is a strong word he is using against my country and you can't say such things about my country."
Nor was he happy about visiting nations complaining about their players falling sick in India. Several Australian players were hit by a stomach bug before the tournament started.
"You can't blame my country for a player falling sick. Why do you blame our country for each and every thing?" Batra asked.
The Kookaburras' gold medal hopes ended with a 4-3 defeat by the Netherlands in Friday night's semi-final.
The Netherlands will meet surprise packets New Zealand in the decider after the Kiwis beat England in a penalty shootout, with scores locked at 3-3 at full time.
Charlesworth, who guided the Hockeyroos to two Olympic gold medals, is set to step down as Kookaburras coach after this year's Commonwealth Games.
Guardian
Ric Charlesworth a loose cannon: Narinder Batra
Biswajyoti Brahma
NEW DELHI: The outspoken Australian coach Ric Charlesworth's comments about lack of crowd in the stands during the Hockey World League Final sparked a controversy on Friday when he was slammed by Hockey India secretary Narinder Batra as a "loose cannon".
Batra made the statement at a press conference held by FIH CEO Kelly Fairweather when a foreign journalist asked Batra for his reaction over Charlesworth's criticism that lack of fans during the matches was a 'disgrace'. "That's a very strong word against my country and I object to that," Batra said at the press conference.
Batra advised Charlesworth to learn how to speak while on tours. "I don't comment on anything said by Ric Charlesworth. He is a loose cannon. He himself does not know what he speaks," the HI secretary general said.
"He may be a genius in hockey but as far as communication is concerned, he is very poor. He needs to go back to basics of education and know how one should speak while you travel to a country. We don't speak against countries on tour when there's little crowd in stadiums. That man has a problem. He needs psychological treatment."
Charlesworth, when told about Batra's comments, said: "I have got no idea (why he said this). May be he needs some patients for his hospital. I am not sure what it's all about.
It's disappointing for everybody that there's no crowd here. Two best teams are playing the semifinal and... there are just 400 people. The best players in the world are playing and it's disappointing. I am just reflecting what other coaches are saying."
Hockey Australia's chief executive Cam Vale said Batra's comments were "inappropriate". "We will be discussing with Hockey India at the conclusion of this event, specific comments attributed to Dr Batra that we believe to be inappropriate regarding our respected head coach Ric Charlesworth," said.
Meanwhile, Fairweather said the crowd turnout was not a disgrace. "This is not a disgrace, considering the feed is going to 150 countries in the world. We acknowledge this is an issue and we are working with our partners." he said.
The Times of India
Disgrace comment invites the wrath of Batra
B.David
New Delhi - Crowd in the stands: Eighty nine. Six cameras of the host broadcaster. Eight cameras by each team recording games for analysis. Eight foreign journalists in the press box and four from India, when 11 players each from 2 top countries out of 130 nations that play hockey... These are the numbers as the FIH Press Conference ended and the first match began on the penultimate day of the Hero Hockey World League Final at the Dhyan Chand stadium here on Friday.
The press conference was addressed by Kelly Fairweather, the CEO of FIH and Dr Narinder Batra, President of HockeyIndia and Budeisky, an FIH representative. One of the questions was on the crowd or the lack of it during the world class matches being played here.
A journalist from the Netherlands said that Dr Ric Charlesworth mentioned that the lack of crowd for these games was a `disgrace to hockey’. Even as the FIH CEO said that they were `strong words’ and agreed that things would be reviewed and efforts would be make to bring in more people, Dr Batra took objection to the words and made some unnecessary comments against Dr Charlesworth, which are unbecoming of a person from a such high office in Hockey India.
Dr Batra informed that three buses were made available for school children to come and watch the games yesterday. ``And from today, we are planning to give lunch boxes apart from arranging the transport,’’ he added.
But when an Indian journalist asked whether Hockey India would take this up against Dr Charlesworth, he said no. And in anger, he continued Dr Charlesworth is a `loose cannon’.
As the head of the Indian Federation, Dr Batra needs to maintain his cool and not react to every question in harsh manner. He should realise that journalists have a right to ask questions and he is in a responsible position as the head of Hockey India. Many of the journalists in the room were as much interested in promoting and developing hockey in India, just like him or anyone else in the Federation.
Stick2Hockey.com
Charlesworth a loose cannon, needs mental treatment: Batra
NEW DELHI: Hockey India secretary general Narinder Batra launched a scathing attack on former head coach Ric Charlesworth, calling him a "loose cannon" after the Australian criticized the poor turnout of spectators for the Hockey World League Final.
Batra said Charlesworth needs "psychological treatment". "I don't react to what Ric Charlesworth says because he is a loose cannon. He himself does not know what he is saying. I just ignore whatever he says. He might be a genius in hockey, but in communication skills, he is very poor. He needs to go back to school to learn basics," Batra told reporters on Friday.
"I think he needs to learn what language one speaks when he travels to a different country. We don't react or say something bad about a country when we see poor crowd turnout. It's that country's problem. I don't take his questions and I don't answers his questions. That man needs some mental and psychological treatment," said a fuming Batra.
Batra was reacting to a foreign journalist's query that current Australian hockey coach Charlesworth has expressed his displeasure over poor attendance in the stands and pointed out problems in the scheduling of the HWL, which he said was supposed to be held in December.
Charlesworth, during an interaction with him on the sidelines of the event, had reportedly used the word "disgrace" while talking about the poor attendance in the stands.
The query and the choice of words by Charlesworth evoked sharp criticism from Batra who went on to say that he will not take things lying down.
"I take strong objection to it. This is a strong word he is using against my country and you can't say such things about my country," he said.
To another query that players are falling sick during the tournament, Batra said the host nation cannot be blamed for each and every issue.
"Tell me, who has fallen sick? Tell me the names of the players. You can't blame my country for a player falling sick. Why do you blame our country for each and everything?" he asked.
Except for the matches involving India, which attracted a couple of thousand people on the first two days, the iconic Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium wore a deserted look.
Charlesworth was among the four foreign coaches who were shown the door by Hockey India before completing his tenure.
International Hockey Federation (FIH) CEO Kelly Fairweather, who is in the capital for the HWL's semifinals and final, also took strong objection to Charlesworth's choice of words and said, "We know it's a new competition and we need to bring more crowd into the stadium. We acknowledge it's an issue to us and certainly it's not a disgrace."
Batra said the Indian hockey team is working towards getting among the top-8 teams in the world by the end of this year.
"I don't rate the team on day-to-day basis. Our aim is to get into top-8 teams in the world. In 2016, I would like to see my team in top-6. It's an ongoing process."
The Times of India
Hockey Australia's CEO to act on Batra's comments
s2h roving
New Delhi: The Australian Media Manager Lawrence West has issued a statement to the media from the Chief Executive Officer of Hockey Australia on what he thinks are inappropriate comments by Dr Narinder Batra, the chief of Hockey India.
Batra was reacting to the alleged comments made by Dr Ric Charlesworth about the lack crowds from the World League Finals in a country that is steeped with hockey history.
Batra allegedly said Charlesworth is `loose cannon'' in the FIH Media Conference when a Dutch journalist asked why there were no crowds in the stadium.
This is not the end of it. Watch out, stick2hockey.com will keep you updated on the latest.
Stick2Hockey.com
Hockey Australia upset with comments against coach Charlesworth
NEW DELHI: Hockey Australia (HA) will be discussing the comments made by Hockey India (HI) secretary general Narinder Batra about their head coach Ric Charlesworth after the competition ends.
At a press conference here Friday, Batra asked the Australia coach to undergo "mental and psychological treatment" after a foreign journalist pointed out that Charlesworth had said that "it was a disgrace" to see empty stands at the ongoing Hockey World League Final.
"We will be discussing the matter with HI at the conclusion of the event about the specific comments we feel were inappropriate regarding our highly respected coach Ric Charlesworth," HA chief executive Cam Vale said in a statement.
On being questioned about the same, Charlesworth said he was unsure if he had made any such comments.
"I doubt I used the word disgraceful. But it is certainly disappointing to see the crowds here. You have two of the best teams in the world playing the semi-final and you hardly had 400 people turning up. May be Batra needs some patients for his hospital," said Charlesworth, who was a member of the 1986 World Cup winning Australian squad.
Crowd turnout at the 16,000-seater Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium has so far been quite poor and the semi-final between Australia and the Netherlands Friday hardly saw 300-400 people.
Charlesworth has had a troublesome past vis-a-vis Indian hockey when he was named technical advisor of the eight-time Olympic champions in 2008.
After negotiations with the KPS Gill-led Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), which governed the sport in India then, broke down, the former Australia captain had to cut short his contract only after 10 months.
The 1976 Olympic silver medallist started his coaching stint with Australia in 2009 which won the 2010 World Cup and the 2010 Commonwealth Games gold.
The Times of India
We want to revive the interest of hockey in India: FIH CEO
NEW DELHI: FIH CEO Kelly Fairweather on Friday acknowledged that Hockey World League has some teething problems but assured to overcome them in the next edition.
"There are things we need to look at, but we are pleased with the number of teams participating in the tournament. A lot of work still needs to be done. In the first weekend in New Delhi, it was watched by 40 million people worldwide," Fairweather told reporters here.
Fairweather said FIH coming to India on a regular basis is a part of a long-term strategy to revive the game in the country.
"It is very important. The answer is very very clear. This is a part of a long term strategy. That has been the part of FIH strategy for the last 3-4 years," he said.
"India missed out playing in Olympic Games. Once you miss out playing in Olympic Games, it really puts you back number of years.
"So we have decided to hold one big event every year till 2018. This is in order to revive the interest of hockey in India. Not just India we hold regular events in Argentina and Belgium which are rapidly coming out as top hockey playing nations," he added.
Fairweather defended FIH's decision to grant India host of tournaments despite poor crowd turnout.
"We recognise that empty stands are an issue, but the television broadcasts are a distinguished spearhead. India has got the tournaments because they deserved it as we wanted to revive interest in the game in India," he said.
Hockey India secretary general Narinder Batra said: India qualified for the 2014 world cup. Anyone who hosts a tournament gets to play. Now its FIH decision to host it here, so where is the question of free rights? Champions Trophy was taken away from India two years back."
The Times of India
Aiming for top-4 finish in 2018 World Cup: Hockey India
NEW DELHI: Hockey India (HI) secretary general Narinder Batra said here on Friday that he wants to see his team finish in the top-4 at the 2018 World Cup.
Asked about India's performance at the ongoing Hockey World League Final here, Batra said that he does not want to comment on the day-to-day performance of the team, rather he would like to concentrate on the long-term aim.
"I don't judge our team's performance based on just one match or on a day-to-day basis. Our boys are fit enough to play 140 minutes. We have a long-term aim and that is to finish in the top-4 in the 2018 World Cup," Batra said.
The 2018 World Cup has been awarded to India by the international hockey federation ( FIH).
India were beaten 2-7 by Australia in the quarterfinal at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here on Wednesday and are currently playing the classification playoffs.
The Times of India
England Men battle back in style against Russia
David Beckett celebrates Photos by www.hockeyimages.co.uk
A DRAMATIC comeback against Russia helped England Men end day one on a high at the EuroHockey Indoor Championships in Vienna, Austria, on Friday.
Trailing three-nil, England battled back to salvage a 3-3 draw in their second match of the day. Having narrowly lost out 7-6 to the Netherlands earlier in the day, it leaves Pool A finely balanced with all four teams still able to progress to the semi finals.
“I’m very pleased with two strong performances from a group of players with no experience at this level,” said Head Coach Andy Halliday. “Had our corner routine been more effective against Holland we would probably have been unbeaten at the end of the first day.
“The character and resilience shown by the group to come back from three-nil down against a team as talented as Russia, is indicative of the strong spirit and character in this squad.
“We have given ourselves a fighting chance of World Cup qualification.”
England began well against the Netherlands and were 2-0 ahead with Sam Ward and Darren Cheesman scoring, but the Netherlands battled back to be level at 3-3 at half time, Ben Arnold scoring England’s third goal just before the break.
The Dutch hit back with two unanswered goals to lead 5-3, and although Ward, Simon Egerton and David Beckett added to England’s tally, they narrowly lost out.
Against Russia, England were three-nil down at the break before intelligent and selective use of five outfield players helped them break down the Russian defence and claw their way back with goals from Chris Griffiths (24min), David Beckett (32min) and Sam Ward (40min).
And Ward had shown his value in defence too, having saved a Russian shot off the line while England had no goalkeeper on the pitch.
England are back in action in the first game on Saturday morning (8am GMT) against pool A leaders Germany.
England Hockey Board Media release
Scots off to positive start in Bern
Scotland Senior Men top Pool A at the end of the first day of the EuroHockey Indoor Nations Championship II in Bern after a 6-5 win over Belarus and 4-4 draw against France. A point against Switzerland tomorrow should be enough to see the Scots through to the promotion pool.
Following the two games, Scotland’s Niall Stott said, “Disappointed with the final result against France but we are in good position with one victory and that extra point against France, fairly confident and looking for a win tomorrow to set us up for the semi-finals.”
The first match of the day saw the Scots go up against Belarus. It was all to play for as Scotland went behind early on but just before half time Ross Stott put the Scots level to leave the score 1-1 at the halfway mark.
Scotland came out the second half hungry for a win with Willie Marshall scoring in the 24th minute to put them in the lead at 2-1. That was soon followed by a goal from Alan Forsyth in the 29th minute and then a double from Kenny Bain in the space of a minute.
Scotland were leading 5-2 but Belarus fought back in the last seven minutes with three goals to make it 5-5. Niall Stott saved the day with a goal in the dying seconds from a penalty corner to give Scotland their first win of the tournament.
The second game of the day saw Scotland draw with France 4-4 after conceding a late penalty corner equaliser.
Both sides were level throughout the first half with Chris Grassick being the first on the score sheet in the 12th minute, slotting one past the French keeper. But France edged ahead just before halftime, scoring two goals to make it 2-1.
France made it 3-1 early in the second half from a penalty flick, however with 28 minutes gone Grassick scored his second goal from a penalty corner making it 3-2. It was end to end stuff with Alan Dick making some strong saves to deny the French a further lead.
With five minutes to go, France went down to four players after a yellow card, and Scotland took advantage of this and attacked with five outfield players resulting in Alan Forsyth equalising with a tidy finish.
With a minute to go, Forsyth put Scotland ahead, going one on one with the ‘keeper to give his side a lead at 4-3. In the dying seconds France had a penalty corner in which they unfortunately put away, making the final result 4-4.
The Scots go up against home nations Switzerland at 10.20am tomorrow.
Scottish Hockey Union media release
Scotland Women strike first blow in England series
Scotland Senior Women got off to an excellent start in their four match indoor international series against England with a 4-2 win at Bell's Sport Centre, Perth this evening.
The Scots found themselves 1-0 down at half-time after an Ellie Watton strike just before the interval (19'), before two quick-fire strikes from Sarah Robertson (25', 25') put the home side in front.
Heather Elder (27') extended the lead at 3-1 before Lily Owsley (29') pulled one back for the visitors shortly after to make it 3-2. However, Scotland captain Vikki Bunce (39') ensured a win for her side with the fourth goal right on the full-time hooter.
Following the match, Scotland Women Head Coach Gordon Shepherd said, "A good start to the weekend, delighted to get a win in the first match. It gives us a good platform to build for the rest of the weekend. It was good to see a number of the new caps doing well too."
Scotland started brightly in the opening exchanges, with Bunce forcing England goalkeeper Sarah Ellis into a double save in the third minute, before firing a penalty corner narrowly over the bar in the seventh minute.
England came close to an opening goal after chances fell to both Georgie Twigg and Suzy Petty, but Scotland goalkeeper Nicki Cochrane was on hand to deny the England internationals.
Susan McGilveray and new cap Jennifer Eadie both had penalty corner attempts thwarted before Bunce's second drag-flick attempt cannoned back off the upright in the 17th minute.
Despite the majority of the chances falling to the home side, it was the visitors who broke the deadlock in the 19th minute when Ellie Watton beat Cochrane to give them a 1-0 lead at the interval.
However, the Scots hit back shortly after the break when Sarah Robertson netted two goals inside a minute, both from close range, to give her team a 2-1 lead in the 25th minute.
Two minutes later, fellow debutant Heather Elder struck a low drive into the left hand corner to make it 3-1.
Nevertheless, England pulled one back in the 29th minute when Lily Owsley was left with the easy task of tapping into an open net after Scotland had reverted to a kicking back.
With a narrow margin seperating the two sides as full-time approached, it was left to captain Bunce to seal the win after her shot from the edge of the circle found the back of the net.
The two sides meet tomorrow at Bell's Sports Centre, Perth at 11am and 3.30pm.
Scotland (Robertson 25', 25', Elder 27', Bunce 39') 4-2 England (Watton 19', Owsley 29')
Scotland Senior Women: Jennifer Eadie, Nicki Cochrane, Vikki Bunce (c), Morag McLellan, Becky Ward, Amy Brodie, Sarah Robertson, Susan McGilveray, Heather Elder, Louise Campbell, Mairi Drummond, Siobhan Cowie.
Scottish Hockey Union media release
SA hockey women face world’s best in Cape Town Saturday
JONATHAN COOK in Cape Town
There is a sense of keen anticipation in the Investec South African women’s hockey team’s camp as the first of 11 Test matches against world-class opposition during the Hartleyvale Summer Series draws near.
Hartleyvale Hockey Stadium is the venue and first-up the exciting group of girls in green and gold get a chance to test themselves against the best when they face Olympic and World League champs The Netherlands at 4 pm Saturday.
And for the locals, the performances of their Western Province players - such as Illse Davids and Quanita Bobbs - will be watched with special interest.
Few who were there will forget how hard the SA team made the Dutch work for a 4-2 victory in the Investec Challenge gold medal match at Hartleyvale early last year
This is the first of a two-Test series against the Dutch, which is followed by a three-Test series against Australia’s Hockeyroos before a six-Test blockbuster features the South Africans against European rivals Belgium.
With the much-anticipated 2014 Hockey World Cup finals beginning in The Hague, Netherlands on May 31, the non-stop action from Saturday to February 3 at Hartleyvale promises to give the SA team’s coaching staff the chance to get a good look at their personnel while it provides great experience under the pressures of match play for the players themselves.
SA TEAM
(to play Netherlands and Australia)
Marcelle Keet, Quanita Bobbs, Kelly Madsen, Sulette Damons, Bernie Coston, Marsha Cox, Pietie Coetzee, Shelley Russell, Tarryn Bright, Lilian du Plessis, Kathleen Taylor, Phume Mbande, Hanli Hattingh, Illse Davids, Celia Evans, Lisa Deetlefs, Dirkie Chamberlain, Erin Hunter, Sammy Prost and Anelle van Deventer.
FIXTURES
(all at Hartleyvale)
January - vs The Netherlands: Saturday 18th (4pm); Monday 20th (7pm)
vs Australia: Wednesday 22nd (7pm); Friday 24th (7pm); Saturday 25th (4pm)
vs Belgium: Sunday 26th (4pm); Tuesday 28th (8pm); Wednesday 29th (7pm); Friday 31st (7pm)
February
vs Belgium: Sunday 2nd (4 pm); Monday 3rd (7 pm)
SA Hockey Association media release
Telkom reach tourney final, Police in semis
BY ELIZABETH MBURUGU
Telkom Orange celebrate after winning yesterday. [PHOTO: JENNIPHEH WACHIE]
KENYA: African hockey women’s club champions Orange Telkom thumped Ghana Revenue Authority 2-1 to cruise to the final of the African Club Championships final at Lugogo National hockey stadium in Kampala, yesterday.
The five-time continental champions are a match away from retaining the title they won in 2012 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
Orange head coach, Jos Openda, was impressed with the girls’ performance, saying they played well despite missing chances to score.
“We played well as our opponents are equally good,” he said. “We look forward to the final which is likely to be Kenyan affair and we intend to retain our title,” he added.
The champions went into the match determined to win and keep their hopes of retaining the title alive. Three minutes into the game, Caroline Guchu sent the ball past Ghanaian goalkeeper Grace Mensah to put them in the lead.
The Kenyan girls surged on with the attacks, maintaining ball possession while putting pressure on the Ghanaians. However, the West Africans resorted to playing defensive game and keeping the Kenyans away from their territory. Orange put up a fighting spirit and their efforts paid off in the 35th minute from a Jacqueline Jow field goal to put them two-up by the halftime whistle.
The second half saw GRA counterattack, scoring a consolation goal in the 63rd minute through Monica Grant. Orange will now face the winners between Strathmore and Weatherheads of Uganda in the finals.
Meanwhile, Kenya Police thrashed Trustees of Ghana 2-0 in their last Group B match to cruise to the semifinals. They went into the game brimming with confidence and played long balls and good passes running rings around their opponents. They played offensively, threatening the Ghanaian insurers’ defense with their first attempt coming in the seventh minute but was saved by goalkeeper Haruna Eliasu.
Oliver Echenje broke the deadlock in the 14th minute after scoring a fantastic goal from a Francis Esikuri pass from the left.
Standard
Nairobi Simba fail to roar
By ELIZABETH MBURUGU
KAMPALA: Africa Hockey Club Championships men’s defending champions Sharkia of Egypt inched closer to retaining their title.
The continental kings bundled Kenya Hockey Union men’s Premier League champions Nairobi Simba out of the continental event with a 3-2 victory in Kampala, Uganda, yesterday.
After the loss, Simba forward Davis Wanangwe said: “We played well but luck was not on our side.”
Simba, who came into the game full of confidence, allowed the Egyptians in their territory only for Elshafei Mohamed to punish the Kenyans in the ninth minute, sending the ball past goalkeeper Ajay Dosaji.
Determined to make amends for their mistakes, Simba pilled up pressure on the Pharaohs and their efforts paid off in the 31st minute when forward George Mutira dispossessed Fathi Mohamed at the edge of the circle to set up Kalsi Jaspreet who made it 1-1.
In the second half, Sameer Mohamed converted a penalty corner in the 44th minute to put the Egyptians two up only for Simba to level the scores in the 57th minute through a Davis Wanangwe field goal.
Surged on
But the Pharaohs were at it again, scoring in the 67th minute to end Simba’s journey to glory.
In another encounter, Egypt Police arrested and Trustees of Ghana. The Ghanaians lost 2-0, suffering their first defeat of the tournament. Police scored two minutes into play as Mohamed Khill beat the entire Trustees defence to slot in an early goal.
Have an upper hand
Khill was at it again in the 45th minute, scoring their second goal after getting a pass from their captain Ebdelaal Ahmed.
Trustees are currently tied on six points with Kenya Police from three matches. The two were scheduled to battle it out yesterday evening to decide who proceeds to the semis.
Police have an upper hand, considering that they have a better goal difference and even a draw will see them through to the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, bitter rivals Orange Telkom and Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) queens renew their rivalry today in the semi-final of the Africa Hockey Club Championships at Lugogo Stadium, Kampala.
GRA, popularly known as Custom Ladies, will be out to avenge their 2-4 loss to Orange in the 2012 finals in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
In the second women’s semi-final match of the day, Strathmore University will meet Uganda’s Weatherheads.
Strathmore queens better known, as Scorpions, will be on a stinging mission as they are yet to lose a match.
Telkom head coach Jos Openda told FeverPitch Ghanaians are tough title contenders and winning against them requires his charges to fight hard.
The Standard Online
India to skip Azlan Shah Cup for World Cup preparation
India's S.K.Uthappa in action during the Hero Hockey World League match at the National Stadium in New Delhi on Monday. The team won't be participating in the Azlan Shah Cup tournament. Photo: R V Moorthy
The Indian hockey team will not participate in the 23rd Sultan Azlan Shah Cup to be held in Ipoh, Malaysia, March 13-23 as they will be preparing for the World Cup in Europe.
“India will not participate at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. Our high performance director Roelant Oltmans and chief coach Terry Walsh have decided that we need to prepare keeping the World Cup in mind,” Hockey India (HI) secretary general Narinder Batra said here Friday.
The World Cup will be held at the Hague, Netherlands, from May 31 to June 15 in relatively cooler conditions than tropical Malaysia.
“Our team will be playing a tournament in Europe as a build up for the World Cup. Our players need to acclimatise to the European conditions before the World Cup starts. Keeping these factors in mind, we decided not to send the team to Malaysia.”
India are five-time champions of the Azlan Shah Cup, winning it in 1985, 1991, 1995, 2009 and 2010.
So far four teams —— Australia, South Korea, Canada and France —— have confirmed their entry along with hosts Malaysia.
The Hindu
PHF seeks govt help to REGAIN LOST GLORY
Mohsin Ali
ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) secretary Rana Mujahid Thursday revealed that Pakistan team would not be able to participate in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia.
Talking to The Nation, Rana said: “Besides Azlan Shah Cup, it will be almost impossible for the federation to fulfill other international commitments as we need immediate financial assistance from the government.”
He said that the training camp for the Azlan Shah Cup should have been started much earlier, but the federation was completely out of funds. “We need at least Rs 20 million to start training camp and prepare for other international meets. We have requested Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif to release at least Rs 300 million to enable the PHF to run day-to-day affairs and prepared for international meets.”
He said that they wanted to participate in Commonwealth and Asian Games, where they would be defending champions, but with current poor state of financial affairs, it would be almost impossible to even think about establishing camps, so participation in such high-profile events was a far cry.
“We want to lift the standard of hockey in the country and our main focus will be holding at least 10 national tournaments this year, but we need funds for that purpose. I have met with secretary Inter Provincial Coordination (IPC) Ministry who assured me early release of annual grant from Pakistan Sports Board (PSB),” Rana asserted.
“We are in close contact with at least six hockey playing nations who are not A grade teams, but at least holding of international event in Pakistan will ensure return of international hockey in the country. We have proposed a six-nation PM Gold Cup Hockey Tournament and we have already sent proposal to the FIH. They are more than willing to allocate the event which involves top national sides,” he added.
He said they had contacted Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) and proposed a three-match hockey bilateral series. “We have had lengthy discussions with Narinder Batra who assured his all-out support but said that the proposed series could only take place subject to clearance from the Indian government. In this regard, IPC secretary Ch Ijaz personally discussed with Batra and now we want that issue to be taken through government-to-government level.”
“We have also held meetings with different sponsors and we are quite optimistic that we may strike a deal with the sponsors. We have also sought annual grant of Rs 500 million in every budget for the federation and we can regain lost hockey glory if the proposed grant is released by the government,” Rana stated.
“We have hired specialist people for every department and we will utilize former world cup winning captain Mansoor Ahmed services for training goalkeepers in Islamabad. I once again offer to former greats and Olympians to join hands with us and work for the cause of taking Pakistan hockey back to old glory days. I am ready to visit each and every individual personally and they will be offered respectable portfolios and ready to listen to their genuine demands,” he added.
To a query regarding two parallel POA’s in the country, the PHF secretary replied: “We will follow the government instructions as we have written a letter to PSB Director General and sought his guidelines in this regard.
We don’t want to enter politics as we are sportsmen and want to concentrate only on sports.”
“We have requested PSO and NADRA to help the PSF and offered them title sponsorship. They will inform us next month after their annual general council meeting and hopefully, things will go in right direction,” Rana concluded.
The Nation
Thunderbolts wary of Anderson
by Satwant Singh Dhaliwal
The second week of the Milo Junior Hockey League will see the gap between the favorites and pretenders as teams will battle it out to collect points.
The match of the week will no doubt be between Anderson and Thunderbolts at the Azlan shah Stadium in Ipoh.
Anderson were the only team to inflict a defeat on the defending champions last season, courtesy of a 1-0 win.
And that defeat is still fresh in the mind of Thunderbolt coach Wan Mohd Roslan Wan Abdul Rahman.
Thunderbolts have only played one match so far, a6-0 win over their juniors last weekend while Anderson has only one point to show from their two trips out of Ipoh.
Anderson were held to a 1-1 draw by Malacca High School before going down 1-2 against Petaling Jaya Municipal Council,
"Anderson always lift their game against us and I expect it to be the same this time around as well, " said wan Mohd Roslan.
"It will by no means be an easy game as they have settled down having played two matches this we need to be on our toes.
"We have to playa tight marking game as Anderson can hit and hold on to a lead, and this is something we can ill afford.
"In a short league a draw is akin to a defeat and we should not drop points."
At the Pantai Hockey Stadium, Malacca High School are expected to collect full points against KLSS. Juniors who have a win against Permatang Juniors last weekend.
In the Second Division, Nur Insafi are expected to consolidate their position in Group A as they take on MSSPP at the USM Stadium.
MJHL site
Anderson hurdle for champs Thunderbolts
By Jugjet Singh
JUNIOR Hockey League Division One defending champions Thunderbolts will face an early test against Anderson of Ipoh at the Azlan Shah Stadium today.
For Anderson were the only team that beat the champions, 1-0, last season and that defeat is still fresh on the mind of Thunderbolts coach Wan Roslan Wan Rahman.
In the first week of the JHL, Thunderbolts hammered Thunderbolts Juniors 6-0, while Anderson were held to a 1-1 draw by Malacca High School before going down 2-1 to Petaling Jaya Municipal Council,
"Anderson always lift their game against us and I expect it to be the same this time around as well," said Wan Roslan.
"It will not be an easy match as I believe Anderson have settled down after playing two matches. We have to play a tight marking game as this JHL is a short league and a draw is akin to a defeat and we can't afford to drop even a single point to defend our title," said Wan Roslan.
In another Division One match at the Pantai Hockey Stadium, Malacca High School are expected to collect full points against KLSS Juniors.
While in Division Two, Nur Insafi are expected to consolidate their position in Group A when they play MSSPP at the USM Stadium.
TODAY -- Division One: Anderson v SSTMI Thunderbolts (Azlan Shah Stadium, 5pm), KLSS Jnrs v Malacca High School (KLHA, 7pm).
Division Two A: MSSp-USM v Nur Insafi (5pm, USM), Bakat MSSK/PHK v Matri (5pm, Pasir Mas), SMK Syed Hassan v 1Mas Penang (5pm, Perlis).
Division Two B: KLHC Jnrs v Felda Temerloh (5pm, KLHA), Padang Midin v Permatang Jnrs (5pm, Kuala Terengganu), MSSD Larut Matang v MSP Pahang Jnrs (5pm, Kuala Kangsar).
Division Two C: SM Sains Johor v SMKTB (5pm, Batu Pahat), BJSS v SMK Datuk Bentara Luar (5pm, KPM Pantai).
TOMORROW -- Division One: Petaling Jaya CC v Malacca High School (7pm, KLHA), Anderson MBI v SSTMI Jnrs (5pm, Azlan Shah Stadium).
Division Two A: PHKS v MSSP-USM (5pm, Alor Star), Bakat MSSk v Star (5pm, Pasir Mas).
Division Two B: OLAK-PKT v Felda Temerloh (5pm, KLHA), 1Mas Perak v MSP pahang Jnrs (5pm, Azlan Shah Stadium).
Division Two C: Politeknik KPM v SMKTB (5pm, Taman Daya), Datuk Taha v BJSS (5pm, Seremban II), BJSS Jnrs v SMK Datuk Bentara Luar (5pm, KPM Pantai).
New Straits Times
Thunderbolt pumped up for Anderson challenge
By Aftar Singh
SSTMI-Thunderbolt (in red) playing MSSPP-USM during their Malaysian Junior Hockey League match last January. Thunderbolt face Anderson on Saturday at the Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh.
KUALA LUMPUR: Double champions SSTMI-Thunderbolt will be out to avenge their shock 1-0 defeat to Anderson in Ipoh in the MHC-Milo-NSC Junior Hockey League (MJHL) last year.
The sports school from Johor face Anderson at the Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh on Saturday.
SSTMI coach Wan Roslan Wan Abdul Rahman said they have learned from the bitter experience last season.
“I have warned my players that they must stay on their toes throughout the match against Anderson, who have won the Champions Schools title a number of times,” said the teacher cum coach.
“We have great respect for Anderson as they were the only team to beat us last season.
“They are always a tough team to beat at home ... so the challenge will be on us to get the better of them in Ipoh,” said Wan Roslan, who has been coaching the sports school since 2002.
Wan Roslan said they will rely on penalty corner drag flicker Mohd Aminuddin Mohd Zain to deliver the goals against Anderson.
“Aminuddin, who is a former national junior trainee, scored two goals against our junior team, which we won (6-1). I hope he will make full use of the penalty corners to win the match against Anderson,” said Wan Roslan.
Anderson have a challenging weekend in store as they also face SSTMI Juniors on Sunday.
The Star of Malaysia
Faizzil takes 33% pay cut to get more play time
By Aftar Singh
Faizzil Zairollail (right) in a file photo. He left UniKL for MBPJ so that he could get a chance to play more and perhaps get chosen to play with the national juniors.
KUALA LUMPUR: Money may make the world go round, but it isn’t everything to defender Faizzil Zairollail.
The Puchong-born player took a 33% pay cut this season when he joined the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) from Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) in the MHC-Milo-NSC Junior Hockey League (MJHL).
Although the 18-year-old was being paid RM1,500 monthly at UniKL he was not happy there.
“I joined MBPJ because I want to be a key player in the team. Although I received RM1,500 monthly from UniKL, I was warming the bench most of last season.
“I am honoured that MBPJ have now made me captain based on my experience playing in the MJHL for five years.
“Money is not everything to me ... what I need is to feature regularly so that I can impress national selectors and get called up for the national junior team and the 2016 Junior World Cup,” he explained.
Faizzil made his debut in the MJHL in 2009 featuring for Shah Alam Section 11 Secondary School in Division Two before joining the Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) for three years in Division One.
Last year, he joined UniKL, who finished runners-up in Division One and the Milo Cup.
MBPJ, who won the overall title in 2006, started the MJHL with a 2-1 win over Anderson last Sunday.
They will play their next match against Malacca High School on Sunday at the Kuala Lumpur Hockey Stadium.
Faizzil said the Malacca High School cannot be taken lightly as they have a good team which drew 1-1 with Anderson last week.
“There are seven teams in Division One and we need to win every match to finish in the top four to qualify for the knockout stage.
“A win over Malacca High School will give us the confidence to stay in the hunt for a place in the knockout stage,” said Faizzil.
The Star of Malaysia
Fiji U18 squad to be named
Arin Kumar
NATIONAL under-18 hockey coach Tai Smith will name her final squad today for the Youth Olympic Oceania qualifiers which will be held in Port Vila, Vanuatu, in March.
The side resumed training at the National Hockey Centre on Monday after training along the Suva Foreshore early this month.
The centre is now under the ownership of the Fiji Sports Council.
"They have given us the turf to train on at a very economical rate and we are thankful to them for allowing us to prepare for such an important competition," she said.
Initially 29 boys and 26 girls were part of the training squad but Smith's job of selecting the final 15 has been made easier.
"I just had to drop one of my best players because he was sick and then there were some disappointments who still haven't shown up."
The Fiji Times