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All the news for Friday 8 January 2016

Queensland Indoor Champions

Queensland women win first indoor crown since 1995



An Ashlea Fey hat-trick helped Queensland’s women take gold in the Open Indoor Australian Championships today - their first senior women's national indoor crown since 1995 - as the first competition of the month-long Indoor Hockey Festival concluded in Wollongong.

The Maroons took the spoils over home favourites New South Wales in a thrilling 5-3 encounter, which at one point saw Queensland go 5-1 up before NSW rallied in the second half. Captain Fey was the heroine for her side, adding to goals from Lauren Richards and Stefany Worner. Caitlin Burns, Emma McLeish and Claire Rieck all struck for New South Wales but the comeback came just too late.

Fey’s goals took her to 11 for the tournament and earned her the Top Scorer award, two ahead of teammate Natalie Crick. Queensland topped the team goal scoring charts, netting 37 goals in their eight matches, 15 more than nearest rivals New South Wales.

ACT put semi-final heartbreak aside to overcome WA women for bronze. ACT had drawn 2-2 with Queensland in the morning’s semi-final but tournament regulations stipulated that in the event of a draw the team that qualified in a higher position would go through, sending Queensland to the final. It was Rebecca Hotchkis that secured victory with a goal midway through the second half to earn a second consecutive bronze medal for ACT.

South Australia overcame Victoria 2-1 thanks to goals from Emily Waddell and Holly Evans to take fifth place, ahead of the sixth place Victorians, for whom Jessica Brennan scored a penalty corner. Tasmania finished seventh having narrowly missed out on the fifth/sixth classification game on goal difference to Victoria on Wednesday.

The Under 21 Indoor Australian Championships begin on Saturday. Follow them here.

On social media, use #AusChampsHockey and #IndoorHockey.

Final Classification
Gold: Queensland
Silver: New South Wales
Bronze: Australian Capital Territory
4th: Western Australia
5th: South Australia
6th: Victoria
7th: Tasmania

Awards
Player of the Tournament: Lauren Austin (WA)
Top Goal Scorer: Ashlea Fey (QLD), 11 goals
Play the Whistle: Queensland Women

Hockey Australia media release

NSW seal eighth title

New South Wales men win eighth consecutive indoor men's national title



Home favourites New South Wales lived up to host-state expectations to clinch the gold medal in the men’s Open Indoor Australian Championships in Wollongong. It marks their eighth consecutive national men’s indoor title and ninth in the past decade.

Doubles from Jack Hayes and Heath Ogilvie aided the cause in a 7-3 win over ACT, the last team other than NSW to win the national crown.

NSW were always in control on the scoresheet after Luke Noblett and Simon Beaton put the hosts two goals ahead following Jack Hayes' (NSW) early opener and Troy Sutherland's (ACT) initial equaliser. A goal from Garry Backhus kept ACT within touching distance at half time, however, Mitchell Wray’s strike in the opening minute of the second period restored NSW’s two goal lead, a lead that they extended courtesy of goals from Hayes and Ogilvie’s double, before ACT captain Matthew Hotchkis netted a late consolation.

Western Australia’s men also stormed to a 7-3 victory over Queensland in the bronze medal match despite having won only one of their previous five matches in the competition. In contrast, Queensland qualified for the semi-finals from second in the round robin standings but having lost to ACT in their semi-final, they could not cope with the WA firepower led by Darren Parkes and Jamie Burns. The pair each netted a hat-trick with captain James Naughtin also on target.

Following the round robin phase of the competition, Victoria, having finished bottom of the standings were already assured of finishing fifth.

The Under 21 Indoor Australian Championships begin on Saturday. Follow them here.

On social media, use #AusChampsHockey and #IndoorHockey.

Final Classification
Gold: New South Wales
Silver: Australian Capital Territory
Bronze: Western Australia
4th: Queensland
5th: Victoria

Awards
Player of the Tournament: Matthew Hotchkis (ACT)
Top Goal Scorer: Darren Parkes (WA), 11 goals; Heath Ogilvie (NSW), 11 goals
Play the Whistle: Queensland Men

Hockey Australia media release

Victories for WAPDA and Army complete semifinals line-up

KARACHI: Victories for Pakistan WAPDA and Pakistan Army on Thursday completed the list of four semifinalists of the 62nd National Hockey Championship at the Hockey Club of Pakistan Stadium here. WAPDA humbled Port Qasim Authority 5-1 and Army edged out Pakistan Navy 3-0 in the third and fourth quarterfinals on Thursday. The semis will be played under floodlights on Saturday (tomorrow).

Two goals each by Sohail Abbas and Mohammad Jaffar and excellent performance of Tasawar Abbas, Umar Bhutta, Ejaz Ahmed and Khalid Bhatti helped WAPDA earn an emphatic win against PQA in the third quarterfinal. The winners dominated the proceedings from the word go.

Their forwards launched an attack in the 2nd minute and got a penalty corner which was neatly struck by their captain Sohail Abbas. In the second quarter, Shakeel Abbasi of PQA led an attack in the 23rd minute and hit hard from the top of the circle which was neatly deflected by Mohammad Usman to level the score.

The spectators watched an exciting encounter in the third quarter. Both teams launched a series of attacks against each other. Kashif Jawwad and Shakeel Abbasi put extra efforts to intrude into WAPDA's circle. Particularly, Shakeel Abbasi showed some glimpses of his past brilliance amid his skillful dribbling. PQA's goalkeeper Rashid Yaqoob stopped at least two attempts on his chest. In the 37th minute Umar Bhutta and Ejaz Ahmed made a beautiful move and entered into the circle where PQA's Hanif Shahzad cleared the ball just in front of the goalkeeper. PQA players looked exhausted in the last quarter in which WAPDA scored four goals. WAPDA's Umar Bhutta and Ejaz Ahmed made a combined move in the 48th minute which created an opportunity for Mohammad Jaffar to score a field goal. Three minutes later (51st min) a move between Fareed Ahmed and Bilal Ahmed earned a penalty corner and Sohail Abbas scored his second goal of the match. Mohammad Usman scored the fourth goal on a cross from Tasawar Raza in the 55th minute. Mohammad Jaffar scored his second field goal in the 56th minute. Muneer and Sajid Rana supervised the match.

Army's captain Mohammed Rizwan led from the front with his spectacular field goals in the 10th minute which brought their opponents under pressure. He was also instrumental in Kashif Ali's second goal and many of Army's brilliant moves during the match. Army's third goal was scored by Abdul Jabbar in the 59th minute. Navy made strenuous efforts led by their captain Rashid Mehmood and ably supported by Mohammad Sabir and Asif Ali to reduce the margin. They missed two fair chances to score. First on Mohammad Sabir's pass in the circle, Kamran Asif failed to deflect. Then Asif Ali missed a cross from Rashid Mehmood in the last quarter. Even luck didn't favour them as their one field goal was disallowed after the referral taken by their opponents. Atif Malik and Sohail Janjua were the field umpires.

Saturday's Semifinals: Pakistan ARMY vs Pakistan WAPDA, Pakistan International Airlines vs National Bank of Pakistan.

The Daily Times

Ranchi to host semifinal, final of HIL 2016


Image Courtesy: Hockey India League

NEW DELHI: Defending champions Ranchi Rays will play host to the semifinals and final of the fourth edition of the Coal India Hockey India League on February 20 and 21 respectively at the Birsa Munda hockey stadium.

The Hockey India League (HIL), the flagship event of Hockey India, is scheduled to be played across six venues in the country starting January 18.

The six franchises battling for supremacy in the richest field hockey league in the world are Jaypee Punjab Warriors, Delhi Waveriders, Kalinga Lancers, Uttar Pradesh Wizards, Dabang Mumbai and title holders Ranchi Rays, co-owned by India limited overs cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

The opening match of the tournament will be played between Kalinga Lancers, who made the biggest buy of the season in German Moritz Fuerste and Uttar Pradesh Wizards, who were able to draft in young Indian forward Akashdeep Singh.

The tournament opener will be staged in Bhubaneshwar, where Defending champions Ranchi Rays will open their campaign against last year's runners-up Jaypee Punjab Warriors in Chandigarh on January 19.

The Times of India

Scotland select teams for Grove Menzieshill indoor event



With European excursions to Portugal and France fast approaching for Scotland’s senior international teams, participation in this weekend’s Intervention Rentals Indoor Hockey Tournament will provide both squads with timely court-time preparation for competing in the EuroHockey Indoor Championship II events later this month.

Hosted by Grove Menzieshill at the Dundee International Sports Centre (DISC) on 9 & 10 January, the round-robin tournament will give Scotland the opportunity to play against the best club sides in the country.

Grove Menzieshill are multiple Scottish indoor hockey champions, Dundee Wanderers women and Inverleith men are the reigning indoor champions, and completing the teams are Dundee Wanderers men and a combined Clydesdale Western/Western Wildcats women’s select team.

The players selected by Head Coaches Derek Forsyth and Gordon Shepherd will find themselves in a curious situation of playing against many of their current club team-mates, but focus on the European targets is very much high on the agenda and an excellent standard of hockey is expected for spectators.

Speaking on behalf of hosts Grove Menzieshill, club president Kyle Moir said, “We are delighted that Scotland have chosen our tournament to prepare for the challenge of European competition. The other teams will ensure that they are well tested and we look forward to another high quality, exciting tournament.”

“We are also delighted to have Intervention Rentals continuing as our tournament sponsors. Without them this type of event would be impossible to host.”

Entry is free to all spectators. Play runs from 10.15am to 6pm on Saturday and 9.10am to 5pm on Sunday.

In addition, the club hope to inspire a new generation of hockey umpires with a seminar for youth members of the club on Saturday. This will be led by Olympics Umpire and Grove Menzieshill member Sarah Wilson.

Please visit the Grove Menzieshill website or contact Niall Joss, Club Administrator, on 07778 306966 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.

Scotland Senior Men

Gordon Amour, Patrick Christie, Stephen Dick, Dan Coultas, Jamie Wong (all Inverleith), Gavin Byers, Michael Ross (both Grove Menzieshill), Sean Hadfield, Callum Milne (both Grange), Murray Collins (Loughborough University), Callum Duke (Hillhead), David Forrester (Villa Primrose), Hamish Imrie (Beeston).

Scotland Senior Women

Vikki Bunce, Charlotte Watson (both Dundee Wanderers), Nicola Cochrane, Susan McGilveray, Alison Howie, Jennifer Eadie, Heather Howie (all Milne Craig Clydesdale Western), Jayne McLaughlin, Kareena Marshall (both Western Wildcats), Amy Costello (CALA Edinburgh), Katie Robertson (Grove Menzieshill).

Match Schedule

Scottish Hockey Union media release

Women's Super 6s Week Two Preview


Sally Walton takes on Becky Duggan in the indoor finals

With the second weekend of the Super 6s qualifiers almost upon us for some teams, the semi finals are almost within touching distance. With the first weekend done and dusted and with each team having played four times, the table has taken shape with last year’s semi-finalists Canterbury setting the pace with a four wins from four in the opening weekend.

The Polo Farm outfit saw off Sutton Coldfield, Slough, East Grinstead and Leicester in the first weekend, giving them maximum points and putting them within reach of another semi-final outing. The goals of Anna Kolarova (seven) and Sarah Kerly (five) have helped to put them there and with Mel Clewlow returning from her media duties to bolster the defence, Canterbury will be confident of getting the points they need.

Hot on the Kent side’s heels are defending champions Bowdon Hightown who showed their class once again with three wins from four games in week one. Sally Walton helped herself to 11 goals making her the tournament’s top scorer, just as she was last year. With Tina Cullen netting nine times too, there is a familiar look about Hightown and like Canterbury, who they face first up, they will be confident of making it into the top four.

East Grinstead’s signing of Emma Lee-Smith from Harleston Magpies has indeed proved to be a shrewd move as her eight goals ensured the Sussex outfit collected nine points from the first weekend as they bid to make a return to the finals where they lost out to Hightown last season.

Also on nine points are the University of Birmingham. Despite having a number of squad members away on U21 international duty, including top scorer Erica Sanders, Phil Gooderham’s side still has a strong look about it. Vanessa Hawkins, a winner of this competition with Leicester comes in as does Hockey writers Young Player of the Year Emily Defroand and the hugely talented Hannah Martin.

Slough, Leicester, Reading and Sutton are all grouped together with Slough on four points and the other three teams on three. Whilst it looks difficult on paper for those sides to qualify, stranger things have happened and with a lot of hockey to be played, there will yet be twists and turns in this competition. All four of those sides have recently played in the semi-finals and will know what it takes to get drag themselves up towards the top four for another tilt at the title.

Surbiton, newly promoted after a stellar season in division one last time out have found the going tough, picking up just one point from an entertaining 5-5 draw with Slough. Boosted by the inclusion of Sarah Haycroft and Giselle Ansley they will be keen to get themselves away from the foot of the table and up to a position of safety.  

For all the standings, results, fixtures and scorers from the competition click here.

England Hockey Board Media release

Men's Super 6s: Week two preview


Chris Griffiths celebrates scoring in the indoor finals for EG.

The qualifying phase of the Super 6s reaches the business end this weekend as the top men’s teams in the country take to the indoor courts in Kettering to fight it out for those four coveted spots in the semi-finals at Wembley.

Reading are currently in pole position having won four from four in the first weekend, seeing off Loughborough, Bowdon, Holcombe and Beeston to give themselves a great chance of qualifying. They have a tough weekend ahead, facing off against all three of the other top four sides after week one but with Wembley in touching distance and with the goals of Andy Watts (seven goals so far) and Tom Carson (six goals so far) to spur them on they will be full of confidence.

Reigning champions East Grinstead are handily tucked into second place, just two points behind the leaders. Their only dropped points came in an entertaining 6-6 draw with fellow finals hopefuls Sevenoaks. Ben Allberry, who was second top scorer in the competition last season has helped himself to nine goals and with East Grinstead having already played two of their top four rivals they will be backing themselves to make it to the finals for a shot at an incredible eighth title in a row.

Last year’s beaten finalists, Canterbury are well placed after three wins from four in the first weekend. The experienced Harry Jawanda has found the net seven times so far, making him the Kent side’s top scorer but they have shared the goals around with Ross Gilham-Jones, Liam Foster, Kwan Browne and Craig Boyne all chipping in with significant contributions as they seek to go one better this time out and bring home the trophy.

Hot on their heels are Sevenoaks, whom Canterbury dumped out at the semi-final stage last year with a Liam Foster strike with just seconds to go. Once again the Kent side have been spurred on by the excellent goal scoring form of George Torry, ably assisted by the excellent Matt Cox. Sevenoaks’ last two games are against Canterbury and Reading, which could prove crucial although they would hope to have enough points before those two crunch games.

Loughborough Students sit top of the chasing pack on four points, just a point clear of Wimbledon, Holcombe and Bowdon who each have three points. Ed Horler’s 12 goals for the Students make him the competition’s top scorer and a man to be feared whilst they will look to the experience of Jerome Goudie to keep them in with a fighting chance of breaking into the top four.

Wimbledon, Holcombe and Bowdon will have by no means given up the ghost and with Tim Davenport (Wimbledon), Nick Banduarak (Holcombe) and Bartosz Zywiczka (Bowdon) in fine goal scoring form they will feel they have the firepower to mount a challenge.

Beeston’s young guns struggled in the first weekend and are currently rock bottom without a point. The Bees narrowly avoided the drop last season and will be looking to do the same again this year to hold off the threat of relegation.

As is often the case with the indoor qualifiers, there is plenty left to play for. Lots of games, lots of goals, lots of drama and lots of twists to come, we will know who is Wembley bound by Sunday night.

For all the standings, results, fixtures and scorers from the competition click here.

England Hockey Board Media release

Hockey For Heroes are back in action


Hockey for heroes squad photo

Playing a whole season in seven days. Playing 33 matches and completing the three peaks challenge in the space of ten days. Challenges that are madness to your average person on the street, but just two of the many tasks undertaken by the Hockey for Heroes squad.

With the success of their bi-annual tours in both raising awareness of the Help for Heroes cause and also raising funds for the charity, the Hockey for Heroes squad have branched out from the small group of players they started out with to holding open trials for those wishing to join the squad.

“We held a selection day a few weeks ago in Oxford and the response was fantastic." says Joel Forester, the Hockey for Heroes captain. “People from all over the place came to the selection day and it was great for us to see how far and wide the message of the squad has gone. Especially when you consider it started out as a small group of us trying our best to make something happen.”

The group embarks on a big tour every two years, aiming each time to push themselves up to and even beyond the limits of what each member feels they are capable of. The first year, back in 2013 took in 26 matches across the length and breadth of the country over the course of just seven days. The next time they went on tour, in 2015 they scaled the Three Peaks challenge, climbing Scafell Pike, Ben Nevis and Snowdon in 24 hours alongside playing 33 matches, all in the space of ten days.

Planning is underway for the next big adventure in 2017, but in the meantime, the squad will be popping up at various hockey clubs to keep the interest and the awareness of their cause going as well as connecting with as many of the hockey family as possible.

“The aim is to get as many people as we can following what we’re doing. We’ve been overwhelmed by the welcome and support from the hockey family and we want to continue to connect with as many of them as possible.” Forester adds “Help for Heroes is a fantastic charity which is close to the hearts of many of the players, but if things go well, we want to open it up to helping other causes. That’d be a fantastic achievement for us.”

The squad start their regular matches and build up to the 2017 tour with a double header this weekend against Oxford Hockey Club and Marlow Hockey Club. Both matches are set to take place at the latter’s Pound Lane home. Local club Bracknell will supply the ball patrol from their junior section and with Great Britain goalkeeper George Pinner and Manager Andy Halliday, two of the H4H ambassadors set to make an appearance it promises to be a great day.

There can be no doubt that the next Hockey for Heroes challenge, whatever form it takes on will be bigger and tougher than the previous two. But that’s what the group is all about, pushing their limits to see if new limits can be reached, all in the name of charity. Who could argue with that?!

If you’d like to support the Hockey for Heroes team this weekend, head down to Pound Lane, Marlow to watch them in action. All the details are on the flyer below. Otherwise you can like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter or visit their website to find out the different ways to get involved.

England Hockey Board Media release

Namibian Hockey On the Rise - Nel

By By Helge Schutz

THE president of the Namibia Hockey Union, Marc Nel, has lauded the achievements of Namibian hockey following some remarkable triumphs in South Africa last month.

Namibia's national women's team made history by beating South Africa and the United States at a Four Nations Indoor Hockey Tournament in Durban, while Namibia's junior teams won the PSI Nationals franchise of the year award for the first time.

It was the second time that Namibia's women had beaten South Africa, following their 4-3 triumph in Windhoek in 2014, but it was their first away victory against South Africa as well as their first victory against the United States.

Namibia also narrowly lost 2-1 to Australia, but reached the final of the tournament where they won the silver medal after losing 6-0 to South Africa.

Nel said the Four Nations tournament was a historical occasion for Namibian hockey.

"It was the first time we played South Africa in a Four Nations tournament in Africa. We only lost 2-1 to Australia, but beat the USA and South Africa so it was absolutely fantastic and a historical moment for Namibian hockey."

Namibia's junior hockey teams also excelled to win the South African provincial junior indoor hockey tournament, the PSI Nationals - for the first time.

The PSI Nationals series has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception ten years ago and now comprises age group tournaments from u11 to u18.

Namibia was the overall winner after the performances of its two franchise teams, the Hawks and the Eagles, at the u11 and u12 PSI Nationals in Cape Town in July, and the u13 - u18 PSI Nationals in Durban last month, were combined.

In Cape Town, Namibia won three of the four gold medals on offer, while in Durban, they won five silver medals.

"It was a great achievement for Namibian hockey to win the PSI overall title and it just underlines the fact that we are getting on a par with South Africa and are not pushovers any more," Nel said.

With the inauguration of Namibia's first hockey astro-turfs at Windhoek Gymnasium and Windhoek High School last year, Namibia has now also become eligible to host international events and the first of these will commence in March when Namibia hosts the Africa Junior Championships for u21 men and women.

"We've got a large group of young players who form part of the senior teams and who will be available for the African Championships, so we should do well, especially on the women's side. The men will still take some time before they can compete at the top level," Nel said.

The winning men and women's teams will automatically qualify for the Junior World Cup while the losing finalists can still qualify via a final inter-continental qualifying competition.

Namibia will fancy their chances in the women's competition as more than half of their senior squad are still u21, but Nel warned that they still have a way to go in field hockey.

"It's difficult to say if our women can win the competition. Field hockey is a completely different game to indoor hockey and we are not there yet in field hockey. In indoor yes, we are now contenders, but in field hockey it will take another two seasons before we are really competitive," he said.

"We already started our preparations last year and will continue until the tournament starts on 18 March," Nel added.

Namibia can also look forward to their annual two-test indoor series against South Africa this year, with Windhoek hosting the home series in April or May, while Cape Town will most probably host the South African series in December.

Namibian hockey has furthermore shown a growth at the domestic level with a record 46 teams having entered the Bank Windhoek National Indoor Hockey League which will start over the last weekend of January.

"We will have 46 teams competing in the Premier, First and Second leagues which is an increase on the 38 teams we had last year. We'll have an additional team from the coast so now we will have two teams from Walvis Bay and two from Swakopmund while the rest are from Windhoek," Nel said.

AllAfrica.com