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News for 03 September 2016

All the news for Saturday 3 September 2016


Murugappa Gold Cup: Good start for Tamil Nadu

BY S.THYAGARAJAN        

It turned out to be a fairly satisfactory outing for the youthful Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu (HUT) when it held the seasoned Air India to a 2-2 in Pool B of the MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup hockey tournament at the Mayor Radhakrishan Stadium on Thursday. The teams were level 1-1 at halftime.

Trained by the former ICF star M.Raja and polished in the nuances by the former Olympian and national coach, Md.Riaz, the Tamil Nadu team exhibited an appreciable measure of finesse and fluency but not with the speed to required to overwhelm the rival defenders.

Composed of many internationals like Arjun Halappa, V.S.Vinay, Adrian D’Souza and Vikram Pillay, the Air India team was definitely a formidable opponent. But Tamil Nadu forged ahead twice in the match but was unable to keep the lead for long. Actually, it was the Air India team that led the probes in the early part of the match thanks to the effortless weaving in by the top class ball player Arjun Halappa. Lack of support nullified all his efforts. It must be admitted that the defenders stood firm to keep the score board clean.

Prompted well by left half Gnanavel and midfielder Selvakumar, Tamil Nadu built up pressure slowly placing emphasis on greater ball possession.

Midway through the team courted success consequent to a good combination work. A long pass by Gnanavel put Dhamu through and the latter’s pass enabled Joshua to finish with a rasping shot from the top of the circle.

Buoyed by this success the home team managed to push the Air India defenders but over elaboration at the crucial juncture made their efforts futile.

Close on halftime, Air India restored parity through Osaf-ur-Rehman, the only forward who looked dangerous in the Air India front line.

The pressure from Air India even after resumption was palpable as the Tamil Nadu defense faltered repeatedly. Goalkeeper Arun Prasadh managed to ward off danger from a slew of penalty corners that Air India forced. One save from a fierce shot by Nitish Kiro by Arun was impressive. He also frustrated an attempt by Gagandeep Singh.

However, it was Tamil Nadu that went ahead midway in the second half when Hassan Basha flicked in a penalty corner rebound from Adrian D’Souza.

But the lead was short lived as Gangandeep Singh drag flicked a penalty corner neatly into the net. Neither team conceded a goal in the rest of the brief period.

In the other match Hockey Karnakata led by the national star Nitin Thimmiah beat Punjab and Sind Bank by the odd goal in three in a pool A match.

The results:

Pool A: Hockey Karnataka 2 (Pradhan Somanna, Nitin Thimmiah) beat Punjab and Sind Bank 1 (Sarvanjit Singh)

Pool B: Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu 2 (Joshua Wesley, Hassan Basha) drew with Air India 2 (Osaf-ur-Rehman, Gagandeep Singh).

Fieldhockey.com



IOC & Indian Railways start off well

Air India blanks Mumbai HA 3-0 for its first win in two matches

K. Keerthivasan


Getting through: Affan Yousuf of Indian Railways celebrates scoring for Indian Railways. Photo: M. Vedhan.

Defending champion Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Indian Railways couldn’t have asked for a better start to their campaign in the 90th all-India MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup hockey tournament here on Friday.

IOC drubbed a listless Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu 5-1 in a Pool A clash while Railways, the reigning National champion, performed like a well-oiled machine to script a 4-1 win over Army XI in Pool B.

In the third and last match of the day, Air India scored its first win in two matches, a 3-0 triumph over Mumbai HA in a Pool A contest.

There were no first-match jitters for Railways. The team’s positional play was near perfect, reducing the Armymen to mere spectators for most of the first session.

Linkman Affan Yousuf provided the spark with exceptional stick-work and defence-splitting passes, enabling Railways to raid the Army XI defence at will. Every one of Yousuf’s attacks had the stamp of authority not seen so far in the tournament.

Railways scored the opening goal with Amit Rohidas finding the back of the net with a neatly-placed penalty-corner conversion.

Generally, a plucky opponent, Army XI was placid in attack as well as defence. Except for a gilt-edged chance in the ninth minute, when a B.P. Poovanna’s shot was cleared by ’keeper Jagaraj Singh, it had little to offer.

The equaliser by Army XI off a penalty-corner by Jonny Jasrotia did little to dispel the belief that it was playing against a well-settled team.

Railways only got better in the second half with Yousuf making some wonderful run-ins.

Soon, Talwinder Singh unleashed a forehander from the top of the circle to regain the lead and around 10 minutes later, Yousuf pushed one more home after a lovely 1-2 from the right with Talwinder.

A hapless and dejected Army allowed things to drift further and Railways found its fourth when J.P. Kush converted a cross from the right to announce its arrival as a title-contender.

If Railways proved its class, Tamil Nadu in its match against IOC realised how far it still has to go to reach the level of top teams.

The first three goals came in a matter of 15 minutes and the match ended right then. At half-time, IOC led 4-0.

It was obvious that the TN boys were overawed by the aura of Internationals V.R Raghunath, Kothajit and Prabhjot Singh.

Raghunath sounded the boards in the second minute with a perfect grounder off a penalty-corner. A long pass from Raghunath saw Prabhjot Singh deflecting home for the second.

A terrible defensive lapse resulted in the third goal. There was no one to mark Sanjay who had ample time to take a cross from the right to sweep one past ’keeper Arun Prasad. Prabhjot added to Tamil Nadu’s agony with a nice deflection.

The second session saw TN putting up a semblance of a fight, but it was a case of too little too late. Hassan Basha’s lone goal meant little in the overall scheme of things.

The results:

Pool A: IOC 5 (V.R. Raghunath 2, Sanjay 13, Prabhjot Singh 10 & 33, Deepak Thakur 50) bt HUTN 1 (Hassan Basha 45).

Air India 3 (Arjun Sharma 27, Joga Singh 40, Osaf-ur-Rehman 46) bt Mumbai HA 0.

Pool B: Indian Railways 4 (Amit Rohidas 30, Talwinder Singh 37, Affan Yousuf 44, J.P. Kush 55) bt Army XI 1 (Jonny Jasrotia 24).

The Hindu



Sapura edge Tenaga to stay tops

By Jugjet Singh

SAPURA Hockey Club edged Tenaga Nasional 2-1 to keep their grip in the Premier Division of the Malaysia Hockey League at the KLHA Stadium Friday.

After 11 years missing out on silverware, Sapura end the first round at the top of the standings and are also in the running to play in the final of the Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup.

"Tenaga really made it difficult for us today (yesterday) and we barely collected the full points. But this is what we need, a big test on our defenders, before we start our second round journey," said coach Yahya Omar.

Sapura meet SSTMI in the Alagendra Cup semi-finals on Tuesday, and it should be a walk in the park to make the final.

The other semi-finals between Tenaga Nasional and Terengganu Hockey Team is expected to be a cracker.

The Sapura goals were scored by Dangerous Lee (12th) and Azrul bin Hasbullah (19th) while Tenaga got theirs off Arif Sabron
in the 42nd minute.

In another Premier Division match yesterday, Terengganu Hockey Team (THT) made the half-way mark of the MHL with a 3-1 win over Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) at the Batu Buruk Stadium.

THT were leading 3-0 until the 56th minute when UniKL scored the consolation off Rafizul Ezry.

The THT goals were scored by Nicolas Enrique (20th), Jang Jong Hyun (22nd) and Kim Junghoo (52nd).

All three THT's goals were by foreign imports, while the last season's top scorer Faizal Shaari, with 17 goals, has yet to score a after five matches.
 
"It was a much better game that the previous four, but still, my forwards keep missing sitters and this can't go on in the second leg if we want to finish among the top-three teams," said Sarjit.

RESULTS -- Premier Division: Terengganu HT 3 UniKL 1, Tenaga Nasional 1 Sapura HC 2, Maybank x Kuala Lumpur HC x.

ALAGANDRA CUP Semi-finals: Sept 6: Tenaga Nasional v Terengganu HT (KLHA,6pm), SSTMI v Sapura (SSTMI, 6pm).

PREMIER DIVISION

            P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts

SAPURA      5  4  0  1  11 7  12
KLHC        4  2  2  0  10 6  8
THT         5  2  1  2  13 10 7
MAYBANK     4  2  0  2  8  11 6
UNIKL       5  1  1  3  4  9  4
TENAGA      5  0  2  3  10 13 2

Jugjet's World of Field Hockey



PHL, the most exciting development in South African Hockey



The Premier Hockey League (PHL) has been hailed as one of the most exciting developments in the history of the local game and the feeling of excitement amongst the couple hundred players who arrived in Johannesburg ahead of the tournament launch on Saturday was obvious.

Thanks to the considerable financial support of the Department of Sport and Recreation, the inaugural PHL will be hosted at the Randburg Astro and will consist of both a men’s and women’s league that will run over four weekend’s – from this Saturday to Sunday, 25th September 2016.

Six men’s and six women’s teams, playing as franchises that are 100% owned by the South African Hockey Association (SAHA), will play each other once in a league stage before the top four teams progress to the semi-finals, to be followed by the grand finals on the last Sunday in September 2016.

The teams are named after famous tourist areas in South Africa and are representative of all nine Provinces. This year, two of the 12 participating teams will be the SA U21 men’s and women’s teams, allowing them to prepare for the International Hockey Federation (FIH) Junior World Cups which take place later this year. The SA U21 men will play as the Private Property Golden Gate Gladiators and the SA U21 Women as the Lip Ice Namaqualand Daisies.

“This is probably the most exciting development ever in South African hockey and when you walk in here you can feel the buzz as all the players arrive. Everybody is extremely excited and this tournament will mean a lot in the development of our younger players,” national men’s team goalkeeper Rassie Pieterse, one of the marquee players for the Maropeng Cavemen, said at the Milpark Garden Court hotel – the hotel where all the players are staying with thanks to the support of event partners, Tsogo Sun.

The teams were selected via a draft process, apart from four marquee players who were allocated to each franchise by the national men’s and women’s coaches.

“All the teams have a good mix of senior and international players, so the youngsters will learn a lot,” Pieterse added.

Both the national U21 teams are especially delighted to be playing in the PHL, with women’s coach Patrick Tshutshani saying the tournament comes at a critical stage of their preparations for the Junior World Cup in Santiago, Chile, from 24th November 2016.

“The PHL is a wonderful concept and the team will get to play top-quality hockey against the best in the country and test their skills, so it will be great preparation. There are less than 80 days before the Junior World Cup, so this is a great step for the team,” Tshutshani said.

With many of the players having not lined up alongside their PHL team-mates before (because of the innovative draft system), the sides are likely to be less structured than usual and plenty of goals are expected as attacking players should flourish.

A team like the Schick Garden Route Gazelles boasts the attacking skills of Lloyd Norris-Jones, Pierre de Voux, Keenan Horne and Reece Arendse.

“This initiative is very welcome and we look forward to seeing it grow and hockey with it. We’ve managed to get a decent side together, we have a lot of attacking players and we’ll just try and score more goals than we concede,” Norris-Jones said.

The SchickGarden Route Gazelles will take on the Private Property Golden Gate Gladiators in their opening game on Saturday and national U21 men’s coach Garreth Ewing said he hoped his team would at least make the semi-finals.

“We want to play as many games as we can before our world cup and winning obviously makes you happy, but it’s not a holy grail for us. Our focus is on our preparation for the World Cup and we’re going to work quite a lot on our structure, especially on defence and cement our style of play,” Ewing said.

Perhaps the most intriguing game of the first week of the PHL will be Sunday morning’s opening clash between the Young Solutions St Lucia Lakers and the Ezee Tile Madikwe Rangers.

Long-serving national women’s team star Shelley Russell will be a key figure for the Lakers, but she will be up against as many as seven of her Southern Gauteng team-mates in the Rangers team.

“Playing against the Rangers will mean I’m predominantly up against players I’m used to playing with. I just hope they have a go at the youngsters rather than me,” Russell joked.

“But this whole concept is very exciting and something we haven’t done before, it has awesome potential. The most excellent part of it is getting to know new players, different styles of playing and coaching structures,” Russell added.

This weekend’s fixtures

Saturday: 10am Mapungubwe Mambas v Addo Elephants (M); 12pm Blyde River Bunters v Orange River Rafters (W); 2pm Drakensberg Dragons v Maropeng Cavemen (M); 4pm Namaqualand Daisies v Wineland Wings (W); 6pm Garden Route Gazelles v Golden Gate Gladiators (M).

Sunday: 8am St Lucia Lakers v Madikwe Rangers; 10am Mapungubwe Mambas v Drakensberg Dragons; 12pm Blyde River Bunters v Wineland Wings; 2pm Addo Elephants v Garden Route Gazelles; 4pm Namaqualand Daisies v Orange River Rafters.

SAHA Premier League Hockey media release



National hockey teams pooled with Nigeria

By BRIAN YONGA


Racheal Ousa (left) and Racheal Muchai during the Kenya women's hockey team training session at City Park stadium on August 28, 2016 in preparation for the World League One Series to be held in Ghana. PHOTO | MARTIN MUKANGU |  NATION MEDIA GROUP

The national hockey teams will take on Nigeria in their respective men’s and women’s opening matches at the World League One Series set for September 9 to 11 in Accra, Ghana.

According to the draws released on Friday by the Ghana Hockey Association, Kenya’s women’s team will play the opening match of the continental event on September 9 before the hosts meet Namibia in the second game.

The last two games of the day will see the men take to the pitch as Kenya battle Nigeria while Ghana come up against Namibia with all matches to be played at the Theodocia Okoe National Hockey Pitch in Accra.

On September 10, Kenya will face their Ghanaian counterparts while the men’s team will take the hosts’ men’s team. On the last day of the competition, the home sides will be up against the Namibian national sides.

The teams that top both competitions will advance to the second round of the World League in February 2017 and inch closer to the 2018 World Cup in England (women) and India (men). African champions South Africa as well as second placed Egypt have received a bye to the second round courtesy of their high world rankings.

In the absence of the two continental giants, Kenya which is ranked third in the continent are pre-tournament favourites but the Black Sticks of Ghana will certainly have a thing to say about that.

Responding to the draws, national team coaches Meshack Senge (men) and Nixon Nyangaga (women) are optimistic about the teams’ chances of advancing to the next round.

“We have played Nigeria and Ghana before and our record is remarkable against them. Namibia are a new side but we will definitely not underestimate them,” Senge told Saturday Nation Sport.

Senge’s side beat both Ghana and Nigeria on their way to a third place finish during last year’s Africa Cup of Nations held in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Sliders and Greensharks coach Nyangaga, who replaced Jos Openda as the women’s tactician, is also looking for a good run in the competition.

“Ranking will definitely play a small role in the matches and we therefore need to be on top of our game if we wish to go to the next round,” Nyangaga said. The two teams have been in non-residential training since last month.

The final squads are expected to be named this weekend at the City Park Stadium.

Kenya Hockey Union suspended league matches to allow the teams train.

Daily Nation



In 1-0 loss to Duke, Maryland field hockey shut out for the first time in five years

By James Crabtree-Hannigan


Maryland field hockey coach Missy Meharg looks on at the Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex. (Marquise McKine/The Diamondback)

For the first time since 2011, the Maryland field hockey team was shutout.

Back then, Old Dominion held the Terps scoreless. Fourth-ranked Duke did the same exactly five years later, earning a 1-0 win Friday night in the opening game of the Big Ten/ACC Cup.

The loss moves the No. 6 Terps to 1-2 in 2016 and marks the first time Maryland has lost two of their first three games since 1996.

Duke scored the game's only goal in the 42nd minute, when forward Ashley Kristen tipped in a long pass to give her team a lead that would hold up for the final 28 minutes.

After the Terps' first loss of the season, a 4-1 defeat at the hands of No. 2 Syracuse on Sunday, the team thought the stats showed that the match was much more even than the final score suggested. The Orange took just one more shot than Maryland and had one less penalty corner.

In Friday's loss, the stats show the Terps not only hanging around the Blue Devils, but also outplaying them.

Maryland outshot the Blue Devils, 12-7, including a 9-5 advantage in the first half. Duke sophomore goalkeeper Sammi Steele came up huge for her team, making seven saves in the first half and adding two more in the second period. All but two of the Terps' shots were on goal.

The Terps held an even larger penalty corner advantage than they did Sunday, earning four corner chances and surrendering just one. But just as they struggled against Syracuse, Maryland couldn't convert any of those opportunities.

Terps goalkeeper Sarah Holliday made two saves in the game and allowed one goal, and for the first time this season, Sarah Bates did not replace her. The only time Meharg pulled Holliday was when the Terps chose to have an empty net with two and a half minutes to play.

A little over 10 minutes before electing to play with no goalkeeper, freshman midfielder Kelee Lepage nearly found the equalizer for the Terps, hitting the post with a shot in the 56th minute. She attempt was Maryland's last shot of the game.

The losses to Syracuse and Duke mean that, for the first time since the 1997 and 1998 seasons, the Terps have lost consecutive games in consecutive seasons. In 2015, Maryland lost three consecutive games early in the year before rattling off 18 straight wins.

Meharg's team will look to avoid going 1-3 for just the second time in program history — and the first since 1976 — when they close out the Big Ten/ACC Cup on Sunday against No. 8 Boston College.

The Diamondback



Scotland girls off to a winning start at the School Games 2016

Scotland beat Ulster 2-1 in the girls’ hockey tournament at the School Games 2016 in Loughborough. Goals from Emily Dark and Hanna Mckie gave Scotland a 2-0 lead before Ulster battled back towards the end of the match. For much of the performance Scotland were in control of the match and looked capable of scoring more goals. A late rally by Ulster was held off by the Scots, many of whom performed so well during the recent EuroHockey U18 Youth Championship II tournament in Glasgow, and gave Scotland a strong winning start.

The girls take on England Red next at 12.30pm. The game will be streamed live HERE.

Scotland’s boys team will make their first appearance at the School Games today when they take on Wales at 7pm. Like the girls, many of the boys played in the recent EuroHockey U18 Youth Championship II tournament in Glasgow, and will be hoping to carry this form into the match against England.

The match will be streamed live HERE.

Scottish Hockey Union media release



Muramagi tips hockey federation on talent development

By Johnson Were


Uganda Hockey Federation secretary Philip Wafula receives equipment from NCS’ Nicholas Muramagi. Photo by Johnson Were

NCS Secretary General Nicholas Muramagi has advised Uganda Hockey Association (UHA) to identify the sports equipment they can purchase for talent development instead of waiting for donations.

Muramagi made the remarks after handing over equipment worth $11,000 (sh37m) to the federation secretary Philip Wafula.

“You should identify some equipment which we are able to purchase for development instead of waiting to beg for donations” Muramagi stated.

“I also challenge you to prepare a team that will qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

The equipment which included 100 sticks, 100 balls and goalkeeping kits were donated by the Africa Hockey Federation and cleared by NCS which paid sh3.5m in taxes.

Wafula said that receiving the equipment is good for the sport and that they will put them to good use to be able to produce good talent.

New Vision



FIH Hockey Academy provides global masterclass in knowledge sharing



Five continents and 64 participants joined together at the FIH Hockey Academy in London

They came from as far afield as Argentina, Australia, Tanzania, Japan and Ireland, but all with a common goal – to develop their own hockey knowledge and to promote the sport in their own country.

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) Hockey Academy courses ran alongside the 2016 Hockey Champions Trophies in London in June and it soon became clear that this was going to be a hugely successful initiative.

With 64 participating coaches, representing 27 nations across five continents, it was a totally global event, where the opportunity to share ideas and good practice was seized upon by all involved.

Gathered together in one venue were High Performance Coaches, Coach Educators, Umpires Educators, Technical Official (TO) Educators and the first FIH Event Management Educator, Geraldine Heinen.

It was also a star-studded occasion as nine of those on the courses were Olympians, now working as hockey coaches.

The coaches divided their time in London between Loughborough University, which is partnering the FIH in much of its development work, and the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre.

The course was run by educators and course organisers from the FIH Hockey Academy and partnering organisations, such as hosts England Hockey and Coach Logic – who have recently partnered with the FIH Hockey Academy and were on hand with advice about video feedback.

Talking about the global nature of the Academy, former Argentina goalkeeper and silver medallist at London 2012 Laura del Colle, said: “We came from all over the world, representing 18 different countries. This is the first time FIH has tried a course on this scale, with so many different nationalities working together. We have had workshops, theory sessions, video analysis as well as watching many of the international games taking place. We were kept very busy: for example, while watching the games, we were given a topic to analyse, which we then fed back to the group later via a presentation.”

Jorgelina Rimoldi is also a former Argentina player. She added: “We also had some ‘surprise’ topics, which taught us to really think on our feet. One topic we had plenty of time to prepare, but for the other topic, it was sprung upon us to test our ability to react to a situation. That was tough. I had to analyse Netherlands, with and without the ball.”

She explained that she loves the Netherland’s system of play, so spending time watching and analysing was a real pleasure. ‘They make squares all over the pitch,” she says. “So they defend as a unit and then, when they win possession, they pass the ball around in these tight formations – it is so lovely to watch. I also watched New Zealand, they work on a pivot to put pressure on the ball. It is really nice to see the contrast between Argentina – which I know very well – and the other teams.”

One of the coaches who was able to benefit from working alongside such high quality players and coaches was Valentina Quaranta. The Italian has been working with the Tanzania Hockey Association for the past three years to develop hockey at grass roots and elite level in the African country, particularly for girls and women.

The FIH Hockey Academy invited Valentina to attend the coaching course in London, as a way to support her development work in Tanzania and to give her access to a high performance coaching environment, which she might not easily access otherwise.

The FIH Hockey Academy’s work with coaches, umpires and officials is at the heart of one of the four main goals of the FIH 10 Year Strategy - to increase the degree of professionalism within the game.

FIH Site



Announcement: England and Great Britain new Performance Director


Ed Barney, Great Britain Hockey

Following a worldwide search, Great Britain and England Hockey is delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Ed Barney PhD as Performance Director.
 
Dr Barney's track record of maximising performance, talent identification and strategic thinking made him the outstanding candidate for the role. With international experience in hockey, cricket and sailing, he brings a wealth of experience and a fresh perspective to this pivotal role.

With the EuroHockey Championship next year and the Hockey World Cups in 2018, this appointment comes with great opportunities ahead for both our men's and women's teams.

Considered to be one of the up and coming stars in his field, Dr Barney is currently Head of Talent Development at Great Britain Hockey and has played a key role in the evolution of the nation's hockey talent pathway.

He was a world class sailing athlete before moving into coaching, and working as an RYA national sailing coach. He then joined the England and Wales Cricket Board to become their Talent Identification Scientist before moving to Hockey as Head of Talent Development in 2013.
 
After achieving a First Class Honours degree from Exeter University he went on to complete an MSc in Sport Science at Loughborough University, prior to achieving an innovative and cutting-edge PHD in Talent Identification and Development.

CEO of England Hockey Sally Munday said “Ed's track record speaks for itself, he was the outstanding candidate and the unanimous choice of the selection panel.

"We interviewed an exceptionally strong field and Ed shone throughout the process against candidates from across hockey, as well as other Olympic disciplines and global professional sports.

"We have seen first hand the great impact he has made in our performance department, and the quality of his leadership to the talent programme across Great Britain. With his previous experience in international cricket and sailing he will also add a different perspective in leading our Performance Department and I am confident his experience, coupled with his drive and focus, will enable us to achieve our ambition of being consistently ranked in the top three sides in the world for both women and men.”

Richard Leman, President of Great Britain Hockey, said, "The three-month process we have been through to make this appointment has been really challenging for the candidates and I am delighted for Ed in coming through the process so strongly. We are particularly grateful to Liz Nicholl and Simon Timson (CEO and Performance Director of UK Sport respectively) as well as Peter Keen (Performance Director at the LTA) and Mike Hay (Deputy Chef de Mission BOA) for their time in being part of the recruitment panels. Having their  independence and expertise to select Ed from the breadth of candidates we had apply was incredibly helpful."

Ed Barney said “I am delighted to be appointed as Performance Director and am very much looking forward to building on the good work that has already taken place over a number of years.

"Our sport is in an amazing place after the women's team's success in Rio, and we are now presented with a great opportunity.

"We now need to be clinical in converting recent success into long term, systemic and consistent medal winning performance. I will be striving over the coming cycles to achieve this and I’m thoroughly looking forward to getting started."

Liz Nicholl, CEO of UK Sport, said, "The GB women’s hockey team performed brilliantly in Rio and their gold medal success will have an inspirational impact on young and talented players across the UK. This is a perfect time to strengthen the sport's performance leadership and I am delighted that Ed has been appointed to this important role to drive for further success over the coming years, and looking toward Tokyo 2020. We look forward to working with him.”

Simon Timson, Director of Performance at UK Sport, said, “Ed was the outstanding candidate for this role. He will provide GB Hockey with excellent leadership underpinned by a wealth of high performance knowledge and experience as an athlete, coach and talent scientist. I'm certain he'll enable GB Hockey’s coaching, science and medicine teams to build on their Rio success, further develop the World Class Programme and pathway to deliver consistent success on the World and Olympic stages for many years to come.”

Dr Barney will begin his role as Performance Director on 19th September 2016 and we wish him the very best of luck in his new position.

England Hockey Board Media release



PR Sreejesh recalls his hockey graduation

Tushar Dutt

PUNE: Life came to a full circle for Indian hockey captain Sreejesh PR when he inaugurated an inter-college sports event in the city on Wednesday.

From a 23-year-old rookie to India No.1 goalkeeper, Sreejesh has come a long way since he came to Pune for the first time in 2009.

Sreejesh's association with the city began when he was selected for the camps that prepared for the 2010 World Cup, Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

Being a No. 4 goalkeeper then, the Kochi boy had three senior goalkeepers — Baljit Singh, Adrian D'Souza and Bharat Chhetri — ahead of him in queue to play for India.

But Sreejesh wasn't in a hurry.

His first mentor-cum-guide, Baljit met with a freak eye injury in Pune and lost his place in the Indian squad.

"I was lucky to have seniors like Baljit bhai and Adrian who guided me well. After Baljit bhai's injury Adrian mentored me despite me being his direct competition. We bonded so well that it was fun to train together," Sreejesh said on Wednesday.

In 2010, he played in two World Cup games, but didn't get a chance in CWG and Asian Games. His biggest break came in 2011 when he saved two penalty strokes against Pakistan in Asian Champions Trophy final in China.

"I think that win was the turning point of my career. It gave me a lot of confidence for the future," he said.

A street named after him in Kochi was something beyond his expectations, but Sreejesh got the honour after playing in the London Olympics in 2012. The Games saw India finish last among the 12 teams but Sreejesh's performance was in complete contrast of his team-mates. Many big names were axed after the Games, including Chhetri. Sreejesh was hailed as India No.1 for the first time.

One of the biggest strengths of the Indian skipper is his happy-go-lucky nature. He cracks jokes, pulls his team-mates' legs, sometimes even the coaches' too. His antics not only make him popular in the team, but also lighten everybody's mood.

He is part of the sport which is known for players forming groups with their state-mates. The best part for the Kerala player was that he is yet to see another Keralite in the Indian team.

"Since beginning I used to mix with everybody. It not only allowed me to understand my teammates better, but also helped me develop on-field chemistry with them. Since the start, I belonged to everyone in the team," said the first hockey player from his state to get Arjuna award.

After a decent show in Rio, Sreejesh doesn't have any immediate plans. But the Chief Sports Organiser with the Kerala government's education department wishes to have more players from his state.

"I am not sure about the future, but I would love to prepare players who can represent my state at national and international level."

The Times of India



Team GB's Hockey Goalie Maddie Hinch for Prime Minister?

Eight out of eight wins and an Olympic Gold. We think so.

By Hannah Nathanson



Maddie Hinch is what goalie dreams are made of.

At the Rio Games, her first Olympics, the 27-year-old from Somerset saved four penalties in the final against The Netherlands, helping her team secure hockey history by becoming the first British women to win Gold.

'Every goalie dreams of being able to play a part in the way that I did.

The tough times that come with the keeping, when you literally stand there in the cold or you get the ball out of the net and that's the only contribution you make to the game, they're all worth it when you get to literally save your team and play a huge part.' 

Now she's making the most of her hero's return, sharing the couch on Jonathan Ross with Renee Zellweger and John Malkovich and signing hockey sticks for fans.

Next she's going to Holland to play club hockey (that won't be awkward or anything).

But before she left she spoke exclusively to ELLE about partying on flight BA2016, her dramatic goalie style and how set-backs have only made her stronger.

Nothing will top winning Gold at Rio

It doesn't get any better than that.

We can always do back-to-back gold medals but we will never create the history that we did in the fashion that we did it.

Getting 8 from 8 and the draw of the final, it was like a fairytale.

I feel like I'm in the prime of my career

I can go on now and try and enjoy it even more.

Fingers crossed no youngster comes and knocks me off.


Maddie Hinch takes out the Maartje Paumen Stroke in the Rio final

My skills as a hockey goalie started on the rounders field

When I was 12 I joined a new school in the summer term and started playing rounders. Apparently I was the most dramatic rounders player they'd ever seen.

I would dive for balls, catch them and then do an army roll.

The rounders coach said, 'Maddie, we've got to get you in goal next year.'

So she sent me home with a set of pads.

I think it was probably because I was just the new girl though.

No one wants to put on hockey pads when you're a 12 year-old girl

They're smelly, sweaty, you don't get to run around and you walk a bit funny.

But I think it's the best position on the pitch.

You've got to be as athletic as the rest of the team, in some ways even more so.

I let people calling me a tomboy bother me more than I should have

As a kid I was sports mad, always running around the garden, climbing trees and then falling out of them.

I spent a lot of my time with my little brother chasing toads in the garden or going fishing. 

I struggled to get picked on a county and national level

I was different because I was smaller and a bit more dramatic.

Other goalies used to just stand there or were quite a lot bigger than me.

But now the game has become a lot faster and so as a keeper if you don't want to move, you're not going to make it.


Maddie Hinch at Rio

I wouldn't be the standard I am now, if I hadn't suffered knock downs

It made me more determined.

I've had to train a lot harder because it hasn't just been given to me.

When I talk to kids at school I tell them it's pretty normal to suffer setbacks and you've got to look at them as a chance to get stronger, find the benefits in them.

Goal keeper is the most mentally challenging position on the pitch

It's because of the individuality.

A shoot out is just mind games. If I move on the line or bang the goal posts I'm just messing around with the players.

When people are nervous they'll take in everything, so they'll see me moving or hear me banging.

The best thing they can do is ignore me.

I'm definitely one of the more animated sportswomen

You can tell everything I'm thinking on the pitch. You can tell when I'm angry or down.

In the past people have judged me for that but now we're very accepting as a team.

We know everyone is different and that's good.

I hit a 135kg squat and ran 5m in under a second before Rio

It's the best shape I've been in. As a keeper you've got to be your best throughout the game.

There's no time for fatigue.

Sport creates friendships you don't find anywhere else

I'm a massive team player. I would never see myself in an individual sport because I'd find it too lonely.

You make friends for life through team sports: you've all got the same interests in terms of what you want out of sport, you're all there together and you can all lean on each other when things get tough.

Being a keeper has a certain image to it

On nights out, people ask me what I do and I tell them I'm a hockey player.

When they ask which position I say '…Forward' because I know as soon as I say goalie there is a stereotypical image in their heads.

I'll always put a little bit of make up on when I play

We all do before big matches. We're like 'look good, play good.'

But we don't do it to impress anyone, it's part of our routine: you shower, make yourself look great,  feel good and play the best you can.

We chose Economy over Business Class on the BA2016 flight home

Because we won Gold we could sit in Business Class but there were only 16 seats and 19 of us.

We didn't make it that far to then split up so we all went to sit in Economy and showed the rest of the plane, including the Brownlee brothers, how to party.

We drank lots of free champagne, then our meal came and we passed out! 

My mum hates my nickname 'Mad Dog'

She's like 'Where has that come from?' I think it's because my personality is a bit nuts and I'm a bit crazy on the pitch.

Mad Dog for Prime Minister?

She's got our vote.

Elle

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