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All the news for Monday 12 December 2016

Belgium and Spain write the headlines on Day 4 in Lucknow



It was another entertaining day at the Uttar Pradesh Hockey Junior World Cup Men Lucknow 2016, with Belgium and Spain writing the headlines at the Major Dhyan Chand Hockey Stadium. It was also a good day for Germany and Malaysia, who were both winners on Day 4.

Germany made it three wins from three matches to guarantee a first place finish in Pool C thanks to a convincing 6-1 triumph over Japan. The reigning champions produced their best performance of the competition with Constantin Staib opening the scoring before Anton Boeckel scored either side of half time to make it 3-0. Thies Ole Prinz, Timm Herzbruch and Lukas Windfeder completed Germany’s scoring before Japan captain Ryo Ozawa grabbed a consolation. "We were not so happy with our first two performances [against Spain and New Zealand], and this was our last test to get ourselves ready for the quarter-finals”, said Boeckel, who sits at the top of the scorer’s table with four goals. “We really wanted a better atmosphere on the pitch, and that is what we did today.”  As the winners of Pool C, in the quarter-finals Germany will meet the team that finishes second in Pool D.

Germany were joined in the quarter-finals by Spain, who claimed a second place finish in Pool C in dramatic circumstances - a last minute draw against New Zealand to denied the junior Black Sticks a place in the knock-out stages. A 66th minute strike from Dylan Thomas gave New Zealand a 3-2 lead and one foot in the quarter-finals, but Jan Lara Rosell netted two minutes from full time to give Spain the draw that they needed to progress. Spain will face a quarter-final match against the side that finishes top of Pool D, a position currently held by host nation India.

The day also featured action in Pool B, with the Netherlands falling to a narrow defeat at the hands of Belgium while Malaysia proved too strong for Egypt. A fortuitous goal from Terrance Pieters gave the Netherlands the lead against Belgium three minutes after half time, but Thomas Verheijen levelled the scores before Quentin van Lierde showed lightening reflexes to move the Red Cougars ahead with a fine close range finish. Parity was restored thanks to Bram van Groesen’s penalty stroke, but a wonderful deflection from Henri Raes in the closing stages sealed the win for Belgium. “It is always nice to beat the Dutch and it was a really important pool match”, said Belgium captain Victor Wegnez after the match. “Maybe the last goal was a bit lucky as I think he [Henri Raes] had his eyes closed, but I think we deserved it.” The result put Belgium top of Pool B, while Malaysia’s 2-0 victory over Egypt moved them level on points with the Netherlands with one round of matches remaining. Goals in each half from Mohamad Zulhamizan and Khaliq Hamirin gave the Malaysians all three points.

FIH site

Dragons Raes breathes fire into Belgian Junior team



KHC Dragons’ Henri Raes scored a dramatic winner for Belgium in the Junior World Cup in Lucknow, India as they saw off the Netherlands 3-2 in Pool B to make it two wins from two.

A fortuitous goal from Terrance Pieters gave the Netherlands the lead against Belgium three minutes after half time, but Thomas Verheijen, another Dragons man, levelled the scores before Quentin van Lierde showed lightning reflexes to move the Red Cougars ahead with a fine close range finish.

Parity was restored thanks to Bram van Groesen’s penalty stroke, but a wonderful deflection from Raes in the closing stages sealed the win for Belgium.

“It is always nice to beat the Dutch and it was a really important pool match”, said Belgium captain Victor Wegnez after the match.

“Maybe the last goal was a bit lucky as I think he [Henri Raes] had his eyes closed, but I think we deserved it.”

The result put Belgium top of Pool B, while Malaysia’s 2-0 victory over Egypt moved them level on points with the Netherlands with one round of matches remaining. Goals in each half from Mohamad Zulhamizan and Khaliq Hamirin gave the Malaysians all three points.

Elsewhere, Spain qualified with Germany for the knock-out stages thanks to a 3-3 draw with New Zealand.

Germany made it three wins from three matches to guarantee a first place finish in Pool C thanks to a convincing 6-1 triumph over Japan. The reigning champions produced their best performance of the competition with Constantin Staib opening the scoring before Anton Boeckel scored either side of half time to make it 3-0.

Thies Ole Prinz, Timm Herzbruch and Lukas Windfeder completed Germany’s scoring before Japan captain Ryo Ozawa grabbed a consolation.

"We were not so happy with our first two performances [against Spain and New Zealand], and this was our last test to get ourselves ready for the quarter-finals”, said Boeckel, who sits at the top of the scorer’s table with four goals.

Germany were joined in the quarter-finals by Spain, who claimed a second place finish in Pool C in dramatic circumstances - a late draw against New Zealand denied the junior Black Sticks a place in the knock-out stages.

A 66th minute strike from Dylan Thomas gave New Zealand a 3-2 lead and one foot in the quarter-finals, but Jan Lara Rosell netted two minutes from full time to give Spain the draw that they needed to progress. Spain will face a quarter-final match against the side that finishes top of Pool D, a position currently held by host nation India.

Euro Hockey League media release

Germans find the rhythm

Crush Japan 6-1 on ‘bumpy’ turf; Spain draw with New Zealand

Indervir Grewal


Japan’s goalkeeper dives to save an attack from Germany during their World Cup match on Sunday. Tribune photo

Lucknow: Despite winning all their three matches, today was the first time the German players were seen smiling as they walked back to their dugout.

“We were not satisfied with our performance in the first two matches. But today we were much better,” German player Constantin Staib said after the 6-1 win over Japan.

Staib said that it was a complete performance; and it suggests that they have finally gotten used to the “bumpy pitch”. “The pitch is bumpy and it is affecting our game. We play a passing game but we can’t play fast on this turf,” German coach Valentin Altenburg had said after their previous win. “This is also causing problems with the penalty corners.”

That’s a department Germany didn’t have any problems in today, scoring two penalty corner goals. They were seen stopping the ball almost one metre outside the circle. “We had tried out different places at the top of the circle before the match,” said Staib. Germany also played the last 10 minutes without the goalkeeper, while leading 6-0. “I realised that the boys were getting comfortable so I wanted to make it exciting. Also, we might have to play without the goalkeeper later in the tournament, and we could afford to test it out today,” Altenburg said.

Germany, the first team to finish their pool matches, will have three days’ rest before the quarterfinals, and Staib said the focus was on recovery.

The Tribune

Spain snatch dramatic draw with Kiwis


Photo: FIH/World Sport Pics

A late Spain goal has delivered a heart breaking 3-3 draw for the New Zealand Under 21 Men at the Junior World Cup in India.

The Kiwis came into their final Pool C game needing to beat the Spanish to earn a place in the quarter finals.

After a tight opening period of play, Spain opened the scoring in the 21st minute thanks to a penalty corner from Llorenc Piera Grau.

Following the halftime break New Zealand responded with a 44th minute strike from Sam Hiha before the Kiwis grabbed the lead 15 minutes later after a penalty corner from Jonty Keaney.

The final 20 minutes of the game were thrilling with Spain equalising following a Enrique Gonzalez de Castejon goal only for Dylan Thomas to snatch back a 3-2 lead with a terrific field goal in the 66th minute.

But Spain broke Kiwi hearts in the final minute with Jan Lara Rosell delivering a levelling field goal to see his side progress to the quarter finals and New Zealand miss out.

The result saw Spain finish second in the pool on four points with only goal difference clinching their place as the Kiwis also finished on four after a win, draw and loss from their three pool matches.

NEW ZEALAND 3: (Sam Hiha, Jonty Keaney, Dylan Thomas)
SPAIN 3: (Llorenc Piera Grau, Enrique Gonzalez de Castejon, Jan Lara Rosell)
Halftime: Spain 1-0

Hockey New Zealand Media release

Spain make quarters after thriller against NZ

Asheem Mukerji

LUCKNOW: Spaniards braved high tension to enter the quarterfinals of the Junior Men's Hockey World Cup on Sunday, going past New Zealand on better goal average after both the sides played a nerve-wracking 3-3 draw. Belgium pulled a rabbit out of their hat to stun higher-ranked Netherlands 3-2, while Germany thrashed Japan 6-1 for their third successive win. Malaysia downed Egypt 2-0.

Spain only required a draw to make the knockouts from Pool C after Germany. The Blacksticks went into the lead twice but on both the occasions, the Spaniards fought back to equalize. Finally when Spanish goalkeeper Albert Perez safely palmed a penalty corner drag-flick from David Brydon, after the final hooter had gone, the Spaniards jumped with joy on a foggy night at the Major Dhyan Chand stadium.

After Spain led the first-half by a solitary goal by Llorenc Piera Grau, the second-half was nothing short of a suspense thriller.

After the break, Sam Hiha got the equalizer for the New Zealanders in the 44th minute, and then Jonty Keaney put them ahead in the 59th minute.

The Times of India

Spain crush NZ's hopes, likely to face India in quarter-final

LUCKNOW: Spain produced a spirited performance to eke out a fighting 3-3 draw against Oceania runners-up New Zealand in their last Pool C match to book a quarter-final berth in the men's Junior Hockey World Cup at the Major Dhyan Chand Astroturf stadium on Sunday.

Spain are now likely to face favourites India in the quarter-finals.

Both Spain and New Zealand ended their pool engagements with four points from three matches but it was the Spaniards who sailed through to the knock-out stages, courtesy better goal difference.

Spain secured their berth in the last-eight stage because of a two goal advantage over their rivals.

Six-time champions and title holders Germany topped the pool with an all-win record.

Spain took the lead in the 21st minute through Llorenc Piera Grau before New Zealand seized the initiative in the second half through goals from Sam Hiha (44th) and Jonty Keaney (59th).

Spain drew level three minutes later through skipper Enrique Gonzalez de Castejon's (62nd) field strike before New Zealand restored their lead four minutes later when Dylan Thomas scored from a field effort.

New Zealand needed a win to progress to the quarterfinals but their hopes were shattered in the last minute by the Spaniards.

In search of the all-important equaliser, Spain went all out and tasted success a minute from the hooter when Jan Lara Rosell (69th) scored a fine goal to the disappointment of the Kiwis.

New Zealand, however, were in no mood to give up and unleashed an attack on the Spanish goal in the next move which resulted in a penalty corner just seconds from the final hooter, but they failed to utilise the opportunity.

Meanwhile, in the other match of Pool C, six-time champions and title holders Germany spanked Japan 6-1 to maintain their unbeaten record in the tournament.

Anton Boeckel (25th, 39th minutes) struck twice while Constantin Staib (3rd), Ole Thies Prinz (54th), Timm Herzbruch (58th) and Lukas Windfeder (63rd) were the other goal scorers for Germany.

Japan's lone goal came late in the match from the sticks of Ryo Ozawa (67th).

With three wins from as many games, Germany topped Pool C and will take on Pool D runners up in the quarterfinals.

Japan, on other hand, are yet to taste victory in the tournament and will now feature in classification matches.

However, the match of the day was between Belgium and Netherlands in Pool B.

It took a spirited performance from Belgium, who finished fourth in Euro Hockey Junior Championship, to stun reigning junior European champions Netherlands 3-2 in a keenly-contested encounter.

Belgium came back from a goal down to stun their rivals with goals coming from the sticks of Thomas Verheijen (48th), Quentin van Lierde (56th) and Henri Raes (9th).

Netherlands' goals were scored by Terrance Pieters (38th) and Bram van Groesen (64th).

Belgium are atop Pool B with two wins from as many games and will next play Malaysia in their final pool fixture, while Netherlands are placed second on three points and will face minnows Egypt in the last preliminary round match tomorrow.

In the other Pool B match of the day, Malaysia opened their account in the tournament with a 2-0 win over Egypt.

Malaysia scored in both the halves through Zulhamizan Mohamad (13th) and Khaliq Hamirin (61st).

While Egypt are out of contention for a quarterfinal berth, Malaysia will have to beat Belgium in their next match to be in the hunt.

The Times of India

Malaysia to face Belgium after win over Egypt

by Rajes Paul

Three days after a humbling 7-2 thrashing by Holland, the Malaysians came out firing on all cylinders against Egypt at the Major Dhyan Chand Hockey Stadium in chilly Lucknow, India, yesterday.

And they were rewarded with goals by Mohd Zulhamizan Awang Abas (13th minute) and Hamirin Khaliq (61st).

The win has also given coach Wallace Tan the belief that his men can actually make the quarter-finals. Of course to do that Malaysia will have to beat Belgium today.

“It was a good and timely win for us and we’re happy. Belgium beat Holland today and we have to go all out against the Belgians tomorrow,” said Wallace

“The door to the quarter-finals is still open ... there is every chance for us, but we need to play a much better game.”

Belgium showed that they are the team to beat after edging Holland 3-2 yesterday.

Belgium top the group with six points while Holland and Malaysia have three points each. Egypt have lost both matches.

The Star of Malaysia

India will look to stay unbeaten on road to quarterfinals

Uthra Ganesan


HEARTBREAK: New Zealand’s Sam Hiha (left) consoles teammate Kieran O’Connor after their team failed to enter the quarterfinals. 

LUCKNOW: With nine goals in two games so far, India will hope to enter the business end of the Junior World Cup with an all-win record when it takes on South Africa in its final Pool D match here on Monday.

India is all but assured of a quarterfinal spot unless it suffers a huge defeat, which on current form looks unlikely. The match provides a chance for India to get disciplined with both coach Harendra Singh and Roelant Oltmans accepting that the team suffered for over-excitement in both games so far.

The results have papered over the cracks but the team knows they are there. The defence has been shaky and a tad slow falling back after an attack, leaving space open for counterattacks. Fouls and suspensions at crucial moments, specially those that are unnecessary, are a concern. Against England, Mandeep Singh picked up a yellow card and his absence saw the opposition score twice in five minutes.

Oltmans was blunt in his assessment when he said, “we got a few unnecessary cards and gave away two goals in the last 10 minutes. The cards were completely unnecessary. The tackles were half down on the pitch and it occurred because of over-excitement. This is part of the learning process. These are lessons from this game which we take along.”

Harendra was more sympathetic. “They are playing a World Cup and you have to accept that there will be anxiety. You have to accept that they are youngsters who wait four years for a big tournament.

“The fouls were unnecessary, we need to control our emotions. But it’s better that it has happened here, we can’t afford such mistakes in the knockout stage,” he said.

On the positive side, the team’s structure and movement improved significantly after the first game. The drag-flicking duo of defenders Harmanpreet Singh and Varun Kumar have gelled well in both departments, while Armaan Qureshi, Gurjant Singh and Neelkanta Sharma have kept the feeding lines open.

Mandeep Singh and Parvinder Singh have been impressive upfront, both in terms of shots on goal and earning penalty corners. Amidst all this, captain Harjeet Singh remains the beating heart of the team.

Both England and South Africa have three points and a draw would be enough for the host to retain the top spot. Even a loss may not make much difference given the big goal difference it enjoys. England is expected to be the other team to advance from the group after its last game against Canada.

A win would propel India to the top of Pool D, taking on Pool C’s second-placed Spain in the quarterfinals after the latter pushed New Zealand out of contention on goal difference despite a 3-3 draw.

Earlier in the day, defending champion Germany wrapped up its league engagements unbeaten with a 6-1 victory against Japan to top Pool C.

In Pool B, Belgium went on top with an emotional 3-2 win against Netherlands while Malaysia beat Egypt 2-1.

The results: Pool C: Germany 6 (Anton Boeckel 2, Constantin Staib, Ole Thies Prinz, Timm Herzbruch, Lukas Windfeder) bt Japan 1 (Ryo Ozawa); Spain (Llorenc Grau Piera, Enrique Gonzalez, Jan Rosell) drew with New Zealand 3 (Sam Hiha, Jonty Keaney, Dylan Thomas).

Pool B: Belgium 3 (Thomas Verheijen, Quentin van Lierde, Henri Raes) bt the Netherlands 2 (Terrance Pieters, Bram van Groessen); Malaysia 2 (Zulhamizan Mohamad, Khaliq Hamirin) bt Egypt 0.

Monday’s schedule: Pool A: Australia vs Austria (10 a.m.), Korea vs Argentina (12 noon). Pool B: The Netherlands vs Egypt (2 p.m.), Malaysia vs Belgium (4 p.m.). Pool D: India vs South Africa (6 p.m.).

The Hindu

Buoyant India eye top spot in the pool

Asheem Mukerji

LUCKNOW: After two good shows and a quarterfinal berth in pocket, India will be competing with themselves when they take on South Africa in their final league match of the Junior Men Hockey World Cup at Major Dhyan Chand stadium on Monday. The home side has looked assured and settled in their games against Canada and England, registering comfortable wins. Now a win, or even a draw against South Africa will propel the side to the top of Pool D. And, that is highly probable as the African side hasn't looked the best in the championship.

India, on the other hand, had shown the character and resolve to sail past England 5-3 after conceding an early goal. Coach Harendra Singh as usual said: "We will not lose focus and concentrate on the next game."

Manager Roelant Oltmans, a master-schemer, had lavish praise for the ever-dependable Harjeet Singh, whose role as a linkman was crucial to India's fortunes. The India skipper manned the midfield with elan feeding the forwards intelligently. He has been instrumental in India playing some free-flowing hockey.

But, Harendra was a little concerned by the two green cards for Santa Singh and Sumit against England. "It was unnecessary. The boys shouldn't get emotional, and that is one thing we will have to talk it out," he said. "It's good it has come in the league matches, and we should be careful from now."

Another worrying point was the two goals conceded in the final ten minutes. But, Oltmans brushed it off saying: "It's not an issue. I have heard this question of last ten minutes many a time. There is not an issue of fitness."

All said and done, the confident Indians will now be looking to nail down the Springboks with another clinical show on Monday.

MONDAY'S FIXTURES:

Pool A: Australia vs Austria (10 am); Argentina vs Korea (12 noon). Pool B: Netherlands vs Egypt (2 pm); Belgium vs Malaysia (4 pm). Pool D: India vs South Africa (6 pm)

The Times of India

Confident India look to iron out flaws against South Africa


Indian team celebrate after beating England by 5-3 during Jr. World Cup Hockey Tournament at Major Dhyanchand Stadium in Lucknow on Saturday (PTI)

'We need to control our emotions,' says head coach Harendra Singh.

Aiming to make the quarterfinals with an all-win record, favourites India would look to iron out the chinks in their armoury when they take on South Africa in their last Pool D match of the men's Junior Hockey World Cup on Monday.

With two handsome wins over Canada (4-0) and England (5-3), the Indians colts have virtually secured their place in the quarterfinals and would need only a draw to guarantee their spot. Going by present form and their stature in world hockey, the Indians are favourites to win the fixture against South Africa, which will help the team enter the business end of the tournament with its confidence intact.

India are presently leading Pool D with maximum six points from two games but both England and South Africa are still in the hunt with three apiece. Even if India lose they are front-runners to qualify for the quarters as they enjoy a goal difference of six compared to their opponents and only a defeat by a huge margin can dash their hopes.

That scenario looks highly unlikely and going by the situation, India and England are expected to qualify for the last-eight round from the pool. England will fancy their chances against minnows Canada in their last pool match on Tuesday.

As indicated by the team's head coach Harendra Singh, India would be looking to utilise the match against South Africa to iron out their flaws. Harendra's statement came after India conceded two goals in the last 10 minutes of the match against England, courtesy unnecessary fouls that resulted in two yellow and two green cards.

"We have to accept that they are youngsters who wait four years for a big tournament so excitement will always be there. But the fouls were unnecessary. We need to control our emotions. Better that it has happened here but we can't afford such mistakes in the knockout stage," Harendra had said.

The Indian colts made significant improvements in their game with each passing day, and that was visible in their game against England. "We scored field goals, tried variations in penalty corners, counter attacked. Day by day improvement is evidently visible," Harendra said.

DNA

Fitness first is the mantra as teams get wary of a new, improved India

Uthra Ganesan

LUCKNOW: About a decade ago, as Indian hockey struggled to hold on to distant glories wile turning a blind eye to desperate requests from the active players, a senior Indian team member was candid enough to admit how the world’s top teams rarely bothered to match Indian skills, knowing well they could easily outplay the Indians in every other department.

“I was told by a Dutch player that half the time, they knew they would win a game even before we walked on the turf. It was all in the body — the muscles, the strength, the body language, everything. We knew we could not match them either on the run or body tackles. We only had our skills to fall back on, and it wasn’t much to win titles,” he had said.

Cut to 2016, and the one feature of the Indian team participating in the ongoing Junior World Cup here that has rival coaches concerned is its supreme fitness and quickness on the field. That fitness was visible in every aspect of the game against England — the constant outrunning of opposition, the ability to effect turnovers and attack, falling back to defend and the desperate grouping to repossess the ball.

“I think against India, we need to defend really well. India is fast, very attacking, so individually the defence has to be excellent. Also, you can’t play India on their own game. So don’t be ridiculously fast, don’t get caught dribbling the ball far too much and so on. Playing tactically and passing the ball is a good way against India. And there were times when we were caught playing India in its style of hockey,” England coach Jon Bleby admitted after the game.

Fruition of a process

It was a vindication as much of the level of hard work put in by the players in raising their levels as of the process put in place for the 7-8 years. It began with Spaniard Jose Brasa, who was the first to introduce the concept of a scientific advisor to Indian hockey (Jesus Garcia Pallares) and continued with every coach that followed, including Roelant Oltmans at present. It was also a vindication of junior coach Harendra Singh’s insistence on fitness being the foundation to all success all these years, when past greats would continue to put emphasis on skills instead.

“For me, fitness has been the base of everything, not just for results on field. It also increases a team and coach’s self-confidence in being able to execute any plan. I know if my players are fit, they can adapt to any change, they can adjust to any tactic. I have always believed in this, and I am happy to see the efforts from the team being recognised by the world now,” he smiled.

German coach Valentin Altenburg is among the increasing number of young coaches who like to experiment in an attempt to push their teams to their limits. But his tenure with German hockey — first as coach of the junior side before being promoted to the seniors ahead of the Olympics and now back to juniors — has coincided with one of the powerhouses of world hockey being slow off the starting blocks. And he admitted that the Indians were pretty quick in contrast to his own.

“It has to do with the mindset and also the fitness. I think a lot of the players, specially the more experienced ones in the senior side, still are mentally in the 35x2 mould. Germans like to take the ball, get comfortable with it and get into a rhythm before beginning to attack. It is more a rhythm thing but now we see teams being quick right from the beginning and it forces us on the back-foot early on.

“The Indians in that sense are pretty quick, they are fast to counter and can keep up the pace all through. It is not easy to beat them simply by constantly running any more, they have adjusted to the new format and here we see them adjusted to the old one equally well, it is a very good measure of their fitness,” he said.

When someone tried to ask about the “last 10 minutes” play by the Indian team, Oltmans cut him short. “That is history. We have won more games in the last 10 minutes than we have lost in the past many years, so that is no longer an issue. We conceded two goals (against England) but they were because of unnecessary cards, not fitness,” he said curtly.

Effort, determination the key

Harendra credited physical trainer Cody Tribe for the achievement. “He has worked so hard to get them to this level. He is almost possessive about their fitness and I think it shows in their efforts as well,” he said. And Armaan Qureshi, one of the new tribe of youngsters in the Indian side that is cocky enough to know they are among the best, insisted that it was an added motivation.

“We know we are good, we are fit. But when we get compliments on our fitness, it only makes it better. There is a great satisfaction in others saying they are concerned about our fitness, the confidence gets really high. We used to read about how the foreign teams beat us on fitness earlier. Only we know the kind of hard work and effort we have put in during camps to reach this level; it is insane. No one can imagine that. But somewhere we are all aware that it is essential to reach the top. And when it gets the recognition, all of it seems worth it,” he said.

Belgian coach Jeroen Baart concurred. “I know the physical trainer of India, Cody Tribe, very well, and he has done a fantastic job. From what I have seen about them in the last few meetings, they can put all the pressure they want to in there during a game, they can keep the same level of energy and intensity for all 70 minutes, which is great. They are up there with top countries like Germany, Holland, ourselves. But the more games you play, more fatigue will come in and then we will see who prepared themselves the best. But India is definitely up there, no questions on that,” he insisted.

Senior coach Roelant Oltmans loves putting his team under pressure to test them and has been suitably impressed with the performances here. “We were 0-1 down, which people didn’t like, but I liked it because all of a sudden it becomes a demanding job. And what they did in the last 10 minutes of the first half was outstanding. We put so much pressure on them, which created so many opportunities, and the way they continued in the same vein in the second half, at least in the first 20 minutes, was heartening to see,” he said, tipping his hat to the players’ ability to keep pressing ahead.

The former player, who incidentally was also part of India’s maiden Junior World Cup triumph in 2001, would be glad to hear it.

The Hindu

Six-pack India packs a punch

From being ridiculed for their slouchiness, India are now praised for their renewed fitness.

by Mihir Vasavda


Improved fitness has made India a more athletic side that can sustain its energy till the last minute. (Source: PTI)

Of all the adjectives you’d generally use to describe the Indian hockey team, ‘ridiculously quick’ and ‘extremely fit’ aren’t the ones that would come to your mind. Skillful? Yes. Stylish? Most definitely. But speedy?

This, after all, was a team that once, as per some accounts, guzzled a glass of lassi going into a match and gulped down a cup or two of ginger tea at half time. India were a respected opponent because of their skills. But their speed never worried their rivals, especially the Europeans or the Australians. It was easy for fitter rivals to wear down an unfit Indian team.

On Saturday, though, this is how England under-21 coach Jon Blebby assessed the modern Indian team: “India is fast, very attacking… You can’t play India their own game. So don’t be ridiculously fast. They have some really fit players who can last. And there were times when we were caught playing India their style of hockey which doesn’t suit us.”

Blebby’s German counterpart Valentin Altenburg, also the coach of their senior team, corroborated his views. “India is a very quick and athletic team. They are a fit team with outstanding individual players like Nilakanta (Sharma) and Mandeep (Singh). What impresses me is how they combine everything: they are quick, technically very strong but are also tactically very disciplined. So it’s becoming very difficult to beat them,” Altenburg says.

India’s breezy, free-flowing style combined with high levels of fitness and tactical awareness has changed the attitude of hockey’s heavyweights towards them. It’s a new, fit India. And it’s a result of five years of planned work. When David John first came to India as the physio in 2011, he had a one-point agenda: to raise the team’s fitness to a level so that it can last full 70 minutes. Such was the state of their fitness that when the FIH made matches a 60-minute affair, many joked it would suit the Indians just well, taking a potshot at the team’s inability to last the entire duration.

John quickly put systems in place and restructured the players’ diet plans while then coach Michael Nobbs sacrificed tactics to make fitness as their sole area of focus. “If you can’t last the entire match, then there’s no point of employing tactics,” Nobbs once said.

John replaced lassi with black coffee, the most significant change in the players’ drinking habits. Their food intake, water consumption, supplements and sleeping hours were closely monitored. Five years on, John returns to India as the country’s high performance director. He will be glad to see his ideas being implemented even with the junior side by the team’s Australian scientific advisor Cody Tribe. “One thing I noticed was the players, most of them from Punjab, consumed a lot of milk. So I cut down on it significantly. That was the biggest change in terms of habit,” Tribe says.

Food served to them is bland: dry, boiled and tandoori chicken is the staple for non-vegetarians while the six vegetarians in the team survive mainly on mushroom and salad. Raw fruits (uncut) are also included in their diet.

“Occasionally, they are allowed a small bite of sweets. But on days when there is no practice. When he introduced no sugar diktat the boys were hesitant. Through power point presentation we tried to educate them, it was a long process but they understood the importance,” coach Harendra Singh says. Tribe adds, jokingly: “If I had my way it would be no sweets, but sometimes the boys are a little bit sneaky.”

The impact of disciplined diet is visible on the field. In their 5-3 win over Saturday, each player covered an average distance of 8km. Against Canada in their opening match on Thursday, they ran for close to 9km each. The agility and alertness has reflected in improving the finer aspects of their game as well.

On majority of the occasions when India lost possession against Canada, they snatched it back within four to six seconds. India won possession in Canada’s half 17 times, thrice in the 25-yard circle, a consequence of the high-press style they have recently adopted, which at times puts so much pressure on the opposition that it forces turnover of possession. Against England, the turnover time was six to eight seconds. This has become the most significant aspect of the team as it helps them launch counterattacks at blinding pace, which even Blebby observed. However, because England are a much stronger opposition compared to Canada, India had to launch most of the counters from their half. England entered India’s half 38 times but on 11 occasions their attack was killed before they could enter the semicircle. “It shows that the team’s concentration level is high when defending. Concentration and fitness are inter-linked,” Tribe says.

Blebby says the best way to play this Indian side is by slowing down the game, passing the ball around and making them work hard to regain possession. “Don’t get caught dribbling the ball for far too long. Don’t play quick, these Indian players are so fit they’ll chase you down. You can’t beat India at their own game,” he said after the defeat. Quick and fit. The two new adjectives that define Indian hockey.

Indian Express

Rob starts new career

Indervir Grewal


Rob Hammond

Lucknow: At one end of the blue pitch, the Australian players, wearing their typical sleeveless shirts even on a cold and windy day, warmed up for their opening match, against Argentina. Shouting out instructions between carrying out mundane chores like clearing the field of training jerseys, was a bald man in his mid-30s.

The man, going about his job in an unassuming manner, is one of the most successful players in hockey history. Rob Hammond, having won one Olympics (2004) and two World Cup (2010, 2014) titles, was one of the greatest midfielders of his generation.

The 35-year-old, who retired in 2014, joined the junior team’s coaching staff as an assistant coach three months ago. Coaching was the next rational step for Hammond, who was known for his leadership skills.

“I tell you, it makes me miss my playing days,” said Hammond about the start of his coaching career. “Playing is the easiest job!”

Hammond had 256 appearances for the Kookaburras, which should make the junior players automatically respect him. So do the players take him more seriously because he was such a successful player? “It doesn’t matter. If you are a successful player who can’t coach, the boys will know,” he said.

Another European rivalry

The final hooter went, with the score reading Belgium 3, Netherlands 2; the men in red and black, spread all over the pitch, let out bellows of joy and ran towards each other to celebrate the come-from-behind win. It was a thrilling match with the lead changing hands four times and the last goal coming in the penultimate minute. Still, it was surprising to see such emotional celebrations, which lasted long after the presentation ceremony, for a pool win.

“It was a stressful match but we deserved to win it. It is important to top the pool to avoid Australia in the quarterfinals,” said Belgium captain Victor Wegnez.

Asked about the celebrations, a wry smile broke out on Wegnez’s face. “It is always special to beat the Netherlands,” he said. The Germany-Netherlands rivalry is very famous; is there a Belgian rivalry with the Dutch? “Yes, we share a huge border, so it’s a bigger rivalry,” the captain said.

Belgium coach Jeroen Baart added that being neighbours, the emotions always run high.

Netherlands coach Eric Verboom agreed. “We were always the favourites, we had the bigger clubs. But now their hockey has grown and they are getting more clubs,” said Verboom.

Belgium’s famous 3-1 win over the Netherlands in the semifinals of the Rio Olympics, where they won the silver, has brought a new European rivalry to the fore.

The Tribune

Stick check: Aussie legend Jamie Dwyer turns equipment designer

LUCKNOW: He might have retired from international hockey this year but Jamie Dwyer still continues to inspire a whole lot of generation, including his young Rio Olympics teammate Blake Govers who uses customised sticks only designed by the legendary striker.

Dwyer is regarded as a legend of world hockey but even after quitting the game this year the diminutive striker still did not disassociate himself from the game for a single moment.

Blake, who made his Olympic debut at Rio at the age of 20 alongside Dwyer, is a great a fan of Dwyer and prefers sticks only designed by the legendary Olympian.

Blake is one of the four international hockey players associated with Jamie Dwyer Hockey (JDH), a company launched by Dwyer which designs customised hockey gears for players.

Besides Blake, other hockey players who are associated with JDH are Argentina international Lucas Rossi and Australian women hockey players Emily Smith and Georgia Morgan.

"Besides my elder brother Kieran, I always looked up to Jamie. It was my privilege to play alongside him in the Rio Olympics although we didn't do well there. I also use sticks that are designed by Jamie himself. He designs the best sticks in the industry and he is really good and I love my sticks," Blake told PTI on the sidelines of the men's Junior Hockey World Cup here.

"Jamie designs sticks keeping in mind personal preferences. He was a very picky player so he knows inside and outside of the preferences," the young forward said.

"The sticks are made for one reason only and that is to improve your performances with the range to cover what you prefer. Jamie really knows what he is doing with all his knowledge about hockey sticks and I have never flicked and played better," he added.

Blake's sticks are 37.5 inches in length with a weight of 520 grams and balance of 38.5cm. To suit his style of play the sticks have extra low bow shape.

Blake's elder brother Kieran is a more established hockey player having made his debut for Australia in 2010. Kieran was also a member of two World Cup-winning sides (2010 New Delhi, 2014 The Hague) besides winning an Olympic bronze with the Kookaburras in 2012 London.

But going by character both the brothers are similar and are very emotional in nature as revealed by Blake.

Both the brothers, from Albion Park in NSW, have a common hobby of getting body arts and the duo have plenty of tattoos to show off, which also includes an emotional one dedicated to their cousins.

Kieran and Blake's cousins, Dominique and Nikkita Hingston, were just aged just six and five when they were murdered by their own father in New Zealand in 2001 before he hanged himself.

"Our cousins are not alive, they were little bit younger. It was a tragic incident but me and my elder brother Kieran were very close to them. Both of us have tattoos a tribute to them. I have two rose buds on the right shoulder," Blake said.

"My brother has also has a tattoo in his bicep which says, 'Two tiny rose buds God picked to bloom in heaven'."

Besides the tribute to his cousins, Blake has a tattoo of a red rose in honour of his late grandmother, cards with the birth dates of his parents and a guardian angel reflecting a story his father Ian told him as a child.

The latest addition to the young striker's tattoo list is Olympic rings inscribed just before the Rio Games although he still regrets missing his brother on his maiden Olympic journey after Kieran was not selected in the Australian final squad.

The Times of India

Black Sticks Women host Malaysia this week


Photo: BWMedia

The Black Sticks Women host Malaysia in a five test series this week at the TET MultiSports Centre in Stratford.

The series, which runs from 12-18 December, will see 12 players make their New Zealand debut with striker Samantha Harrison the most experienced with 96 caps and Kirsten Pearce the sole representative from the Rio Olympic team.

Online tickets are still available and are cheaper than at the gate.

The series is proudly supported by the Taranaki Electricty Trust (TET).

CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS NOW!

BLACK STICKS WOMEN
Malaysia Series, Taranaki

MATCH SCHEDULE

Monday 12^th December
6:30pm - Black Sticks Women vs Malaysia

Tuesday 13^th December
6:30pm - Black Sticks Women vs Malaysia

Thursday 15^th December
6:30pm - Black Sticks Women vs Malaysia

Saturday 17^th December
3:00pm - Black Sticks Women vs Malaysia

Sunday 18^th December
1:00pm - Black Sticks Women vs Malaysia

Hockey New Zealand Media release

Black Sticks down Malaysia in opener


Photo: www.photosport.nz

The Black Sticks Women have cruised to a 3-0 win over Malaysia in the first of five tests at the TET MultiSports Centre in Stratford.

Solid execution in the first half saw the Kiwis score goals through Sam Harrison, Michaela Curtis and Amy Robinson while shutting out the Malaysians.

Brooke Roberts, Pippa Norman, Tarryn Davey, Phoebe Steele, Catherine Tinning, Amy Robinson, Frances Davies and Ginny Wilson all made their international debut.

Black Sticks assistant coach Sean Dancer said there were some good signs from the youngsters but still plenty to improve on during the series.

“We had a lot of new players tonight so there was plenty of nervous energy but also excitement which was great to see,” he said.

“It was a good first half from us which we dominated and created a lot of pressure. We fell away a bit in the second half so we know what needs to be worked on ahead of game two.”

New Zealand began the game with high intensity and opened the scoring in the sixth minute when Harrison knocked in from a penalty corner.

Curtis doubled the lead 10 minutes later with a tidy finish on a good phase of play up the field.

Midlands youngster Robinson then scored her first ever goal for the Black Sticks from a top drawer piece of aggressive attack in the 18th minute.

Neither side could add to the score in the second half as Malaysia improved on defence and caused some trouble for New Zealand on the ball.

The Black Sticks go up against Malaysia in game two at 6:30pm tomorrow, with tickets still available through www.hockeynz.co.nz

The Black Sticks Women vs Malaysia series is proudly supported by the Taranaki Electricity Trust (TET).

BLACK STICKS WOMEN 3: (Samantha Harrison, Michaela Curtis, Amy Robinson)
MALAYSIA 0
Halftime: Black Sticks 3-0

Hockey New Zealand Media release

Black Sticks Women untroubled in 3-0 win over Malaysia

Christopher Reive


Sam Harrison scored the opening goal for the Blacks Sticks against Malaysia on Monday. www.photosport.nz

The Black Sticks Women have taken the upper hand in their five-match series against Malaysia with a 3-0 win in Taranaki on Monday night.

On a brisk night in Stratford, Taranaki, the New Zealand team got off to a stagnant start as, while they controlled the majority of possession in the opening exchanges, they failed to pick out the passes needed to really put pressure on the Malaysian circle.

With a number of debutants in the Black Sticks starting line up, it was hardly surprising that it took them a moment to settle.

It was the team's most experienced player Sam Harrison who got the nerve-settling first goal when she steered home an off-target shot from a penalty corner.

Harrison, who was playing in her 97th match in the black jersey, showed her experience in the midfield in the opening stanza and, alongside 64-cap striker Kirsten Pearce, led the team on a number of fast breaks and attacking moves.

With the quarter winding down, the Black Sticks doubled their lead through Michaela Curtis who slotted home after a great pass across the face of goal.

Leading 2-0 at the break, the New Zealand side came out all guns blazing in the second period and took just under three minutes to extend their lead through the stick of debutant striker Amy Robinson who got the best of a goal-mouth scramble.

The side had a number of chances to go further in front but couldn't make them count and went into the half-time break with a handy three-goal lead, with Malaysia, ranked 50th in the world, unable to make the most of the few chances they had on attack.

The third quarter began in the same fashion as the second ended - with New Zealand attacking and Malaysia doing enough to keep them at bay.

Things started to get a bit scrappy in the later stages of the quarter which ultimately saw Malaysia's Hanis Nadiah Onn shown a yellow card for deliberately slowing down a restart.

With nine minutes to go in the match, Malaysia had their best chance to get on the board, however Black Sticks debutant goalkeeper Brooke Roberts gave the striker no room to get a shot off and the ball was cleared to safety.

The Black Sticks continued to probe for holes in the Malaysian defence and found them on a number of occasions and were unlucky not to go four goals ahead, when some quality goalkeeping from Malaysia's Siti Noor Hafiza Zainordin kept the New Zealand side's total at three.

With the clock inside the last minute, Malaysia launched a promising attack, but were unable to hold the ball and the Black Sticks held on for a 3-0 win.

At a glance

Black Sticks Women 3 (S Harrison, M Curtis, A Robinson) Malaysia 0

Stuff

Wess hails special experience at PSI



Moritz Fürste scored five times in his first appearance for the international All-Stars as they won 11-7 against the South African national indoor team in front of a fervent and packed house in Cape Town on Saturday

The 2012 world player of the year was one of two newcomers to the side along with 2008 Olympic gold medalist Timo Wess for the first tie in their four match series at the Pro Series Indoor festival of indoor hockey.

Speaking about his debut in the competition, Wess said: “PSi is an absolutely amazing experience, I have not played indoor hockey in front of crowds like this before. “The SA team were really good and we will have to make sure we are stronger in the next games.”

His brother, Benni, added: “This is the craziest hockey festival in the World and it’s great to be back. South Africa have improved in the last year and so we look forward to some tough matches this week!”

Justin Domleo gave the hosts a 2-0 lead before Amsterdam’s Robert Tigges got one back from the penalty spot. His club mate Nicki Leijs provided a superb dink to equalise and then added another to swap the lead. Fürste scored his first to the delight of the crowd for 4-2.

The crowd were being treated to exhibition forms of hockey from the All Stars who passed it with incredible pace from Benni Wess, to Timo Wess, from Teun Rohof to Brynn Cleak and from Sjoerd de Wert to Austin Smith.

Quick goals from Benni Wess and Tigges made it 6-2 before outdoor Olympian Wade Paton – in his first indoor game for SA – pulled one back but another couple of Fürste goals stretched the lead.

The South Africans got three goals back via Keagan Robinson and Jethro Eustice, the latter getting a peach via a series of quick deflections. Tigges and Teun Rohof – two indoor World Cup winners – combined for another before Fürste scored his fourth. He would score another later on as did Timo Wess while Domleo also completed his hat trick.

Euro Hockey League media release

Fiji women out of hockey world league

Pravin Narain

THE Fiji women's hockey team has withdrawn from competing in the Hockey World League round two in Malaysia next month.

Instead, they will compete in the Oceania competition which will be held in Australia next October.

"The women have decided to withdraw from going to Malaysia and they have opted to play in the Oceania Cup in Australia," Fiji Hockey Federation head coach Hector Smith said.

"They think they were not ready and it is difficult for most of the girls to make themselves available during that time.

"It was a choice of going to Australia or Malaysia.

"Australia they did not do well in the Olympics, but they are number one in the world and cost was also a factor.

"They would prepare well with the longer period of time."

The Fiji men's and women's team played a series of matches against the Australian Country Club teams at the National Hockey Centre in Suva last week.

Smith said the matches were selection platform for the national squad for the men's Hockey World League round two in Bangladesh next year.

"Our new boys excelled. New players who played for the Warriors Selection and the Presidents Selection were good," Smith said.

"There is also an indication on the number of players to go abroad and have short attachments since they need continuous competition.

"We will be recommending some names and I also looked at the players to finalise my team to go to Bangladesh next year."

The Bangladesh tournament will be played next March.

The Fiji Times

Squads named for Trans-Tasman Masters

Hockey New Zealand has released all 13 squads who are set to do battle in the Masters Trans-Tasman Challenge being held in Whangarei from 2-6 May, 2017.

New Zealand and Australia will compete across 35+, 40+, 45+, 50+, 55+ and 60+ age groups in both genders with the 65+ Men also playing.

Trials were held at North Harbour Hockey Stadium over the weekend of the 26 and 27 November with over 300 people showing their wares across both days.

Particular interest will rest with the defending world champion New Zealand 60+ Women’s side, who will be looking to continue on their good from under coach Deborah Armstrong.

Women 35+, Women 45+ and Women 55+ teams were all successful in the last Trans-Tasman Challenge in Melbourne last year and will be aiming to once again defeat their arch rivals.

All age groups play a three-test series against their counterparts from Australia with the overall winner being the country which has been awarded the most points across all age groups and genders based on the following:

-          3 points for a win
-          1 point for a draw
-          0 points for a loss

If there is a tie, the trophy will be awarded to the country who has the most age group division series wins.

New Zealand last won the Trans-Tasman Challenge in Wellington, 2004 so make sure you get along to Whangarei to see all Masters teams fighting to bring the trophy home.

CLICK HERE to view the squad lists

Hockey New Zealand Media release

Irish Mens EY Hockey League Weekend Round Up


Photo credit: Deryck Vincent

Monkstown and Banbridge ran up high-scoring wins on week eight of the men’s EY Hockey League to look the clear contenders for the title.

Town were 5-1 winners on Saturday against Glenanne, a regular bogey side for them, with Sam Hyland and Davy Carson netting twice each. Ross Quirke opened the floodgates in the 20th minute with his first goal in the EYHL; Carson double the advantage on the half-hour. His second and two from Hyland stretched out a five-goal lead before Shane O’Donoghue pulled one back four minutes from the end.

On Sunday, Banbridge got the better of UCD 6-2 in a manic encounter. Bann led 4-0 by the 28th minute as two close range finishes from Dane Ward along with a Matthew Bell penalty stroke and a Jonny McKee strike. UCD got two back to have a sniff of a chance early in the second half through David Nolan and Ben McCrea.

But final quarter goals from Bell and Ward – to complete his hat trick – saw Bann home with something to spare.

Three Rock Rovers leap-frogged Cork C of I into third place thanks to a fine second half performance at Grange Road. Julian Dale’s spectacular goal, built on a monster John Jermyn overhead pass and Andrew Daunt’s inside volleyed cross, had the Garryduff side 1-0 up at half-time.

But the Rathfarnham venue has not been a happy hunting ground for C of I and they were behind by the 45th minute as Jody Hosking cracked home a reverse and Ross Canning finished off at the the back post from a flowing move to win it 2-1.

Lisnagarvey got back on the winning trail with a 2-1 win over Instonians. Paul Gleghorne, against his former club, and William Robinson exchanged corner goals in the second quarter for 1-1 at the break. Daniel Buser won the game with a touch to Matthew Nelson’s backhand cross.

On Friday night, Pembroke moved up to sixth place with a 3-1 win over Dublin 4 neighbours Railway Union. Alan Sothern had the hosts 1-0 up from play early on before Kieran Springett got one back with his first goal since arriving in Dublin from Australia.

But second half strikes from David Quinn and Patrick Good saw Pembroke home for a third win of the campaign.

Week eight results

Friday: Pembroke 3 (A Sothern, D Quinn) P Good) Railway Union 1 (K Springett)

Saturday: Monkstown 5 (D Carson 2, S Hyland 2, R Quirke) Glenanne 1 (S O’Donoghue); Lisnagarvey 2 (P Gleghorne, D Buser) Instonians 1 (W Robinson); Three Rock Rovers 2 (J Hosking, R Canning) Cork C of I 1 (J Dale)

Week eight extended reports

Friday: Pembroke 3 (A Sothern, D Quinn, P Good) Railway Union 1 (K Springett)

Pembroke recorded their third win of the campaign on Friday evening at Serpentine Avenue, pulling clear of Dublin 4 neighbours in the second half.

Alan Sothern’s seventh goal of the campaign got Pembroke up and running in the opening quarter before Australian Kieran Springett equalised from a corner with his first EYHL goal since arriving in Ireland.

But second half goals from David Quinn and Patrick Good extended out a 3-1 win for Pembroke to move closer to the top half of the table and away from the relegation places. Railway stay in ninth.

Saturday:

Monkstown 5 (D Carson 2, S Hyland 2, R Quirke) Glenanne 1 (S O’Donoghue)

Doubles from Davy Carson and Sam Hyland saw Monkstown cruise to the overnight lead in the men’s EY Hockey League, seeing off one of their regular bogey teams.

They broke the deadlock 20 minutes in, a long pass picking out Gareth Watkins in plenty of space in the right channel. He squared nicely for a diving Ross Quirke to flick in his debut EYHL goal.

Davy Carson was causing problems all day and he scampered through to hit the post with one effort before getting on the scoresheet on the half hour. Watkins pressurised the Glens’ defence into making a mistake. Carson intercepted, dummied onto his reverse and his tomahawk rifled into the bottom corner.

A couple of Glens half chances were saved by 45-year-old Gordy Clarke who was standing in for Max Maguire who was sitting college exams. Eddie O’Malley did have the ball in the goal but his effort was chalked off for an earlier foot.

Two became three in the second half when a beautiful through ball from Carson found a romping Hyland on the top of the D. He steadied himself and slapped low past Leo Micklem.

Stephen Cole then set up Carson with a beautiful through ball for a the striker to be set clean through and he finished neatly. With 10 minutes to go, Glenanne fluffed a corner which Nick Dee took quickly, allowing Town to race down the left. The initial attack was foiled but the second wave saw Carson get a deflection that was probably going in but Hyland made extra sure for 5-0.

Shane O’Donoghue got one back with four minutes to fo when he jinked past a defender and finished low with a powerful push for a consolation goal.

Three Rock Rovers 2 (J Hosking, R Canning) Cork C of I 1 (J Dale)

Three Rock Rovers moved into third place in the men’s EY Hockey League, coming from a goal down at half-time to beat Cork C of I 2-1 at Grange Road.

The opening quarter was helter-skelter, end-to-end as both teams played the game at a manic pace. Simon Wolfe received a yellow card for a bad tackle but C of I had the edge in terms of early chances.

And they took the lead in the second quarter with an absolute beauty from Julian Dale, netting his ninth goal of the season. It came from route one, a John Jermyn overhead from inside C of I’s own 23m area that was launched over the Rovers backline. One gorgeous touch later from Andrew Daunt, Dale was volleying home, opening his body out perfectly to finish for 1-0.

Jamie Carr was wise to another similar move to deny Dale from another long ball into the circle to limit the scoreline to 1-0 at the break.

The second half proved something of a sea-change in terms of the flow of the game with Rovers having the better of the chances. They got back on terms following a speedy right wing attack that broke to Jody Hosking who slammed home on his backhand.

In the 45th minute, Ross Canning then scored what proved to be the clinching goal. It was a lovely move, Garry Ringwood and Mark Samuel working the ball down the right hand side and back to Canning who finished well.

C of I had a shot blocked on the three quarter-time hooter as Rovers carried the lead into the closing quarter. The game was becoming very stretched at this stage with both sides having corners, Rovers with one, the visitors with a series of three that were repelled.

No other major chances accrued for either side as Rovers look good on the ball but C of I threatened on the counter but could not forge the leveller.

Lisnagarvey 2 (P Gleghorne, D Buser) Instonians 1 (W Robinson)

Daniel Buser’s third quarter goal saw Lisnagarvey end their wait for a win, lifting them up to fourth place in the table. They started the tie strongly with debutant Michael Robson prominent in midfield but Inst defended well to keep it scoreless into the second quarter.

There, both teams pressed hard and Garvey got their reward from a second corner with Paul Gleghorne dragging low to the right corner to score against his former club. Inst responded well and were rewarded when a stick-tackle led to a corner that William Robinson flicked home – 1-1 at half-time.

Garvey pushed on in the second half again and got back in front when Matthew Nelson broke strongly into the circle and fired a reverse-stick cross for Daniel Buser to deflect into the goal. It came while Inst were down a man for a yellow card offence.

Nelson went close to making it 3-1 in the closing quarter while Inst replied in the closing minutes with a concerted push for a leveller which never came. It leaves them on one point after eight games.

Sunday:

UCD 2 (D Nolan, B McCrea) Banbridge 6 (D Ward 3, M Bell 2, J McKee)

Banbridge remain two points off leaders Monkstown with a game in hand following their manic 5-2 win over a lively UCD.

Banbridge were 1-0 up inside a couple of minutes as Jonny McKee got free down the right wing and had time to pick out Dane Ward for a simple finish. McKee was real nuisance throughout and he added the second on 12 minutes with a thunderous strike following a turnover in midfield that was ruthlessly punished.

Matthew Bell added a third from the penalty spot after Bruce McCandless’s brilliant run and cross led to a foul on the intended striker. Ward then got his second and Bann’s fourth in the 28th minute from another sloppy clearance, McKee taking his time to pick out Ward who rolled home.

David Nolan gave UCD a lifeline with a scrambled effort and Ben McCrea’s drag-flick made it 4-2 early in the second half to up the ante. Bann wasted a plethora of chances as Stephen Dawson impressed between the posts but the game was effectively killed off when Bell’s heavily deflected drag-flick made it 5-2.

Ward completed his hat trick in the closing minutes when he smashed home into an empty net after Dawson had denied Neil Gilmore, who was playing his first game since returning from Portadown.

Irish Hockey Association media release

Irish Womens EY Hockey League Weekend Round Up

UCD ended Hermes-Monkstown’s perfect record in the women’s EY Hockey League but the visitors to Belfield remain four points clear at the head of the table at the halfway stage.

It was a tie in which fortunes swung dramatically from end to end with both teams having their moments but a 1-1 draw on Sunday evening was probably a fair result.

Rosie Carrigan’s smart finish from a disguised Chloe Watkins’ pass had the reigning champions 1-0 up on quarter-time but Sorcha Clarke’s sharp finish from close range levelled matters in the 25th minute.

Thereafter, both sides had plenty of good openings in an excellent advertisement for the league but no further goals mean both sides stay as they were before the weekend.

Railway Union scored a hugely important 3-1 win over Cork Harlequins for their playoff hopes, taking all three points from their road trip. Kate McKenna had given them the lead in the 29th minute amid a goal-mouth scramble following a corner but Yvonne O’Byrne tied things up at the break with a top solo goal.

The game hinged on a big minute in the closing quarter when Michelle Barrett hit the bar for Quins. Moments later, Sinead Dooley had the ball in the next for Railway and Anna May Whelan sealed the deal in the closing minute.

Pembroke got off the mark for the season with a 2-2 draw at Ulster Elks, coming from behind twice to draw 2-2. After a scoreless first half, Dawn Axon opened the scoring only for Rachel Scott’s penalty stroke to make it 1-1. Danni Wilson made it 2-1 Elks but Caroline Hill’s instant reply means its still all to play for in the relegation mix.

McDermott sisters Hannah and Freya gave Loreto all the points against Belfast Harlequins at Beaufort. The latter slammed home a corner goal in the first quarter before her elder sister notched the next in the second period. The win lifts Loreto into fourth place.

Ards and Pegasus shared the spoils in an Ulster derby with all the goals coming in the closing quarter. Lucy McKee gave the oranges the lead against the run of play with 10 minutes to go before Suzanne Ferris tied things up soon after from a Hannah Craig assists. Ards drop to sixth with Pegasus staying in seventh.

Women’s EY Hockey League

Saturday: Cork Harlequins 1 (Y O’Byrne) Railway Union 3 (K McKenna, S Dooley, A-M Whelan); Loreto 2 (H McDermott, F McDermott) Belfast Harlequins 0; Ulster Elks 2 (D Axon, D Wilson) Pembroke 2 (C Hill, R Scott); Pegasus 1 (S Ferris) Ards 1 (L McKee)

Sunday: UCD 1 (S Clarke) Hermes-Monkstown 1 (R Carrigan)

Day nine extended reports

Saturday: Cork Harlequins 1 (Y O’Byrne) Railway Union 3 (K McKenna, S Dooley, A-M Whelan)

Railway Union picked off a significant victory over Cork Harlequins at Farmer’s Cross to move back into the top five of the division. The visitors were the dominant force in the opening stages in terms of territory and possession, winning a corner inside a minute as Emma Smyth made her presence felt.

The Dubliners went into the lead in the 29th minute from a penalty corner with Kate McKenna getting the final touch from a penalty corner. The lead didn’t last long however. Yvonne O’Byrne broke through a few tackles before shooting on her reverse into the bottom left corner to make it 1-1 at the break.

The third quarter saw the ball move from end to end of the pitch with neither side holding possession well, setting up a big final quarter.

Harlequins had a big chance to take the lead when Rebecca Barry put her namesake Michelle, through on goal. She waited for Grace O’Flanagan to go down before flicking the ball over her only for the ball to clip the outside of the post and go wide.

Almost immediately, Railway made it 2-1 at the other end. Sinead Dooley found herself in a similar position to Barry but her finish eluded the on rushing Emma Buckley to nestle just inside the post.

The home side pushed forward in search of an equalised and forced a penalty corner that they could not convert. In the last minute, Anna-May Whelan finished the game, tapping in at the back post to make it 3-1 to the visitors.

Loreto 2 (H McDermott, F McDermott) Belfast Harlequins 0

Loreto strengthened their position in fourth place as the McDermott sisters Freya and Hannah helped score a 2-0 win over Belfast Harlequins. After a strong midfield tussle in the first half between Ali Meeke and Gemma Frazer, Loreto showed some real vigour towards the end of the first quarter and took the lead through Freya McDermott from a corner. Lizzie Colvin, after a few weeks out injured, added extra punch to Loreto’s play and the began to dominate the play as time wore on.

Quins found themselves under pressure at times but Orlagh O'Sheas's calmness and awareness was key to keeping out any further attacks. But Loreto's persistence paid off and a lovely interchange between Christina Hamill and Hannah McDermott resulted in the second goal before the big break.

It led to a more urgent second half performance from Quins with Frazer pulling the strings while strong running from Laura Johnston started to pay dividends.

Loreto did create some chances. Niamh Small showing her experience, breaking down Harlequins defence with some clever interchange work with Mia Jennings. Hayley Mulcahy's pace was causing havoc, too, but no further goals accrued in a scrappy closing quarter.

Ulster Elks 2 (D Axon, D Wilson) Pembroke 2 (C Hill, R Scott)

Pembroke finally got off the mark in the women’s EY Hockey League as they drew 2-2 at fellow strugglers Ulster Elks in Jordanstown, keeping it very tight at the bottom of the table.

Neither side were able to gain much of the ascendancy in the first half with precious few clear chances. But the game came to life in the second half when Dawn Axon - a return-signing for the Elks after a brief spell with Pegasus – breaking into the circle and hammering a low reverse stick shot into the goal.

Pembroke fought back immediately and goot a short corner and were awarded a stroke for a foot on the line. Rachael Scott scored for 1-1. It set up a frantic final quarter with Elks pressing. Danni Wilson deflected in from a cross to put Elks ahead once again. But from the restart, Elks got a green card and Pembroke broke with a cross which Caroline Hill tapped in.

Pegasus 1 (S Ferris) Ards 1 (L McKee)

Pegasus and Ards shared the spoils to leave them sitting seventh and sixth place respectively at the midway point in the women’s EY Hockey League. The hosts had several early chances with Hannah Grieve’s searching passes just going out of reach of their forwards.

Suzanne Ferris went close, too, with a well-timed deflection but Ashley McIlroy saved well. Ards were starting to build play up and take a little bit more control as first half ended scoreless. It stayed that way until 10 minutes from time when Ards took the lead from their first corner of the game.

The initial shot from the edge was well saved by Sammy Jo Greer but Ards were first to react and Lucy McKee put the visitors ahead.

Pegasus, though, fought back quickly with Hannah Craig’s cross finding Ferris at the back post unmarked to level the scores. And they had a chance of winning it on the final whistle when from a corner when it was Katie McKee who tried to steal the headlines but her shot was blocked and Ards cleared their lines.

Sunday: UCD 1 (S Clarke) Hermes-Monkstown 1 (R Carrigan)

UCD ended Hermes-Monkstown’s perfect record in the women’s EY Hockey League but the visitors to Belfield remain four points clear at the head of the table at the halfway stage. It was a tie in which fortunes swung dramatically from end to end with both teams having their moments but a draw was probably a fair result.

The first half was helter-skelter with big chances at either end right from the start. Hermes-Monkstown’s first corner saw Clodagh Cassin save well from Chloe Watkins while UCD fluffed a three-on-one counter-attack. Suzie Kelly then swept a Lena Tice corner shot off the line before the visitors took the lead on the first quarter hooter.

Watkins’s disguised pass was smart, picking out Rosie Carrigan who slid onto the ball for 1-0. UCD, though, had a string of corners of their own with Katie Mullan playing a key role along with the immaculate Tice.

The sweeper created the opening for the equaliser when she beat a couple of players before laying off to Gillian Pinder. Her cracking shot was saved by Liz Murphy but only as far as Sorcha Clarke who popped home from close range.

It remained 1-1 through the third quarter in spite of a concerted Hermes-Monkstown spell of attacking with Anna O’Flanagan and Nikki Evans going close.

UCD had the best of the early stages of the final quarter but were almost caught at the death when Evans won a corner. O’Flanagan worked an opening to shoot but Mullan charged it down, meaning it was honours even.

Irish Hockey Association media release

Scottish Men’s indoor National League 1 roars into action

The opening fixtures of the men’s indoor first division campaign caused considerable interest with mixed fortunes for the title rivals - Grove Menzieshill cruised past Grange 8-1 while champions Inverleith crashed 8-4 to Bromac Kelburne.

The Taysiders were 4-1 up at the interval with a double of penalty corner strikes by Ben Cromar while Ben Cosgrove and Gavin Byers got the others. The second half also belonged to Grove Menzieshill, the main tormentor was teenager Aiden McQuade who scored a hat-trick of set pieces and Jamie Carnegie got the other.

After years of speculation 12-times outdoor league winners Kelburne finally got their indoor act together with a powerful display of attacking hockey that blew Inverleith away.

There were several ingredients behind the Paisley victory, firstly they played the entire encounter with six outfield players and their goalkeeper Rory Kerr remained idle on the bench, which seemed to put Inverleith off their stride. In addition, injuries and unavailability deprived the champions several players and their squad was reduced to only seven.

Kelburne roared into a four goal lead by the interval, Johnny Christie scored twice while Lee Morton and Josh Cairns from a penalty corner added to the tally.

The second half was more of a ding-dong affair, Cairns and Morton added two more for Kelburne while Adam McKenzie from the spot and Murray Fotheringham opened for the Edinburgh side to bring the score to 6-2. Towards the end of the encounter Christie completed his-hat-trick and German Jonas Nommensen took Kelburne`s tally to eight while Stephen Dick and McKenzie again replied for Inverleith.

Although Kelburne’s Cairns, Adam Bain and Morton were sent to the sin bin, Inverleith failed to find a way back into the contest.

Still playing with no goalkeeper, Kelburne also upset Grove Menzieshill in their second outing but had to settle for a 4-4 draw at the end. A double by Christie put Kelburne two up but Mike Ross pulled one back for the Taysiders.

The second half ebbed and flowed with never more than a goal between the sides, Christie completed his second hat-trick of the day and Gary Maitles got the other while Cammy Golden, Cosgrove and Cromar secured a final share of the spoils.

Kelburne moved into pole position at the top of the table after defeating Uddingston 12-1 in their final match of the day. Johnny Christie was again the catalyst with another four goals, a total of 14 for the day, to secure the victory, Jonas Nommensen notched a hat-trick while Craig Morton and Adam Bain both bagged a brace.

Inverleith recovered their composure to see off city rivals Grange 8-5 in their second encounter. The champions strolled into a 4-1 lead at the interval, Patrick Christie opened, set piece expert Adam McKenzie scored twice from set pieces while Kyle Taylor got the fourth from the spot. Joe Waterston replied for Grange.

Inverleith raced into a 6-3 lead half way through the second half, Dick and Christie were on target but Frank Ryan and Luke Cranney replied for the opposition. Suddenly the outcome looked in the balance when Todd Mills and Callum Milne pulled the score back to 6-5, but late set piece strikes by Dick and McKenzie finally settled the issue.

What was billed as the game of the day between rivals Grove Menzieshill and Inverleith proved to be a slight let down. In the end the Edinburgh side kept their composure to finish 3-2 in front against their traditional rivals.

Inverleith held a 2-1 lead at the break, Stephen Dick opened for the Edinburgh side in three minutes, Aiden McQuade replied not long after, but a penalty corner conversion by Adam McKenzie gave Inverleith the advantage. A set piece conversion by Ben Cromar brought the Dundonians level five minutes into the second half, but with only two minutes left Patrick Christie secured the win for Inverleith.

Elsewhere, Clydesdale had mixed fortunes, they went down 4-3 to Hillhead in their opening outing but then recovered to pick up their first three points in a 3-1 win over Western Wildcats.

Earlier in the day Wildcats picked up a point in a 2-2 draw with Uddingston, Fraser Moran and Joe McConnell gave the Auchenhowie side a two goal lead at the interval only for Barry Platt and Steven Percy from the spot to level with five minutes left.

In their drive to achieve immediate promotion back to the top flight MJV Dundee Wanderers opened the scoring against Perthshire in only 12 seconds with a strike by Bobby Ralph first second division match of the day. The Taysiders consolidated with three more without reply by the interval with Tom Cole, Ross Glashan and Ralph again on target.

Wanderers continued to dominate with further goals coming from Cole, Fergus Sandison and Ralph for his hat-trick in a comfortable 7-1 win, Neil Robertson got a consolation for Perthshire.

The Dundonians kept up their winning sequence with a 5-3 win over a stuffy Granite City Wanderers side. It looked all over when the promotion aspirants marched into a commanding five goal advantage, there were two goals each for Glashan and Eliot Sandison while Ralph picked up the remaining strike.

Wanderers are now in pole position following their 8-1 crushing of Menzieshill`s reserve outfit. Fergus Sandison was the catalyst with five, Glashan got a brace and Ralph finished the scoring.

Grove Menzieshill`s second string, last year`s champions, were knocked off their perch after going down 9-6 to Falkirk GHG, David Norris was the catalyst in the upset with a personal tally of five.

Scottish Hockey Union media release