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News for 26 May 2017

All the news for Friday 26 May 2017


England slump to 5-2 defeat against Spain

By Mike Haymonds

GISELLE ANSLEY and Sophie Bray were on target as England slumped to a 5-2 defeat by Spain in the second of a three-match series in Madrid. Ansley – with her second goal of the series – opened the scoring with a penalty stroke in the ninth minute but Spain were 3-1 up at half time. Bray gave England some hope with a 42nd minute strike for 2-3 but that was as close as they got.

The series is tied 1-1 after England’s 2-1 win on Tuesday with the final game scheduled for today.

Fieldhockey.com



Scotland men to face the Netherlands this weekend



Scotland’s senior men’s squad will be in Amsterdam this weekend to play two test matches against the Netherlands ahead of the World League semi-finals in London.

The Blue Sticks will take to the pitch on 27 May and 28 May, both played at 6:15pm (UK time) at the Wagener Stadion.

It’s all part of preparations for the World League semi-finals where Scotland men will play in London at the Olympic 2012 legacy venue Lee Valley, and will face the Netherlands at the tournament.

Scotland are in Pool B with India, the Netherlands, Pakistan, and Canada, while Pool A has Argentina, Korea, England, China, and Malaysia drawn together.

Scotland’s opening match will see them face India on June 15 2017 at 14:00.

Scotland Head Coach Derek Forsyth said, “We’re really looking forward to the games and they should be a great challenge for us. We're building up for the World League semi-finals, and these are our first matches since World League 2. The boys are looking forward to playing one of the best teams in the world.”

The Scotland squad to face the Netherlands:

Wei Adams
Tommy Alexander
Tim Atkins
Kenny Bain
Michael Bremner
Gavin Byers
Patch Christie
Callum Duke
David Forrester
Alan Forsyth
David Forsyth
Cammy Fraser
Ed Greaves
Willie Marshall
Gordon McIntyre
Lee Morton
Nick Parkes
Robbie Shepherdson
Jamie Wong

Scottish Hockey Union media release



Aussie great Jamie Dwyer to hold free Hockey clinic on Friday at Cal Cup

By Jawwad Qamar



Five time FIH World Player of the Year, Australia’s Jamie Dwyer will hold a free hockey clinic on Friday at the California Cup tournament in Moorpark College for players of all ages.

Clinic will take place at 6:10 pm, right after Dwyer’s Cal Cup debut where he’ll lead the JDH Montauk Sharks against SBDS Academy in the last match of opening day’s play. All are urged to come early and watch Dwyer in action, then attend the clinic and learn from one of the masters of the sport.

The 2017 California Cup International Hockey Tournament begins on Friday morning with the start of competition in the super divisions at Moorpark College where both men and women will be competing for the winner take all $7,500 prize.

For schedule and directions to the venues, please visit www.calcup.com.

Fieldhockey.com Exclusive



Hockey for Heroes: #OpStretcher


#OpStretcher

A squad of 44 from Hockey for Heroes will march 200 miles and play 30 matches across 10 days as they aim to raise £50,000 for Help for Heroes. 

The group will travel on the 26 May from Cardiff to Marlow Hockey Club in Buckinghamshire as part of #OpStretcher, taking it in turns to carry a stretcher containing former Royal Marine Dominic Robert Lovett.

Dominic's dad is part of the squad of 44 and will be taking part in the march supporting his son who was injured during a military training exercise.

Great Britain Men’s Team Manager, Andy Halliday, will be supporting #OpStretcher by dribbling a hockey ball along the entire route behind the stretcher.

The route takes the group to various clubs along the M4 including Gloucester, St Albans, Newbury, Chippenham and Amersham to name a few and the public are encouraged to join them on the march and attend the various games.

England and Great Britain hockey legend Barry Middleton and other international stars will feature at Marlow.

Leeds Beckett Hockey Club are also doing a bike ride from Leeds to Old Loughtonians HC, playing teams along the route and playing the Hockey for Heroes Team on Saturday 3 June.

To view the group's online auction for experiences and sporting memorabilia click here

CONFIRMED DATES & VENUES

26th May – Sofia Gardens and Gwent HC
11.00 Welsh Select
19.00 Welsh Masters
20.30 Gwent HC

27th May – Gloucester City HC, Plock Court pitch
14.30 Lansdown
16.00 Cheltenham
17.30 Gloucester

28th May – Chippenham HC
14.30 Stroud
16.00 Wotton-under-edge
17.30 Chippenham
 
29th May – Royal Wootton Bassett HC, RWB Academy
13.30 Military Team
15.00 Wallingford
16.30 Royal Wootton Bassett
 
30th May – Newbury HC
16.00 Military Team
18.00 Newbury
19.30 Newbury
 
31st May - Sonning HC
16.00 Military Team
18.00 Sonning
19.30 Bicester
 
1st June - Amersham and Chalfont, Amersham and Wycombe College
16.00 Military Team
18.00 High Wycombe
19.30 Amersham and Chalfont
 
2nd June – St Albans HC, Oaklands College
16.00 Military Team
18.00 Hertford
19.30 St Albans
 
3rd June – Old Loughtonians HC
12.30 East London
14.00 Leeds Beckett
15.30 Old Loughtonians
 
4th June – Marlow HC
10.00 Ladies Game
11.30  Ladies Game
13.30 Marlow Men
15.30 Danny Kerry (Ladies GB Coach) Invitational XI
17.30 Barbarian’s team

Hockey For Heroes Facebook page

England Hockey Board Media release



Hockey league strugglers Parklands, USIU clash

By BRIAN YONGA


Kenya Police's Kennedy Sibweche (left) tracks down Franklin Kiyondi of Parklands during their Kenya Hockey Union Premier League match at City Park Stadium on April 22, 2017. PHOTO | MARTIN MUKANGU |  NATION MEDIA GROUP

Parklands’ search for a maiden league victory continues Friday evening when they tackle United States International University of Africa (USIU-A) in a Kenya Hockey Union men’s Premier League match at City Park Stadium, Nairobi.

The 6pm kick-off gets a busy weekend campaign underway with 10 matches on the cards. Parklands, who are into their third season in the top flight, have found the going tough this season failing to register a win after seven matches.

They have drawn three matches and are currently second from bottom with only three points, two ahead of debutantes Technical University of Kenya (TUK). Their opponents have fared no better, with only one win in five matches and lie in 12th place, two places above Parklands.

It is therefore a must-win tie for both teams as they look to claw themselves up the table. Last Wednesday, Parklands rallied from two goals down to rescue a point against Parkland Badgers. It is this fighting spirit that Parklands coach Kamal Singh will be relying on when they come up against the students.

“We are unbeaten in our last three matches and that shows that we are not badly off. However, we have to start winning matches so as to improve our position in the league,” the tactician told Nation Sport.

“We have had slow starts in our last games and had to rally back in the last few minutes. If we get an early goal, it will help us settle well,” he added.

Allan Odongo, who is team’s top scorer with three league goals, will lead the hunt for goals alongside David Kimani.

A win will see Parklands move five places up to ninth spot in the standings. For UISU, the match is one of their two fixtures this weekend. They play fourth-placed Wazalendo on Sunday at 3pm at the same venue.

The students were beaten 3-0 by Butali Sugar Warriors in their last outing last Friday and will be out to make amends.

UISU coach Tom Olal has demanded for a response, challenging his charges to be more clinical in front of goal.

“We are a bit blunt in attack and that explains why we have only won one match all season. Hopefully we can get a few against Parklands tomorrow to give us confidence going into Sunday’s match,” Olal said.

Meanwhile, Kenya College of Accountancy University (KCA-U) edged out Kenyatta University (KU) Vultures 3-2 in a men’s Premier League match on Wednesday evening. Arnold Marango hit the winning goal for KCA-U to settle the university derby.

FIXTURES (All matches at City Park stadium unless stated)

Friday:

Premier Men: USIU-A v Parklands – 6pm

Saturday:

Premier Men: TUK v Parkroad Badgers – 12pm, Wazalendo v Strathmore- 2pm
Premier Women: UON v MSC- 4pm
National Men: Kabarak University v Multimedia University – 2pm (Kabarak)

Sunday:

Premier Women: Multimedia v MSC- 9am, KU Titans v Vikings – 11am, USIU v JKUAT- 5pm
Premier Men: Nakuru v Butali – 9am (Nakuru), Strathmore v Kenya Police – 1pm, USIU v Wazalendo- 3pm

Daily Nation



Vice-captain Chinglesana ready for added responsibility

BENGALURU: India's new vice-captain Chinglensana Singh says he is ready to shoulder the responsibility with the Hockey World League Semifinal next month.

"This is an important tour for us in our preparations for the World League Final in December and I am very excited to be entrusted with this new responsibility," said Chinglensana on the sidelines of the ongoing national camp in SAI, Bengaluru.

As a midfielder, Chinglensana is fast with the ability to set off aggressively inside the opponent's half creating a chance for the Indians to breakout.

He is often entrusted with the role of a stopper too when Harmanpreet Singh or Rupinder Pal Singh attempts a drag flick to convert penalty corner.

"It's these abilities on the field to adapt to any situation and his great spirit and energy were the qualities that made our decision easy to name him as vice-captain of the team," explained Chief Coach Roelant Oltmans.

With the pressure on forwards to improve their filed goal conversion rate from 20 per cent at the recently concluded 26th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, Chinglensana's role in the centre half along with Sardar Singh, Manpreet Singh, SK Uthappa, Satbir Singh and Harjeet Singh becomes all the more crucial for the team.

But it helps that Chinglensana exhibits an attitude that revolves around a team-first approach.

"Whether you are the vice-captain, captain or a senior player in the team, it is important for us to guide youngsters in matches. Rectifying the mistakes we made in Malaysia was the main goal of this camp. I am sure if we don't repeat these mistakes we will bring good results in both Germany and London."

While India plays two matches each against Germany and Belgium in Dusseldorf at the 3 Nations Invitational Tournament starting June 1, India is grouped with Canada, Scotland, Netherlands and Pakistan in the World League Semifinal starting June 15.

The Times of India



Reckinger moves into Racing Club de Bruxelles hot seat from Herakles



Xavier Reckinger has swapped from one EHL-qualified club for another as he takes up a new coaching role with Racing Club de Bruxelles following his stunning work with Herakles.

The move sees the former Belgian international (pictured coaching the Belgian Under-21 women at the Junior World Cup) take over from Simon Letchford at Racing, moving on from Herakles where he was a key player in their rise to the Belgian final and a first EHL ticket.

Reckinger – capped 326 times by Belgium – said that the three year contract on offer was what enticed him to make the switch: "It is the long term deal that tipped the scales.

“If I continued to play, it would have been season by season. I started my career in the honor division at the age of 15 so it's very difficult to stop my playing career. But I thought a lot about it with my wife. I had a really good time this season. And it was a good time to step aside.

"This is a very rational and long-term decision. I am lucky to have finished my career with a final after an exceptional season. I'm not going to lie to you either. It was getting more and more physically complicated!"

He is also happy to take on a men’s coaching role, saying he already has a lot of experience on the women’s side of things.

“It's a very nice project. This was the only offer I received for a men's team other than one from the Hoofdklasse. Racing trusted me and they waited for me when I wanted to think about my answer.

“It is an ambitious club and a magnificent challenge. The group is high quality despite the departure of Simon Gougnard and we have already confirmed some top arrivals.”

Reckinger will continue to work as an assistant coach with Germany’s women’s national team. Racing will compete in ROUND1 of the EHL next October while Herakles will play in the KO16 next Easter.

Euro Hockey League media release



Lifelong Polo man Llorens enjoying dream season with Wimbledon



A lifelong Real Club de Polo man, Borja Llorens says he is enjoying a dream season with Wimbledon in his first season away from Barcelona with an EHL FINAL4 weekend still to look forward to on June 3 and 4 in Brasschaat, Belgium.

He arrived in London last September to pursue a masters following graduation with a university degree in Spain and says the switch has been “an amazing experience”.

“Between Spain and England, they are certainly very different lifestyles but both equally good,” he told the EHL website. “I have adapted really well to the team and their work ethic, and I couldn´t be any happier of the way they have welcomed me to Wimbledon.

“I have played for Polo my entire life; this is my first experience playing for another team and I am extremely grateful for their trust and the way they have treated me since the very beginning.”

With Wimbledon, he helped the side top the regular season table and they reached the English playoff final. There, they led 3-0 against Surbiton only to let in three late goals and lose the final shoot-out.

Nonetheless, they have an EHL ticket already in the bank for next season and if they go all the way in Dragons in the FINAL4, they could win back a third place in the European competition for England at the expense of Spain.

Indeed, they enter the FINAL4 as the first English club to reach this stage since Reading in 2011, also the only side from the country to medal in the EHL.

Unlike the other three clubs at the FINAL4 who were in playoff action until this week, the English season finished in April meaning Wimbledon have had six weeks without a competitive match.

In addition, Henry Weir, Ian Sloan and Phil Roper were in Malaysia with Great Britain at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup but Llorens says there has been no major disruption to training.

“Our training routine is quite similar to what we have been doing throughout the season, working very hard during sessions and focusing on the common goal of getting to Antwerp ready to win. Even though there are players who have commitments with the national team, the team never stops.

“We have continued to train throughout the weeks with the same workload as usual. The fact that some players have obligations with the national team doesn´t affect our schedule since this is something that happens reasonably often and the team´s work goes on.

“The coaches have managed to organise highly demanding games for all these weeks to ensure high-performance results. I don´t know how hard it was to arrange these games, but I can only assume it hasn´t been easy since every English team’s season has already finished!”

Standing in their way are, first of all, HC Oranje-Rood, the 2015 champions when in their Oranje-Zwart guise. But Wimbledon were confident they could negotiate the KO16 route past two German sides – UHC Hamburg and Mannheimer HC – and Llorens reckons there is no reason why they cannot repeat the feat.

“We worked very hard to get to Eindhoven in the best possible shape to face what was going to be two very important games, and we did it. The team is well aware that this opportunity is unique and we want to take full advantage of it. I have no doubts that we will perform at our highest level.

“We will definitely be facing a very challenging team but what´s clear in the FINAL4 of the EHL is that no team will be an easy win. I can assure you our team will be playing our best hockey and continue with the good work we have been carrying out this season."

Euro Hockey League media release



Dundee Wanderers to host Women’s EuroHockey Indoor Club Cup



Dundee Wanderers will host the Women’s EuroHockey Indoor Club Cup in February 2018.

Teams will descend on Dundee from Germany, Spain, Austria, Belarus, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Ukraine to take part in the tournament.

Dundee Wanderers will play in Pool A against UHC Hamburg (GER), Club de Campo Villa de Madrid (ESP), SV Arminen (AUT), while Pool B has GHC Ritm Grodno (BLR), HC Rotweiss Wettingen (SUI), AH&BC Amsterdam (NED), and MSC Sumchanka (UKR).

It’s another great success for the club who previously hosted the EuroHockey Indoor Club Champions Trophy at the Dundee International Sports Centre in February 2016.

Wanderers finished in fifth place overall in that tournament after defeating Mladost 5-3 in their final match of the tournament. The tournament is 2018 represents another fantastic opportunity to watch a Scottish side face some of Europe’s top teams on home soil.

Speaking about being awarded the top Women’s division MJV Dundee Wanderers Club President, Patrick Joyce said “We are delighted to be hosting the Women’s EuroHockey Indoor Club Cup in 2018. It’s a great honour to be selected to host such a prestigious event and we look forward to welcoming all our hockey friends to Dundee, the City of Discovery, next February.”

Scottish Hockey CEO David Sweetman said, “We’re delighted that another great indoor hockey event is coming to Dundee and would like to congratulate Dundee Wanderers on their successful bid. We look forward to another exciting tournament with top-class indoor hockey played in Scotland.”

Scottish Hockey Union media release



PHF finds jobs for 18 more players

By Nabil Tahir


PHOTO: AFP

KARACHI: Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF), in line with its drive to revive the national sport, has negotiated jobs for 18 more players and two officials at Fauji Foundation hockey department.

The move comes after the federation last month found jobs for 38 ex and current national players and had done the same for several others last year too — bringing the overall figure in excess of 70.

Free from financial worries, PHF feels the players will be able to focus more on their game and also encourage youngsters to choose the sport.

“Providing jobs to players who have served the national team will give hope to youngsters that they can get jobs too if they decide pursue a career in hockey,” PHF President Khalid Khokhar told The Express Tribune.

Khokhar further revealed that all the players of senior and junior sides as well as Pakistan Whites have found employment opportunities in various organisations during the last one year.

“It feels great that the departments are supporting PHF in their efforts to once again make Pakistan a force to be reckoned with in hockey,” he said. “Everyone knows that Pakistan still has the talent, and these jobs will let us unearth just that.”

The PHF, per Khokhar, is also negotiating with SNGPL and OGDCL to develop their hockey teams to participate in domestic events. “Soon the hockey fraternity will hear good news in this regard,” he promised.

The Express Tribune



After a Decade of Celebrating, USA Field Hockey Presents a Modified Logo



COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – To celebrate the journey of how far the sport has come to how far the sport will go, USA Field Hockey updated the fan-favorite artwork to pay respect and appreciation to the past while adding dashes of energy and personality to keep the logo fresh and forward focused.

Zooming in on the actual design layout, the new USA Field Hockey logo is a modernization of the previous mark, with the player form set in a more natural up-right position, and a color palette more akin to that of the American flag. A bolder, new typeface accompanies the new player icon, and is designed to stand out in any application. Packaged together, these enhanced details add to USA Field Hockey’s expedition to move the organization forward in all fronts. This artwork symbolizes that rewarding journey. 

USFHA media release

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