News for 05 October 2017
All the news for Thursday 5 October 2017
Hard Fought Match Finishes with Indoor USWNT Beating Australia in Game Four
SPRING CITY, Pa. – The U.S. Women's National Indoor Team had to fight to earn the victory against Australia's Women's National Indoor Development Team in the fourth match of the six-game test series played at The Training Center in Spring City, Pa. USA broke a deadlocked score just before halftime and as the scoring went back and forth in the second half, a determined Indoor USWNT found a two goal lead and the 5-3 win.
Australia pressed USA's defense from the opening whistle and Samantha Carlino (Kennett Square, Pa.) in goal for USA prevented them from taking an early lead with a couple of sharp saves. The Indoor USWNT did not get their first real attack until the 6th minute. With Australia pushing everything into the attack, a long ball found Samantha Popper (Blue Bell, Pa.) on the left of the circle, where she made no mistake with a one time shot to give USA the 1-0 lead.
USA started to create more opportunities and Popper extended the lead by two after dribbling past three defenders, finding the top of the circle and squeezing the ball just inside the post. It seemed that USA was getting the upper hand but they were caught too square when a long through ball found Caitlin Burns cutting into the circle as she skillfully deflected the ball high into the net making it 2-1. Two minutes later, Amelia Leard took a quick free hit just outside the circle and caught USA flat footed with a quick shot past the stranded Carlino to tie the game at 2-2. As time ran out, the Indoor USWNT was awarded a penalty corner and Katherine Gerzabek's (Springfield, Pa.) fierce shot found the goal to give USA the 3-2 lead going into halftime.
At the start of the second half, Popper was fouled from behind inside the circle as she received a pass earning USA a penalty stroke. Campbell (Boyertown, Pa.) converted to make it 4-2. Now in full swing from end to end, both teams created scoring opportunities. Australia was awarded a penalty corner deep on the end line which they brought the score to 4-3 through Leard with a cleverly worked option. The pace did not slow and with the feeling that the next goal would be decisive, USA put together a five player passing move which Paityn Wirth (Thompsontown, Pa.) finished at the far post to give USA another two goal lead. Australians continued to fight and press hard, and with USA making some unforced errors in defense, they came close on a few occasions in the final minute. The Indoor USWNT was relieved to see the score stand at 5-3 when the final buzzer sounded to come away with the win.
“This is the kind of game we need to prepare for what is going to be a very difficult Pan American Indoor Cup,” remarked Jun Kentwell, Indoor USWNT Head Coach. “The Australian [Indoor Development] Team put us under of lot of pressure tonight. They are skillful, fast and strong, and they exposed some areas we need to work on. The Australian Squad is playing better every day and the next two games, Saturday evening at 6:00 and Sunday morning at 8:30, will be real tests for our players."
The U.S. Women's National Indoor Team would like to thank Harrow Sports for supplying raffle prizes for the stands full of young spectators. Head to The Training Center on Saturday, at 6:00 p.m. ET to support the Indoor USWNT in what promises to be a fast and exciting game.
Goal Scoring Summary:
Team Minute Player Action Score
USA 6 #13 Popper FG 1 - 0
USA 9 #13 Popper FG 2 - 0
AUS 14 #2 Burns FG 2 - 1
AUS 18 #4 Leard FG 2 - 2
USA 20 #4 Gerzabek PC 3 - 2
USA 21 #30 Campbell PS 4 - 2
AUS 26 #4 Leard PC 4 - 3
USA 35 #19 Wirth FG 5 - 3
USFHA media release
Malaysia will be without three experienced players in Asia Cup
By Aftar Singh
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will not have the services of three experienced players for the Asia Cup hockey tournament in Dhaka, Bangladesh, from Oct 11-22.
Defender Mohd Izad Hakimi Jamaluddin and forward Muhd Firhan Ashaari are down with calf injuries while midfielder Meor Mohd Azuan Hasan suffered a knee injury during training two days ago.
The trio featured in the World League Semi-Finals in London in June where Malaysia finished fourth to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Bhubaneswar, India.
Youngster Nik Aiman Nik Rozemi, who also played in London, will also be missing.
He will be featuring in the Under-21 Sultan of Johor Cup in Johor Baru from Oct 22-29.
They were replaced by Syed Mohamad Syafiq Syed Cholan, Joel van Huizen, Muhd Amirol Aideed Mohd Arshad and Muhd Ramadan Rosli.
Eight teams will feature in Dhaka and Malaysia, ranked 12th in the world, are drawn in Group B with South Korea, China and Oman.
Group B comprises defending champions India, Pakistan, Japan and Bangladesh.
National coach Stephen van Huizen said that although Malaysia have qualified for the World Cup, the Asia Cup is still an important assignment.
“We have set a target of reaching the final as we are the second highest ranking team in the tournament after India (ranked sixth in the world),” said Stephen.
“We can expect tough matches against South Korea, China and Japan as all three will be going for the title to qualify for the World Cup.”
THE SQUAD
Goalkeepers: S. Kumar, Muhd Hafizuddin Othman
Defenders: Muhd Razie Abdul Rahim, Muhd Sukri Abdul Mutalib, Muhd Najmi Farizal Jazlan, Faiz Helmi, Syed Mohamad Syafiq Syed Cholan, Muhd Azri Hassan
Midfielders: Mohd Marhan Mohd Jalil, Mohd Fitri Saari, Nabil Fiqri Mohd Noor, Joel van Huizen, Muhd Amirol Aideed Mohd Arshad
Forwards: Muhd Haziq Samsul, Muhd Ramadan Rosli, Muhad Shahril Saabah, Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin Tengku Abdul Jalil, Faizal Saari.
The Star of Malaysia
Asia Cup M: Chennai glory recaptured
s2h team
Its was one of its kind victory in the annals of Indian hockey. The Indians led by the ebullient tribal star Prabodh Tirkey, which included his elder brother Ignace Tirkey, did not concede even solitary defeat in the whole of tournament. From day one the host played like a lion among lambs in what was the largest Asia Cup field till today. As never before the spirited Indians even managed to gloss over taunting and history breaking South Koreans not once but twice. India's Chennai Asia Cup victory is epoch making.
There was no inkling the kind of history is about to unfurl when India started its campaign modestly in September 2007 in the first Men's Asia Cup that India hosted.
India struggled to defeat emerging China, which will host the Beijing Olympics in an year's time from then, in the opener. Veteran and the legend Dilip Tirkey, who was on his third of four Asia Cups,salvaged India for victory with a single goal.
There was no stopping the Indians thereafter.
India was in Group A with stalwart team South Korea in the company
With warm up victories over Sri Lanka and Thailand, India beat South Korea 3-2 in the pool, and thus made itself ready to tie with Japan in the semis.
Japan was a stunner in Chennai. It tamed Rehan Butt led Pakistan comprehensively in their tour opener, and Pakistan hardly recovered thereafter.
It was for the first time that Pakistan did not make the cut for the semis.
When the Groups were made, it was kept in mind India-Pak tie either in the semis or the finals, but these were not to be as the Japanese had different ideas.
However, the Japanese juggernaut stuttered against the charged up Indian team.
Stick2Hockey.com
Three Changes To Hockeyroos’ Oceania Cup Team
Ben Somerford
The Hockeyroos have been forced to make three changes to the team to play at the Oceania Cup due to injuries.
Laura Barden (quad), Edwina Bone (knee) and Jordyn Holzberger (hamstring) have been ruled out, replaced in the 18-member team by Kristina Bates, Gabrielle Nance and Brooke Peris.
Hockeyroos head coach Paul Gaudoin said: “It’s disappointing to lose three players however we’re confident the depth in the squad will allow us to achieve our goals at the Oceania Cup.
“It’s a great opportunity for Brooke to play her first game for the Hockeyroos this year, while it’s further opportunity for Kristina and Gabrielle to push their claims.”
The Hockeyroos will depart for the Oceania Cup in Sydney on Monday, with the first game on Thursday 12 October.
Australia will play New Zealand and Papua New Guinea in the biennial tournament, with the final to be played on Sunday 15 October.
Hockeyroos Oceania Cup team:
Athlete (Hometown, State)
Jocelyn Bartram (NSW)
Kristina Bates (Victoria)
Jane Claxton (SA)
Kirstin Dwyer (Queensland)
Ashlea Fey (Queensland)
Madison Fitzpatrick (Queensland)
Stephanie Kershaw (Queensland)
Rachael Lynch (Victoria)
Karri McMahon (SA)
Gabrielle Nance (SA)
Kaitlin Nobbs (NSW)
Brooke Peris (NT)
Madeleine Ratcliffe (Victoria)
Kathryn Slattery (WA)
Emily Smith (c) (NSW)
Grace Stewart (NSW)
Renee Taylor (Queensland)
Georgia Wilson (WA)
Hockey Australia media release
Thursday & Friday AHL Fixtures Confirmed
Ben Somerford
The semi-finals line-up at the 2017 Australian Hockey League (AHL) at the Perth Hockey Stadium has been confirmed.
In the men's tournament on Thursday, Queensland Blades will play NSW Waratahs from 4pm, followed by Victoria Vikings and India at 6pm.
On Friday, Queensland will meet India (4pm), with Victoria-NSW (6pm) the evening game.
In the women's tournament on Thursday, New Zealand meet Victoria Vipers from 12pm, followed by Queensland Scorchers against NSW Arrows at 2pm.
On Friday, New Zealand takes on NSW Arrows from 12pm, with Queensland-Victoria playing at 2pm.
The other states and territories will play off for classification spots throughout both days, before place matches on Saturday.
Gold medal and bronze medal matches will take place on Sunday on Pitch 1.
The men's gold medal match will be 5.45pm, while the women's gold medal match is at 3.30pm.
All Saturday and Sunday matches will be live streamed by Hockey Australia.
Hockey Australia media release
NZ Development Women progress at AHL
The New Zealand Development Women have made it through to the top four at the Australian Hockey League in Perth.
New Zealand finished second in Pool A with three wins and one loss, seeing them progress to the next round along with New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria.
Results in the final four phase will determine whether the Kiwis play in Sunday's gold or bronze medal match.
The New Zealand Development Men were unable to win a match in their pool phase, finishing fifth in Pool A.
New Zealand's Development teams join Australia’s eight state teams and India development sides at this year's tournament.
CLICK HERE for Men’s AHL results and standings
CLICK HERE for Women’s AHL results and standings
Hockey New Zealand Media release
2017 EuroHockey junior Championships - decision from EHF
The EHF have today confirmed that Ireland U21 women will retain their A division status for the next edition of the EuroHockey Junior Championship (Women).
The full statement from the EHF is below:
2017 EuroHockey Junior Championships, Men and Women - decision from the EHF Executive Board
On 3rd September 2017, the EHF advised that, under advice from the Tournament Medical Doctor, the Spanish teams were not allowed to play either of their final games of the EuroHockey Junior Championships. Subsequent tests confirmed that the players were suffering from the highly infections norovirus.
In the Men’s EuroHockey Junior Championship, the 3rd/4th Bronze medal game was not played and Germany was awarded the Bronze medal.
In the Women’s EuroHockey Junior Championship, Spain will not play their final Pool C v Ireland.
Given these unprecedented circumstances the two TDs and the EHF Representative deferred any further decisions to the EHF Executive Board.
The Executive Board asked the Competitions Committee, Outdoor to review the situation and to offer their recommendations to the Board.
The Executive Board had a lengthy discussion on the recommendations received from the Competitions Committee, Outdoor.
The first issue to decide was whether the matches could not be played due to a force majeure. The Board voted and agreed that a force majeure was present and therefore the regulations do not cover the situation. The Board concurred with the TDS and EHF Representative who referred to EHF Regulations for EuroHockey Championships (Outdoor) Item D6 and agreed that a force majeure had occurred.
EuroHockey Junior Championship, Men:
The Executive Board concurred with the TD’s decision to award Germany the bronze medal as it was under the remit of the TD to make this decision. The Executive Board confirmed that Spain be awarded 4th place.
EuroHockey Junior Championship, Women:
Considering the Board’s decision that failure to properly complete the tournament was due to a force majeure it was agreed that points cannot be fairly or reasonably allocated. Therefore, the Executive Board decided that no team will be relegated from the EuroHockey Junior Championship, Women in 2017.
As such, the next edition of the EuroHockey Junior Championship (Women) will be played as an enlarged team tournament. (The EuroHockey Junior Championship II (Women) will be played as a 6 to 8 team tournament (dependent on the number of entries))
This revised format is due to the extraordinary circumstances at the EuroHockey Junior Championships, Women in Valencia in 2017 and it should be noted that future editions of the Junior Championships will revert to the 8-team per division format.
The Executive Board will communicate the format of the tournaments in due course.
Irish Hockey Association media release
Academy courses inspiring the next generation of female coaches
Inspirational leaders like Sofie Gierts is leading the way in coach education. Photo: Willem Vernes
How do you cope as a coach when you are working with some players who arrive at training after an eight hour day at work while others in your team are full-time professional athletes who have time built into their schedule for training, treatment and rest? It is the conundrum facing High Performance Coach Sofie Gierts and it is just the sort of challenge the aspirational leader thrives upon.
The former Belgian international is coaching Royal Antwerp Hockey Club, one of the top Belgium clubs. Elite hockey in Belgium is currently developing at considerable pace thanks in part to the impressive club structure in place.
"It’s a group that’s in full development and my biggest challenge is dealing with the diversity among players," says Gierts. "Combining the demands of professional hockey players, players in full-time work, very young players just coming through or a world class player such as Maartje Paumen in our team demands more than just expecting hockey performances. And that’s the beauty of it."
Gierts is a rarity – she is a female coach working at the top level of the game. But, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and its Continental Federations are working hard to redress the gender balance and, while progress is slow, at least within hockey things are moving in the right direction.
"Unfortunately, the world is running behind in gender equality in too many areas," says Gierts. "It’s great to see more and more female coaches coming through and I am very positive about the future. More retired players are shifting to coaching jobs, and that is a very good evolution. But not every sports federation is following the FIH gender equality example."
Gierts was one of several women who participated in FIH Hockey Academy Coaching courses over the past year. Eight courses, run by the Academy in coordination with Continental Federations, have taken place alongside major events, catering for a range of coaching levels. In total, 28 female coaches at various levels of proficiency were involved. 
Sofie Gierts has been inspirational both in the classroom educating coaches and on the sidelines developing athletes
European Hockey Federation’s (EHF) Education and Development Manager Norman Hughes is emphatic when he says: "There are still nowhere near enough female coaches in the game. We must generate female role models if we are to attract more female coaches."
The EHF is working hard at changing things. Like the FIH, the EHF is seeking a 50/50 gender split and to achieve this, the EHF is encouraging its National Associations to nominate female coaches for its two programmes – the Top Coaches Programme and the Coaches for Europe Programme.
Among those being asked to join the programme as mentors are former internationals and current coaches, Karen Brown (Great Britain and England), Marieke Dijkstra and Helen Lejeune (Netherlands), Tina Bachmann (Germany) and Sophie Gierts.
Former Great Britain and England captain Kate Richardson-Walsh is also hopefully joining the TCP and "this will send out an important message to all female coaches," says Hughes.
The aspirations of the EHF match the FIH’s own ‘Equally Amazing’ philosophy, which stresses the importance of hockey being a sport where equality is a given.
Another aspiring coach from the EHF/FIH coaching course that ran alongside the EuroHockey Championships is Karolina Krizenecka of the Czech Republic. She is player/coach for club side 1972 Rakovník, who finished second in the league last year, and since September she has worked as Assistant Coach for Slavia Prague, the best women’s team in Czech Republic. Krizenecka is a busy coach, she also works with the SK Slavia Under-8 team and is Head Coach of the national women's Under-21's.
Krizenecka has her own theories on why there are so few female coaches at the top level. "In the Czech Republic there are very few female coaches and we mostly find them in children's categories. The higher the level, the lower the number of women. I see a few reasons."
"Given that in the Czech Republic the trainers are amateurs, they have their usual occupations and hockey is in their free time - women are very limited. Most of us have family and children to consider and it is very difficult to combine that with training. When women find time to coach, they usually train their children to spend the time together."
Luckily for hockey in the Czech Republic, Krizenecka has found the time to step onto the coaching ladder. She has a real love of the game and is determined to make the most of her coach education.
"The EHF and FIH courses are a huge resource for me. They provide international know-how, but are also a way of comparing how high-performance hockey is going on in the world. Professional coaches of different ages and experiences are pushing me forward. I would not get anything like this in the Czech Republic. Thanks to the EHF and FIH courses I have the highest level of coaching education in the Czech Republic in the field of hockey, even compared to men," she adds.
For both Krizenecka and Gierts, the FIH Gender Amazing campaign is preaching to the converted but as Gierts says, much of this is in the hands of the participants: ‘I would say that if you are a female coach you can help to play just a small part in this battle. For me it was an easy choice [to go into coaching] and the reward is unbeatable.’
The push towards enhancing hockey's 'Gender Amazing' philosophy is at the heart of the FIH's 10-year Hockey Revolution strategy. Hockey is proud to be gender balanced across many areas of the sport and building on such progress is key to achieving the strategy's aim of making hockey a global game that inspires the next generation.
To find out more about upcoming FIH courses, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
FIH site
How are Norfolk growing their club umpires?
David Elworthy, England Hockey's Officiating Relationship Manager, has been touring the country visiting many Hockey Umpiring Associations (HUAs) to help them develop. He shares Norfolk’s experience on developing their club umpires thanks to support from England Hockey and the local HUA.
Over the past 12 months we have seen a huge growth in clubs recruiting and supporting umpires in their ranks. Many clubs across the country have been engaging with their local HUA to help support the clubs’ Club Umpire Developers and umpires.
England Hockey has been working hard to foster these relationships in the last year and support both sets of organisations in the growth in umpiring numbers to support the growth in number of players.
In Norfolk we have held club forums with England Hockey and representatives from the club as we all recognised the need to support and grow the number of Club Umpire Developers within our clubs.
We have held an Umpire Developer course and then progressed this with a workshop to help people move up the umpire coaching ladder to enable them to assess Level 1 umpires in their club. We have had an excellent response from those that attended - one member, Denise, has said she would like to come out of retirement and help coach up-and-coming umpires.
"It is so good for us to get some help from England Hockey and we all enjoyed the way the workshop was delivered, the content and how much fun it was to be a part of the process," Phil Skinner, President of Norfolk Hockey Umpiring Association, said.
Other areas of the country, such as Cornwall, Cumbria, Northumberland and Durham, Cheshire and Hampshire have all held the same club forums with their local HUAs and plans are in place within these areas to support clubs to grow their own umpires and offer them a pathway to develop outside of just playing. There are over 50 club Umpire Developers now across the county working hard to help develop more umpires at their clubs.
If you would like more information on how England Hockey or your local Hockey Umpiring Association can help you to grow your umpires within your club, please contact your local Relationship Manager or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Check out the Hockey Hub for all you umpiring support and the England Hockey rules test.
England Hockey Board Media release
Obituary: Trevor Clarke
England Hockey is sad to announce the death of the former Hockey Association Director of Coaching, Trevor Clarke.
Trevor, who was 83, was involved in hockey for over 50 years and is best known for his work in coach education.
Educated at Worcester Grammar School, Trevor returned to the city after National Service in the RAF and trained as a teacher at Worcester College of HE. He taught at Nunnery Wood School, primarily as a woodwork teacher, and played for Worcester Hockey Club.
During the late 1960s he became involved with the coaching of Worcestershire and Midlands schoolboys graduating to senior teams and becoming Midlands HA Chief Coach in 1972
A change of direction saw Trevor move to Nottingham to take up a role with Speedo before returning to Worcester in 1977, working as the Hockey Association Deputy Director of Coaching. Trevor had a brief spell as England men’s team coach including a memorable tour of India in late 1977 and the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.
Working with a network of Regional HA Coaching committees, Trevor oversaw a comprehensive coach education programme, with thousands of coaches qualifying for Hockey Association coaching awards during his time there. The highlight of the programme was the summer residential activity at Lilleshall NSC where Trevor would head up week-long courses, with many current and past EHL and England age group teams coaches being inspired by these.
Trevor made coaching something hockey people wanted to be involved in and foster a great camaraderie for those involved.
He was also heavily involved in the then Boys’ England Schools HA programme for young players. A number of the 1988 Great Britain gold medal squad came up through the England U16 and U18 sides of the late seventies and early eighties.
In 1985 Trevor took over from John Cadman as HA Director of Coaching but a year later took up an opportunity to oversee hockey coaching in Canada, coaching their men’s national squad in the 1988 Olympics for which they qualified after defeating Argentina in the Pan American Cup Final in Indianapolis earlier that year.
Returning to England in 1989 Trevor again worked in coach education in the sport as well as coaching Bournville, Olton & West Warwicks and Birmingham University.
When illness meant a reduction in his coaching output Trevor turned to match officiating in the EHL in the mid-2000s. He was passionate about sport; a lifelong Birmingham City fan, a very good cricketer in Worcester in his younger days and a keen golfer well into his 70s.
Until recently he remained a regular at Worcestershire CCC home matches along with his wife Barbara who had worked with him at the Hockey Association and had always supported Trevor with his hockey commitments and was well known to everyone in the hockey community. Barbara sadly is unwell at present.
Our condolences go to Barbara and son and daughter, Nick and Sarah.
Trevor was a kind and loyal colleague who was passionate about hockey. There will be hundreds of players and coaches from the 1970s onwards who he coached who will mourn the loss of T.H.E. Clarke.
We will post details of funeral arrangements when known.
England Hockey Board Media release