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All the news for Wednesday 22 August 2018

2018 Asian Games - Day 3
Jakarta (INA)

Women's Results 21 August

Pool A     JPN - HKG     6 - 0
Pool A     CHN - TPE     9 - 0
Pool B     KOR - INA     5 - 0
Pool B     IND - KAZ     21 - 0

Pool Standings

Pool A

	Played	Won	Draw	Lost	GD	Points
Japan	2	2	0	0	17	6
China	1	1	0	0	9	3
Malaysia	1	1	0	0	8	3
Hong Kong China	2	0	0	2	0	0
Chinese Taipei	2	0	0	2	0	0

Pool B

	Played	Won	Draw	Lost	GD	Points
India	2	2	0	0	29	6
Korea	1	1	0	0	5	3
Kazakhstan	2	1	0	1	3	3
Thailand	1	0	0	1	1	0
Indonesia	2	0	0	2	0	0

Asian Hockey Federation

18th Asian Games Jakarta Palembang 2018 - Day 3 Review



Match 01 - Japan 6 - 0 Hong Kong China

JAKARTA: Japan moved closer to a semi-final berth in Group A of the women’s hockey event after a 6-0 win over Hong Kong China at the GBK Hockey Stadium.

Japan ranked 14t in the world were far more potent than Hong Kong, but they had to struggle in the initial stage. It was their second win of the tournament.

On the opening day, the Japanese had beaten Chinese Taipei 11-0. They now have a three-day break before meeting former champions China on Saturday. Credit must go to the Hong Kong goalkeeper Yip Ting Wai for keeping the score down in the first half. She was under siege for almost the entire match.

Japanese coach Anthony Farry said the players were impatient and wanted to run up a high scoreline. “It is still a learning process for the players. My main concern will be the misses if they had played a top side. Maybe that is where we will be able to show our better performances.

I am pleased that we had plenty of chances. The finishing should have been better but I am sure the players will get it right if they continue to be consistent with their game,” he said.

It took the Japanese almost 10 minutes to break down the Hong Kong defense, though they were parked inside their opponent’s 25-yard line. From a goalmouth melee, Aki Yamada scored a field goal from close range. The second goal came in the 25th minute when Natsuki Naito earlier direct flick from the penalty corner set-piece move was stooped on the line by a Hang Kong defender and a penalty stroke was given. Mayumi Ono successfully converted the penalty stroke.

In the third quarter, the Japanese scored three goals. Shihori Oikawa scored a field goal in the 32nd minute followed by Emi Nishikori and Aki in the 37th and 41st minutes respectively. The final goal in the 58th minute was scored by Emi from another penalty corner attempt. Japan had 17 penalty corners in the match but only managed to score three. They also had 24 shots at goal but three was on target.

It was not a good statistics for a team aiming for the top position but the coach said he was not overly concerned when they playing the weaker teams.

Match 02 - China 9 - 0 Chinese Taipei

JAKARTA: China warmed up for their Asian challenge with a 9-0 win over Chinese Taipei in the Group A match in the women’s hockey event at the GBK Hockey Stadium.

The former three-time winner was playing their first match of the tournament. The Chinese were champions from 2002 to 2010.

The Chinese had a slow start but in the second half stepped up their game and won comfortably.

China coach Jamilon Mulders said that there was nothing to worry about as it was just a first match. “You cannot read too much into this match. Credit to Chinese Taipei in making a match of it. As far as we are concerned it was a starting point and I feel the players did well enough. There was no hiccup and we are certainly on the right path,” he said.

China come into the tournament as the top seed. They are placed to make the last four along with Japan from the group. China opened their scoring in the eighth minute off their third penalty corner attempt taken by Xi Xiayun. She was again on target in the 27th minute from another field attempt. Just as the match ended for the first half the Chinese managed to secure a third goal. Gu Bing Feng turned in a penalty corner attempt with a direct flick.

Zhang Xiaoxue added the fourth goal in the 35th minute while Bingfeng was on target for her second goal in the 44th minute. Peng Yang scored two goals in the 49th and 55th minutes while Liang Meiyu scored in the 53rd minute. Zhang too had another goal in the match which came in the 56th minute off a field attempt.



Match 03 - South Korea 5 - 0 Indonesia

Former champions South Korea were restricted to a five-goal margin victory by Asian Games debutants Indonesia at the GBK Hockey Stadium.

The Koreans are playing their first match in the tournament and are the top-seeded team in group B. The Koreans are five-time winners of the gold medal. They are expected to make the final yet again. Their success came in 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998 and 2014.

But today against a vastly inferior team they looked jaded. It was not due to a lack of chances. They had 17 penalty corners and scored only three. They scored two field goals from 19 shots at goal. It was certainly not a good statistic but the Koreans coach Huh Sang-young was not overly perturbed over the scoring rate.

“We played as well as we could for today. It is the first match and I only can see them getting better. The fact remains that they had a lot of scoring chances and we need to sharper with our finishing,” he said.

The Indonesian are only playing in their first-ever Asian Games. They restricted the Koreans to just three goals in the first three quarters. They defended in numbers and gave little away in terms of mistakes. Indonesian coach Yannuar Pribadi said he was proud of his players as did not show any nervousness playing against a top side.

“The standard between the two sides are huge and we knew it will be a tough match. But my players did well and restricted the scoreline. We lost heavily to India but today there was more composure and players fought hard. It was a good effort form a team that is not ranked in the FIH list,” he said.

The scored the opening goal in the seventh minute through Kim Bomi off a field attempt.

Cho Eunji then added the second from a penalty corner set-piece move in the 16th minute. In the 21st minute from another penalty corner, the Koreans increase the lead through Cheon Seulki.

The third quarter saw the Koreans mounting attack after attack, but the Indonesians held fast to their ground. Indonesian goalkeeper Selby Amalia Florentina must be given credit for her efforts in keeping the ball out. She is 25 years of age and is playing in her 11th international cap. Lee Yurim and Lee Youngsil added the final two goals in the 52nd and 56th minutes respectively.

The Koreans will Thailand next after a day’s break while the Indonesians also play the Thais on Saturday.



Match 04 - India 21 - 0 Kazakhstan

India showed no mercy as they hammered Kazakhstan 21-0 in the women’s competition at the GBK Hockey Stadium.

It was the biggest margin of victory in the ongoing Asian Games and showed why the Indian team are the favorites for the gold medal. India coach Sjoerd Marijne was naturally pleased with the scoreline.“It was good as the players took their chances well. We have some areas that are still not up to expectations but this will be sorted out before we meet tougher opponents,” said Sjoerd Marijne. “Since we are favorites it was important to play like champions do really the scoreline did not matter as the performance was what I had expected from them.”

India opened the scoring in the 7th minute through Gurjit Kaur. And this was followed up with the second goal through the efforts of Valriamswami in the 9th minute. Neha Goyal made it 3-0 for India and this was followed up with a brace by Navmeet Kaur in the 11th and 12th minutes. Navjot Kaur scored the sixth in the 16th minute before Valriamswami converted a penalty corner in the 19th minute. And India did not take their foot off the pedal, scoring another two goals through Katariya Vandana in the 29th minute and Valriamswami completing her hat trick a minute later for a 9-0 lead at halftime.

Udita scored in the 34th minute to make it 10-0. Gurjit made it 11-0 ( 37th minute) as Vandana (38th), Lilima Minz ( 38th, 45th), Deep Grace Ekka ( 43rd), Gurjit (44th), made it 16-0 at the end of the third quarter. Navmeet made it 17-0 in the 49th minute while Gurjit powered home a penalty corner in the 52nd for the 18th goal. Vandana added another in the 53rd minute while Navjot took the score to 20-0 in the 54th minute. Monika got goal number 21 in the 55th minute for India to register a win that will send shivers down the spine of their opponents.


Asian Hockey Federation media release

Mighty fall of Kazakhstan at hockey

K. Arumugam

When the mighty USSR broke in the mid 1990s, many of the splinter nations preferred to join Asia for sports: this was how Asian hockey got Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and others in its fold. Their girls added competitive edge to team-starved Asian hockey circuit. Till then, the Asian women's hockey was just revolving around four teams --India, China, Korea and Japan. Uzbeks and Kazakh girls often rattled the established powers especially India and Japan, creating in its wake what China and Korea did in the men's domain.

In 199 Asia Cup for instance, the Kazakhs defeated Malaysia twice: and the Malaysians are now aiming podium finish in Jakarta.

As India today whacked them for 21-0 in their second encounter of the Jakarta Asian Games, one cannot but regret the way the Kazakhs in particular had fallen from top pedestal they felt they were in a decade ago.

In the entire match, Kazakhs girls did not enter the circle even once, leaving Indian goalie Savita Punia to take full rest. Like Richard Allen of 1920s in Indian men's Olympics arena

When India made it to the finals 20 years ago at Bangkok, it was just a 6-1 win over Kazakhs and 2-1 narrow escape at the hands of Uzbeks.

Today at Jakarta, India struck five goals more than theirs tally against absolute minnows Indonesia

What is prerequisite for any team taking part in international hockey insofar as hockey sport is concerned is, just to have two good defenders and even sounder goalkeeper. This we saw in Indonesian team, which could tie top ranked Indian women down in the entire third quarter. In fact it took 23 minutes for India to strike a goal after its 6th goal.

This is what new teams are supposed to do which Kazakhs do not seem to possess.

Its good they availed the qualifying opportunity provided by the AHF, that's only a beginning. For going ahead and count, much more need to be done.

It is now for the Asian Hockey Federation to develop these teams back to where they belong - top six in Asia.

Its actually the effort of AHF that so many women's teams are in the fray, normally the field normally doesn't exceed 4 or 5 teams.

The beginning has been made though momentarily it appears the one-sided matches robs the sheen out of the competition where Olympic spot is at stake.

Stick2Hockey.com

VIBGYOR (the rainbow's 7 colours) of Indian eves triumphs in hockey

By B.G.Joshi (Sehore-Bhopal, India)


Gurjit  Kaur- she scored back to back hat trick  against Kazakhstan. In 2017 Kakamigahara (Japan) Asia Cup Gurjit has scored thrice in quarter final match vs. Kazakhstan in 7-1 triumph. On Aug 21 she netted 4 Goals against same opponent .

Indian women hockey team beat Kazakhstan by 21-0 in Asian Games yesterday.

Women Hockey was introduced in Asian Games in New Delhi (1982) Asiad, in that tournament India beat Hong Kong 22-0(record of Asian Games).

Lim Gae Sook of South Korea has scored most 25 goals (Seoul 1986) in single edition of Asian Games.

The following table shows the 7 biggest wins of Indian ladies in international   hockey since inception in1953:

 Fieldhockey.com

Indian women wallop a hapless Kazakhstan 21-0

Coach Marijne impressed with the discipline of the team

Uthra Ganesan


Eye on the ball: India’s Monika strives to surge past a Kazakhstan player.  

It was a walloping all right but it still wasn’t enough to ensure a new record for the Indian women’s hockey team.

A 21-0 victory against a hapless Kazakhstan on Tuesday was perhaps the best way for the girls to go one-up on the men ahead of an extended three-day break from competition and take confidence before the next game.

The team and coach Sjoerd Marijne both insisted they had no clue about the record that they just missed — Indian women’s biggest victory ever in Asian Games is 22-0 against Hong Kong way back in 1982 — but they did admit such huge wins help the team develop a champion’s mindset.

“It is not about the number of goals scored for me, it is the behaviour of the team. In the last game against Indonesia, we scored eight but you could see there were no happy faces, because we struggled with our structure. Today, what impressed me most was the discipline, the structure, the attitude,” Marijne said after the game.

Ten Indians got onto the scoresheet— Gurjit Kaur scored four, Lalremsiami, Vandana Katariya and Navneet Kaur struck thrice each, Navjot Kaur and Lilima Minz scored two apiece and Neha Goyal, Udita, Deep Grace Ekka and Monika once each. This, without playing captain Rani, who was rested with a slight strain in her glutes.

Next up would be defending champion Korea, a different ballgame altogether by his own admission. But for now, Marijne and his wards are a satisfied lot.

The Hindu

Rampant Indian women's hockey team thrashes Kazakhstan 21-0 in group stage clash


India's next match will be a tougher test, as they face Korea next on 25 August. AFP

Jakarta: A ruthless Indian women's hockey team overwhelmed Kazakhstan 21-0 on Tuesday to notch up their second biggest win at the Asian Games in Jakarta.

Goals rained thick and fast in the Pool B match at the GBK Hockey Field with as many as 10 Indians out of 18, who took the field, entering their names in the scoresheet. The Indians scored almost at will against the hapless Kazakhstan team but the scoreline missed their all-time Asian Games record of 22-0 by a goal. The Indian women's team had beaten Hong Kong 22-0 in the 1982 Asiad.

Drag-flicker Gurjit Kaur, who had also scored a hat-trick in India's 8-0 thrashing of Indonesia in their opening match, top-scored again with four goals in the eighth, 36th, 44th and 52nd minutes.

Lalremsiami (9th, 19th, 29th), Navneet Kaur (11th, 12th and 49th) and Vandana Katariya (29th, 37th and 52nd) were the other three hat-trick scorers.

Navjot Kaur (16th and 54th), Lilima Minz (38th and 44th), Neha Goyal (10th), Udita (34th), Deep Grace Ekka (43rd) and Monika (55th) rounded of the scoring for India in the completely lop-sided match with Kazakhstan defending all through.

India, who had won a bronze in the 2014 Asian Games, are currently ranked ninth while Kazakhstan are 34th in the latest FIH chart. India is the highest ranked team in the competition.

Gurjit scored the first goal for India in the eighth minute as she sent a low and powerful shot to the Kazakhstan goalkeeper's left. A minute later, India were 2-0 up as as Lalremsiami connected a pass from Lilima Minz before Navneet struck her first goal two minutes later. India were 4-0 up in the 11th minute, with Navneet finishing off once again.

India got their sixth goal of the game in the 18th minute off a penalty corner conversion by Lalremsiami. Just a minute before the end of the second period, India were 8-0 up with Vandana scoring with a superb shot. Lalremsiami added another one to complete her hat-trick at the stroke of half time to make the scoreline 9-0.

India added another 12 goals in the next two 15-minute periods to overwhelm their opponents. Since the Indian team has a three-day gap before they take on Korea on August 25, a very happy coach Sjoerd Marijne has granted the players an off-day on Wednesday.

India captain Rani Rampal, who did not play in the match due to a minor leg strain, said they would look to explore the city outside the Games Village and have some fun at a beach.

"There's nothing to do at the Games Village. We have a lot of time before the Korea game, so will have an off-day tomorrow (Wednesday)," said Rani, who assured that she will be fine before the next match.

Marijne was more than happy with the performance of the players. "For me it's not the goals which is important but the way we make the goals. I liked the behaviour. If you want to be a champion, you have to act like a champion. I did not see in the previous match, but today I saw it from the first minute to last minute and I am happy about that," Marjine told reporters.

"They make 21, 8 or 10 (goals), it does not matter to me. They have to be disciplined with passing, good positioning, the injection was good. We have to now concentrate on next match now," he said.

Marijne said India has a long season ahead of them, so he will be careful with Rani, but hoped she will be back in the next game.

Firstpost

India maul Kazkahstan 21-0 to register 2nd biggest win in women's hockey


Indian Women's Hockey Team , AFP

A ruthless Indian women's hockey team today mauled lowly Kazakhstan 21-0 to notch up their second biggest win at the Asian Games in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Goals rained thick and fast in the Pool B match at the GBK Hockey Field with as many as 10 Indians out of 18, who took the field, entering their names in the scoresheet.

The Indians scored almost at will against the hapless Kazakhstan team but the scoreline missed their all-time Asian Games record of 22-0 by a goal. The Indian women's team had beaten Hong Kong 22-0 in the 1982 Asiad.

Drag-flicker Gurjit Kaur, who had also scored a hat-trick in India's 8-0 thrashing of Indonesia in their opening match, top-scored again with four goals in the eighth, 36th, 44th and 52nd minutes.

Lalremsiami (9th, 19th, 29th), Navneet Kaur (11th, 12th and 49th) and Vandana Katariya (29th, 37th and 52nd) were the other three hat-trick scorers.

Navjot Kaur (16th and 54th), Lilima Minz (38th and 44th), Neha Goyal (10th), Udita (34th), Deep Grace Ekka (43rd) and Monika (55th) were the other goal scorers for India in the completely lop-sided match with Kazakhstan defending all through.

India, who had won a bronze in the 2014 Asian Games, are currently ranked ninth while Kazakhstan are 34th in the latest FIH chart. India is the highest ranked team in the competition.

Gurjit scored the first goal for India in the eighth minute as she sent a low and powerful shot to the Kazakhstan goalkeper's left.

A minute later, India were 2-0 up as as Lalremsiami connected a pass from Lilima Minz before Navneet struck her first goal two minutes later. India were 4-0 up in the 11th minute, with Navneet finishing off once again.

India got their sixth goal of the game in the 18th minute off a penalty corner conversion by Lalremsiami.

Just a minute before the end of the second period, India were 8-0 up with Vandana scoring with a superb shot. Lalremsiami added another one to complete her hat-trick at the stroke of half time to make the scoreline 9-0.

India added another 12 goals in the next two 15-minute periods to overwhelm their opponents.

Since the Indian team has a three-day gap before they take on Korea on August 25, a very happy coach Sjoerd Marijne has granted the players an off-day on Wednesday.

India captain Rani Rampal, who did not play in today's match due to a minor leg strain, said they would look to explore the city outside the Games Village and have some fun at a beach.

"There's nothing to do at the Games Village. We have a lot of time before the Korea game, so will have an off-day tomorrow," said Rani, who assured that she will be fine before the next match.

Marijne was more than happy with the performance of the players.

"For me it's not the goals which is important but the way we make the goals. I liked the behaviour. If you want to be a champion, you have to act like a champion. I did not see in the previous match, but today I saw it from the first minute to last minute and I am happy about that," Marjine told reporters.

"They make 21, 8 or 10 (goals), it does not matter to me. They have to be disciplined with passing, good positioning, the injection was good. We have to now concentrate on next match now." The coach said he will let players have some good time on Wednesday.

"The Games Village is very small and you can't do much. There is a beach closer by and I want to see them other environments. Next day we will train hard," he said.

Marijne said india has a long season so he will be careful with Rani but hoped she will be back in the next game.

Daily News & Analysis

Indian women’s hockey team mauls Kazakhstan 21-0

Misses record by one goal


Indian players celebrates after scoring a goal against Kazakhstan during the pool match at the Asian Games 2018, in Jakarta on August 21 2018. PTI

Four Indian players scored a hat-trick each as the women’s hockey team mauled lowly Kazakhstan 21-0 to notch up its second consecutive win in the Asian Games here on Tuesday.

Goals rained thick and fast in the Pool B match at the GBK Hockey Field with as many as 10 Indians out of 18, who took the field, entering their names in the scoresheet.

The Indians scored almost at will against the hapless Kazakhstan team but the scoreline missed the all-time Asian Games record of 22-0 by a goal. The Indian women’s team had beaten Hong Kong 22-0 in the 1982 Asiad.

Navneet Kaur (11th, 12th, 16th, 48th, 48th) top-scored with five goals while drag-flicker Gurjit Kaur, who had also scored a hat-trick in India’s 8-0 thrashing of Indonesia in their opening match, had four strikes (8th, 36th, 44th and 51st).

Lalremsiami found the target in the ninth, 19th and 29th minutes while Vandana Katariya (28th, 37th and 52nd) was the fourth player to score a hat-trick in the lop-sided match.

India, who had won a bronze in the 2014 Asian Games, are currently ranked ninth while Kazakhstan are 34th in the latest FIH chart. India is the highest ranked team in the competition.

Gurjit scored the first goal for India in the eighth minute as she sent a low and powerful shot to the Kazakhstan goalkeper’s left.

A minute later, India were 2-0 up as as Lalremsiami connected a pass from Lilima Minz before Navneet struck her first goal two minutes later. India were 4-0 up in the 11th minute, with Navneet finishing off once again.

India got their sixth goal of the game in the 18th minute off a penalty corner conversion by Lalremsiami.

Just a minute before the end of the second period, India were 8-0 up with Vandana scoring with a superb shot. Lalremsiami added another one to complete her hat-trick at the stroke of half time to make the scoreline 9-0.

India added another 12 goals in the next two 15-minute periods to overwhelm their opponents.

The Tribune

India eye another big win in men’s hockey against Hong Kong

Ranked fifth in the world, the highest among the Asian countries, India are tipped the firm favourites to win their second consecutive Asian Games title.


India hammered hosts Indonesia 17-0 in their opening Pool A match on Monday. (Source: PTI)

Their campaign off to a rousing start with a record win, defending champions India will be eyeing another massive victory when they take on lowly Hong Kong in their second pool match of the Asian Games in Jakarta on Wednesday. India hammered hosts Indonesia 17-0 in their opening Pool A match on Monday, thereby registering their highest victory margin in the history of the Asian Games.

India’s previous highest margin of win was a 12-0 rout of Iran in 1974 and Bangladesh in 1982. The level of competition in Asian Games is by no means comparable to the world standard but a 17-0 walloping of any country can definitely be seen as a moral booster for India.

Ranked fifth in the world, the highest among the Asian countries, India are tipped the firm favourites to win their second consecutive Asian Games title. A title here is of huge importance for India coach Harendra Singh and he has already stated that anything less than a gold is not acceptable.

The Asian Games gold will earn India a direct entry to the Tokyo Olympics and provide them ample time to prepare best for the quadrennial extravaganza in 2020. It is expected to be another goalfest for India against Hong Kong China, who are ranked 45th in the world.

Against Indonesia on Monday, as many as nine Indian players registered their names in the scoresheet, including a hat-trick each from Dilpreet Singh, Simranjeet Singh and Mandeep Singh.

And come tomorrow, the Indians would like to carry on the goal-scoring spree to lift their confidence ahead of other pool matches against Japan (on August 24), Korea (August 26) and Sri Lanka (August 28).

Harendra is expected to continue experimenting with his plans and personnel against Hong Kong China as well to provide all the players of his squad enough game time before the business end of the tournament.

Indian Express

Hockey Series Open - Vilnius 2018 (Women) - Day 1
Vilnius (LTU)

Results 21 August

WAL v TUR (RR)     1 - 0
LTU v UKR (RR)     0 - 2

Pool Standings

FIH Match Centre

Hockey Open Series: Wales 1-0 Turkey


Leah Wilkinson won her 150th cap for Wales during the game

Wales Women began their Hockey Open Series campaign with a narrow win over Turkey in Vilnius, Lithuania.

Amy Burton turned in the crucial goal from close range in the 43rd minute at the Zemyna Gynasium Hockey Stadium.

Although Wales have taken a squad featuring only nine of the 18 players selected for April's Commonwealth Games, captain Leah Wilkinson made her 150th appearance for her country.

Wales next face Ukraine on Wednesday in the round-robin tournament.

Czech Republic and hosts Lithuania are the other teams in the event, which ends on Sunday, 26 August.

Wales squad:

Leah Wilkinson (C), Beth Bingham (VC), Emma Brierley (GK), Amy Burton, Hannah Cozens, Cari Davies, Lauren Dunn, Izzie Howell, Xenna Hughes, Caro Hulme, Ella Jackson (GK), Danni Jordan, Eloise Laity, Phoebe Richards, Jess Roe, Emily Rowlands, Sarah-Jayne Thorburn, Joanne Westwood.

BBC Sport

Ireland World Cup run ‘inspirational’ for Wales


Wales beat Ghana at the Commonwealth Games to finish ninth on the Gold Coast, Australia

Wales vice captain Beth Bingham says the team have taken inspiration from Ireland's remarkable run to the hockey World Cup final.

The 23-year-old is in Wales' 18-strong squad for the Open Series, which starts in Vilnius, Lithuania on Tuesday.

Bingham says they were closely watching Ireland reach the World Cup final in London earlier this month with a team largely made up of amateur players.

"The way they did it was incredible," said Bingham.

"They were relentless, defending with their lives and quite tenacious - similar to how we are.

"They caught teams off guard, which was really nice to see and it shows the smaller-ranked nations with not as much funding can go and cause an upset."

Wales face Turkey in their opener on Tuesday, 21 August and go on to play Ukraine, Czech Republic and hosts Lithuania in the round-robin Open Series event that ends on Sunday, 26 August.

The top three sides will go through to next year's Series Finals.

And there's a fresh feel to the Welsh squad as only nine of the 18 players at April's Commonwealth Games remain.

"People aren't here for different reasons and we've just been concentrating on the squad we have now and this tournament," continued Bingham.

"We've got a fantastic youth system within the Hockey Wales set-up so we've been able to bring in younger players to the team.

"We've really gelled well as a team, everyone's pulling their weight in training and I'm really excited to get started."

Wales' first game is against Turkey at 15:00 BST on Tuesday.

Wales squad:

Leah Wilkinson (C), Beth Bingham (VC), Emma Brierley (GK), Amy Burton, Hannah Cozens, Cari Davies, Lauren Dunn, Izzie Howell, Xenna Hughes, Caro Hulme, Ella Jackson (GK), Danni Jordan, Eloise Laity, Phoebe Richards, Jess Roe, Emily Rowlands, Sarah-Jayne Thorburn, Joanne Westwood

BBC Sport

HC Minsk win Commonwealth Cup with high scoring series



HC Minsk won the Commonwealth Cup last weekend as they came out on top from the competition that also featured Russia’s Dinamo Stroitel and Ukraine’s OKS SHVSM Vinnitsa.

They lost their first tie last Friday 3-2 against OKS but bounced back later in the day to beat Dinamo 6-3 with Alexander Goncharov scoring a hat-trick and Ivan Lyakh netting twice.

On Saturday, they swapped their result with OKS with a 3-2 win of their own against the Ukraine side. And they made it three wins out of four on Saturday evening with Goncharov netting another two goals with Bogdan Kovalenko matching that total. Dmitry Luppa got the other goal.

Round three of the series on Sunday saw Dinamo Stroitel beat Minsk 3-2 but the Belarussians closed out the tournament with a 7-4 win over OKS, making it four wins out of six.

The goals in that tie came via a hat trick from Vladislav Belousov and goals from Ivan Lucevich, Alexander Korsik, Goncharov and Pavel Sidorov.

Euro Hockey League media release

South African CTM Premier Hockey League profiling the Men’s final four

The group stages are complete, and we have lost two of our teams. Ahead of this weekend’s semi-finals we look at the four finalists in order of league position.

Pro Grip Drakensberg Dragons (1st – 13 points)
Coach: Sihle Ntuli
Captain: Jethro Eustice
Previous Best PHL Finish: 2nd in 2017


Mo Mea - Drakensberg Dragons (Photo - Sean Burke / PHL)

The Drakensberg Dragons streamed to the top of the log by the bonus point secured in the crushing 6-1 victory over semi-final opponents the Maropeng Cavemen. After losing their opening game against the Addo Elephants the Dragons have won four on the trot and find themselves with momentum on their side. With 17 goals they are the tournament’s top scorers and Richard Pautz leads the individual standings too. If they are to progress to the final the likes of the in-form Mo Mea, Bili Ntuli, Peter Jarvis and Dylan Swanepoel will be integral.

“We have played really well so far. We have done well in dominating statistically but this year we have taken our chances.” Shared Sihle Ntuli, “we know that the Cavemen have tremendous quality and we will have to play to our best, but there is no doubt that if we play to our potential we can be in the 16:00 game on Sunday”

Kilimanjaro Addo Elephants (2nd – 12 points)
Coach: Cheslyn Gie
Captain: Miguel da Graca
Previous Best PHL Finish: 2nd in 2016


Julian Hykes - Addo Elephants (Picture - Sean Burke / PHL)

The Addo Elephants took the CTM Premier Hockey League 2018 by storm with four wins out the blocks before they lost out in the final group game to their semi-final opponents. The Elephants boast the attacking dynamic duo Ingatius Malgraff and Julian Hykes, the two highest scorers in PHL history, who if they fire on the same day are unplayable. In Miguel da Graca they have a captain who knows how to win and in Daniel Bell they have arguably the player of the tournament so far. Andrew Manson also continues to play his best hockey for the Elephants who also welcome Cerezo Comersamy back from injury.

“The 2018 PHL has gone really well for us and we are happy with the group stages.” Said Cheslyn Gie, “we had a flat final game on Sunday, but knowing we were already through and the players were tired played into that. I am excited for this weekend and the chance to get back to the CTM PHL final again!”

Garden Route Gazelles (3rd – 9 points)
Coach: Ashlin Freddy
Captain: Keenan Horne
Previous Best PHL Finish: Semi-Finals (2016)


Tyson Dlungwana - Golden Gate Gazelles (Photo - Sean Burke / PHL)

The Gazelles lost their opening two games, one via the dreaded shootout, before storming back into the semi-final picture with three wins in a row. They are the only one of the semi-finalists with a new coach this year and Ashlin will be delighted with the progress the team has made. They scored 16 goals, the second most, through 11 different players showing their goal scoring ability across the team. Connor Beauchamp has one of the more lethal flicks in SA Hockey, while Taine Paton and Brandon James are playing the best hockey they have played in recent years. Michael Abrahams has had a great CTM PHL, while Tyson Dlungwana and Gerald Mpopo continue to produce fantastic displays and in Siya Nolutshungu they have a match winner in goals.

“The players have been awesome to work with, open to new ideas and a different way of doing things that they might not be accustomed to,” shared Ashlin Freddy “we are improving each game as a unit and we are excited for the next stage of the tournament. They are a very good attacking side which presents numerous challenges, so we will need to be solid defensively if we are to get a result.”

Origins Maropeng Cavemen (4th – 7 points)
Coach: Mark Sanders
Captain: Rassie Pieterse
Previous Best PHL Finish:  Winners (2016 & 2017)


Rainer York - Maropeng Cavemen (Picture - Sean Burke / PHL)

The Cavemen experienced their toughest group stage of CTM Premier Hockey League history but made it safely through to the final four on the back of the opening weekend 7 points. They also welcome back influential Ricky West for this weekend in a major coup for the double defending champions. They are the only team in the semi-final line-up to have never lost a knock out game at the CTM Premier Hockey League. Although they are known as an experienced side featuring the likes of Tommy Hammond, Rassie Pieterse, Lance Louw and Reza Rosenberg in the ranks, it’s been Chad Futcher, Rayner York, Kyle Lion-Cachet and Peabo Lembethe who have been the stars for the Sanders in his quest for the third star!

“Look we haven’t had the best group stage but our goal was to get to the final four and we are there.” Shared Mark Sanders, “we know that in most of the games we have made mistakes, but we are ready for this weekend. The tournament starts now, and we look forward to defending our crown!”

CTM PHL Men’s Semi-Finals

Saturday 25 August

12:00 – Kilimanjaro Addo Elephants vs. Garden Route Gazelles
Previous Results
PHL 2018 Group Stage – Elephants 1-3 Gazelles
PHL 2017 Group Stage – Elephants 4-0 Gazelles
PHL 2016 Semi-Final – Elephants 2-1 Gazelles
PHL 2016 Group Stage – Elephants 2-8 Gazelles

16:00 – Pro Grip Drakensberg Dragons vs. Origins Maropeng Cavemen
Previous Results
PHL 2018 Group Stage – Dragons 6-1 Cavemen
PHL 2017 Final – Dragons 0-3 Cavemen
PHL 2017 Group Stage – Dragons 0-3 Cavemen
PHL 2016 Group Stage – Dragons 1-2 Cavemen

SA Hockey Association media release

Seven former Black Sticks players issue letter of support for under-fire coach Mark Hager

By David Leggat


Black Sticks coach Mark Hager talks to his players. Photo / Photosport

A group of former Black Sticks have come out swinging in support of beleaguered women's coach Mark Hager.

In a letter signed by the seven – who have a combined 864 caps between them, and all of whom played under Hager since he took charge in 2009 – they back his methods, his positivity and defend charges against him in the wake of an ill-judged email he sent the current squad during the World Cup in London last month.

Hockey New Zealand and the hockey players association met early this week and are getting an independent person to look into the problems between some of the players and Hager.

Hager's email was meant to be sent to a support staff person and instead went to all players in the squad just before a key match at the World Cup, which they unexpectedly lost.

Three players were specifically criticised for aspects of their game, and Hager felt the general attitude towards training was wrong.

Former goalkeeper Amelia Gibson is the only player to have spoken out against the Hager regime but others in the current group are understood to be unhappy.

That cuts no ice with the seven former players – Katie Glynn, Emily Gaddum, Bianca Russell, Krystal Forgesson, Lucy Talbot, Laura Douglas and Anna Alexander.


Mark Hager gives instructions to Krystal Forgesson. Photo / Photosport

In the two-page letter, the seven speak out strongly in support of Hager and his methods and point to his success in charge of the Black Sticks.

"We strongly refute recent allegations around a 'negative environment' within the Black Sticks programme, Mark's 'mistreatment' of players, 'bullying' or playing 'mind games'," the letter states.

"In 2008, the Black Sticks Women finished last at the Beijing Olympics, lost all funding, and dropped to 13th in the world. Mark took over following this result and has been at the helm ever since."

The Black Sticks have been consistently in the world's top five under 54-year-old Hager, reached number three at one point, have finished fourth at the last two Olympic Games, and won three Commonwealth Games medals, topped by the gold on the Gold Coast last April.


Mark Hager and Katie Glynn. Photo / Photosport

"Mark is a person of high integrity and has always created a high-pressure training environment designed to challenge players physically and mentally," the letter states.

"Mark never allows the group to become complacent and he always has every player in the squad pushing and challenging for selection.

"Through Mark's high expectations and low tolerance of complacency, this became ingrained in us as individuals and we were constantly striving for better performances and demanding more of ourselves in both trainings and in games. This essentially led us to being successful, strong and resilient as a group.

"These high expectations and constant goals to get better have essentially helped us all immensely in life after sport."

The letter talks of the "constant pressure" of high performance sport and to be successful teams had to handle that as a group and as individuals.

"It is a coach's job to find and support the best players to take on this challenge. Our time in the team was always extremely tough and challenging, but that is to be expected at an international sporting level."

The seven state they "did not feel bullied, mistreated or that Mark was playing mind games with us.

"We always had a strong leadership group and if we ever had any issues as players with the environment…we could go to them with our concerns and they would address it with the coaching staff."


Mark Hager and Emily Gaddum. Photo / Photosport

The letter ends with an indication of their respect for former Australian star Hager: "We look back fondly on the great memories we have."

Of the seven, defender Gaddum is the country's most capped international with 274; resilient striker Glynn scored 77 goals in 134 matches; attacker Forgesson played 220 times for the Black Sticks while Russell kept goal 75 times.

The silence from the current players has been deafening. Several have been approached for comment but none have responded.

The New Zealand Herald

Seven ex Black Sticks release signed statement in support of Mark Hager


Katie Glynn is one of the seven former Black Sticks who have released a statement strongly refuting allegations against Mark Hager. DAVID UNWIN/FAIRFAX NZ.

Seven former Black Sticks women's players have gone public in support of coach Mark Hager.

Between them, Katie Glynn, Laura Douglas, Lucy Talbot, Anna Alexander (Thorpe), Bianca Russell, Emily Gaddum (Naylor) and Krystal Forgesson have 864 test caps and all have played extensively under Hager.

​Hager has been in the spotlight after accidentally sending an email critical of some Black Sticks players to all the players, rather than just the support staff member he intended.

There have been since been complaints about the team environment.

In their letter, the players said they strongly rejected allegations around a "negative environment' within the Black Sticks programme and claims of players being mistreated.

"Mark is a person of high integrity and has always created a high-pressure training environment designed to challenge players physically and mentally," they said.


Mark Hager has been publicly supported by seven former Black Sticks players who have released a statement in his defence. GETTY IMAGES

The players said they released the statement in response to media coverage over the past two weeks and they strongly support Hager.

​The statement comes three days after New Zealand Hockey and the Hockey Players Association announced an independent reviewer to consider criticism over the Black Sticks women's team environment.

Earlier this month, the Hockey Players Association advised New Zealand Hockey it has received concerns from players in the wake of an email botch-up by Hager.

Former Black Sticks goalkeeper Amelia Gibson told 1 News she was mistreated as a player in the national women's hockey side and called time on her seven-year international career because of it.

Stuff

Hockey blitz in 17 cities

LELIN MALLICK

Bhubaneswar: The state government will launch a publicity campaign in 17 cities, including Delhi, Bombay and Bangalore, from August 29 to promote the Men's Hockey World Cup here in November.

The government will also rope in Bollywood stars for the campaign.

"Sports secretary Vishal Dev said the campaign will be launched in metro cities and state capitals where hockey is popular," said Dev after a security review for the tournament here.

"The aim is to showcase the progress and development of the state through the sporting event," he said.

Dev also said four large LED screens would be installed at Baramunda, Janata Maidan, Idco Exhibition Ground and Adivasi Padia for fans unable to watch matches at the stadium. "There will be two camps for hosts India from September 16 to October 14 and from November 1 to 17 here," said Dev.

The state government had earlier unveiled bus advertisement campaigns in London during the Women's Hockey World Cup, it had also set up kiosks at the India International Travel Mart in Bangalore.

The police today said security arrangements for the teams would be done according to protocol. "Security arrangements will be made at the team hotels. Around 70 to 80 platoons of police will be deployed," said police commissioner Satyajit Mohanty.

Special arrangements was likely for Pakistan, keeping an eye on protests by Rightwing extremist groups, the police said.

"Traffic management along with safety of foreign tourists will be our priority. Security in and around the stadium will be beefed up," said a police officer.

Sixteen teams will play 36 matches will be played during the tournament between November 28 and December 16 at the Kalinga Stadium Complex here.

The Telegraph, India