News for 08 January 2019
All the news for Tuesday 8 January 2019
Defeat to Tenaga won’t sap Terengganu’s energy
By T. Avineshwaran
PETALING JAYA: The Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup defeat to Tenaga Nasional is an early lesson for Terengganu.
Coach I. Vickneswaran, who has been with Terengganu for only a week, said some of the players were not fully settled as they were trying to get the dynamics right.
“When someone new comes into the team, there will be a change in dynamics. The period of adaptation will be there and it was evident during the tournament,” he said.
“During the Cup, some players came in as the tournament progressed and there were shortcomings which will be rectified before the league starts.”
On Sunday, Terengganu were beaten 1-2 by Tenaga Nasional at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
It was a bitter defeat for Terengganu as they were looking to win the Cup for the second time since 2017.
Vickneswaran said every training session will be vital as all the players need to get their fundamentals right before their opening game against Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) on Jan 11.
Terengganu have kept two foreigners from last season – Pablo Xavier Travisan of Argentina and Pakistan’s Ahmad Shakeel Butt.
South Korean Jang Jong-hyun, who played for KLHC last season, are among Terengganu’s new signings.
Daniel Kyriakides of Wales, Ganzalo Merino of Argentina and Korean Jung Man-jae make up the other imports.
“We have to work on our compatibility because most of our players come from diverse backgrounds. They have to understand each other’s playing style,” said Vickneswaran.
“I believe the foreign players can do that. In the past, it was a challenge but these days foreign players add value to the team.
“Every team wants to win the league and I want my boys to do their best throughout the season.”
Terengganu will also be powered by the Saari brothers – Fitri and Faizal – who featured in the recent Hockey World Cup in India with Malaysia.
The Star of Malaysia
Fancied UniKL need to iron out rough spots
PETALING JAYA: With only 14 players at his disposal, winning the Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup proved an impossible task for Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) coach Arul Selvaraj.
UniKL are one of the fancied teams in the Malaysian Hockey League (MHL) but were defeated 0-3 in the semi-finals by eventual champions Tenaga Nasional in the Cup competition.
The former national assistant coach said the team used the Cup campaign as preparation for the gruelling league season.
“The team gathered for less than a week and our foreign players are not here yet.
“Now we see where we stand and see what we need to work on. We’re ready to roll for the opening game on Jan 11,” he said.
UniKL face Terengganu in the first match of the MHL.
Even though they did not have the best of starts, Arul believes the team are shaping up well.
The inclusion of national stalwarts Muhammad Razie Abdul Rahim and Mohamad Sukri Abdul Mutalib has also brought balance to the team. UniKL have also signed three Dutchmen – Robbert Kemperman, Martijn Havenga and Valentin Verga.
Kemperman and Verga played for Holland in the recent World Cup in India where they finished runners-up to Belgium.
UniKL have retained keeper David Harte of Ireland and two Australians – midfielder Timothy Deavin and forward Kieren Govers.
“Razie and Syukri have played with Tim (Deavin) before and they know each other well. The foreign players are also aware of Razie’s abilities as a drag flicker.”
Arul admits that many teams are out to dethrone them since they are the defending champions but he has told his charges to takethat as a challenge.
“Go in with more confidence. But there is a fine line between confidence and arrogance. This I must remind my players.”
The Star of Malaysia
H&W lead the way in English indoor championships as semi-finals beckon
©: Lawrence King
Hampstead and Westminster survived late onslaught from rivals East Grinstead to secure a 7-6 victory on Sunday and ensure they preserved their 100% record in England’s Men’s Jaffa Super 6s Premier Division indoor competition.
The two sides will meet again in the semi-finals at the Copper Box Arena in London on January 27 with East Grinstead hanging on to fourth spot despite the loss.
Both teams were already assured of a spot in the final four as they headed into the match, but they battled like their survival depended on the result.
Level at 3-3 at half-time, Hampstead & Westminster scored four unanswered goals to take a 7-3 lead. But first Dominic Bowden scored to give East Grinstead some hope before two late goals from Ashley Jackson ensured a nail-biting finish.
East Grinstead had the ball in the net and initially thought they had secured a draw, before the last goal was ruled out by officials.
That result means the two teams will meet again in the semi finals, with the winner going on to face the winner of the Surbiton versus Sevenoaks clash in the final.
East Grinstead had started their fixtures on day four with a hard-fought 4-3 win over Sevenoaks, while Hampstead were similarly victors over Sevenoaks, but by a score of 9-4.
Surbiton secured their place in the semis with a win and a draw on the final day of matches at Bromsgrove School. After stuttering to a 5-5 draw with Canterbury in the opening game, they went on to hammer Team Bath Buccaneers 13-5.
Holcombe missed out on a place in the semi finals and finished fifth in the table, despite winning their two games on Sunday, 7-4 against Wimbledon and 8-4 over Brooklands MU.
Euro Hockey League media release
Munster and Connacht champs confirmed as indoor gospel spreads far and wide
Munster champions Limerick
Hockey Ireland’s decision to resume fielding international indoor teams in 2020 appears to have spurred an increase in interest in the code across the island.
Over the weekend, venues in Antrim, Kinsale, Donabate, Rathfarnham and Galway played hosts various different events, raising hopes indoor can hit the same heights when Ireland competed internationally from 1978 to 1987 before a decision was taken by the governing body to withdraw from the code.
In Leinster for much of the last decade, Three Rock Rovers and Railway Union have been leaders in trying to maintain the sport on the men’s side and both showed their strength at St Columba’s on Saturday.
Rovers – the 2018 National Indoor Trophy winners – began their regional group stage with a 6-1 win over Railway’s “B” team with Ross Canning scoring a hat trick, backed up by goals from Harry Morris and Jody Hosking.
Railway’s “A” side, meanwhile, ran up an 8-3 win over Corinthian and a 7-5 success against Kilkenny to top Pool B, earning a direct ticket to the Leinster semi-finals.
Kilkenny and Glenanne go through to the wildcard playoffs for a place in the last four with their opponents to be confirmed.
In the women’s competition, Glenanne went straight into the semi-finals with a 5-0 win over Bray assuring them top spot in Pool B with Serena Rush scoring a hat trick.
Three Rock followed them through with a 2-1 success against North Kildare, former Welsh international Angharad Griffths and Rachel Allen on the mark. They will meet Muckross next Sunday in their playoff game, bidding for a place in the final four.
Railway won Pool A with a 5-4 success against Muckross with Isobel and Cecelia Joyce, Anna-May Whelan, Jenny Long and Orla Fox getting the key goals. They go straight into the semis with UCD facing North Kildare in the qualifiers.
Ashton B celebrate their success
Limerick and Ashton were the first Munster indoor champions crowned for at least 30 years as they took the laurels at Saile, Kinsale on Saturday.
Limerick took the men’s Munster title with three wins and a draw from their three-team round-robin. Luke Cardy showed a liking for the boards with a hat-trick in a 5-2 win over Waterford and three goals in two games against Ashton in 2-0 and 4-1 results.
The title came down to the last game, though, with Waterford potentially nicking the title with a victory. But a brilliant save from Justin Scheffel from the last play secured a 2-2 draw, brothers Nathan and Quinten Eacrett getting the Treaty side’s goals to get the result they needed.
Ashton’s nominally designated “B” team were the women’s winners. The outdid their “A” teams who finished second, landing three wins and a draw from their five-team group with Lisa Buttimer key in front of goal while Keelan Noonan was the rock at the base of the defence.
The two clubs have now both earned the right to represent Munster at the National Indoor Trophy finals in Antrim at the end of the month.
Galway, meanwhile, were the Connacht champions following their success in their regional competition as they beat Greenfields in the final 3-0 to retain the title.
Galway were the Connacht champs once again
At underage level, in the Tommy O’Sullivan Perpetual Boys Under-14 Cup competition, Three Rock Rovers led the way with four wins from four with Avoca finishing second in the group with three wins.
Railway finished third on goal difference ahead of Corinthian on four points with Wicklow fifth in a competitive group. The second group stages for the boys takes place next Sunday.
The newly introduced girls Under-14 McCann Cup, Group A saw Old Alex top the group by just a single goal on goal difference ahead of Avoca after both sides finished on 11 points.
Three Rock were third following late wins over Dublin North and Boyne with every team in the group picking up a win. The latter two sides along with Bray move on to the shield competition on January 20. The Group B qualifying matches take place on January 13.
At the Antrim Forum, Lurgan came out winners in the Under-18 Cup competition after beating Armagh 2-1 in the final.
Randalstown come out trumps in the Plate after beating Ards in a shoot-out after the game ended 2-2. The Ulster boys competitions will play to a conclusion next weekend.
The Hook
Wanderers in pole position in Scottish Women’s Indoor National League 1
In the final round of games in the league section of Women’s National League 1 Dundee Wanderers finished in pole position, Clydesdale Western are three points adrift in second, while Hillhead`s spectacular run came to an end but they still finished in the top four – a great effort for their side.
In their opening outing of the day Dundee Wanderers showed bottom side Grange no mercy with an 18-1 victory – it was 14 at the interval but the goal avalanche abated a little in the second half. Vikki Bunce was top scorer with six, Charlotte Watson got five, Ruth Blaikie scored a hat-trick and there was a couple for Jessica Ross, and the others were singles.
There was no stopping Wanderers as they overcame Edinburgh University 9-1 in their second outing of the day. The former champions were three up in as many minutes, Emily Dark opened to be followed by a brace from Bunce. Watson and Blaikie added to the Taysiders` tally by the interval, Ella Watt replied for the students. Further goals followed in the second half through doubles from both Dark and Bunce.
Hillhead had a ding-dong affair against Grove Menzieshill and finally came out on top 7-6 in a thrilling encounter. The Taysiders looked to be on a winner with a 3-2 half-time lead, Ellie Stott got two with India Fraser getting the other, Louise Andrews and Zoe Irvine replied for Hillhead.
A Grove Menzieshill victory looked even more likely as Sam Sangster made it 4-2 with a penalty corner strike early in the second half. But back came the Glasgow side with three consecutive strikes from Irvine, Carla MacNiven and Andrews for a 5-4 advantage. That slender lead remained to the end despite Pauline Stott and Sangster scoring again for Grove Menzieshill but that was cancelled out by further goals from MacNiven and Andrews for her hat-trick.
Just when it looked as if Hillhead`s giant-killing reputation was set to continue, they went down 2-1 to Watsonians in their final league encounter. All seemed to be going swimmingly well when Louise Andrews put Hillhead ahead just on the interval. In the second half there was no further scoring from the Glasgow side, but strikes from Nikki Stobie and Emily Newlands secured the narrow victory for Watsonians.
Clydesdale Western secured second spot in the table after seeing off Grove Menzieshill 4-3 – but the story of the game was that the Glasgow side took their chances while Grove Menzieshill had three efforts frustrated by the post.
Western were a goal up at the interval through Kayleigh Justice. Midway through the second half the scores were level at 2-2, Jamie Lyon and Holly Duval scored for Grove Menzieshill while Jen Eadie replied with a shot into the roof of the net. However, in the closing stages Justice netted twice for her hat-trick, Lyon added a belated consolation, but the points went to Western in the end. Special mention should be made of Grove Menzieshill`s 17-year-old keeper Rachel Strachan who made several telling saves.
A 4-1 win over Watsonians gave Western their second victory of the day. They were three up at the interval through Millie Steiger, Jen Eadie and Heather Howie. Nikki Stobie pulled one back with a shot into the roof of the net but the result was secured with a first time shot by Howie in the closing minutes.
Edinburgh CALA broke their duck with a 3-1 win over Edinburgh University. CALA led by an Olivia Henderson strike at the interval. Emma Davie put her side two up only for Ellie Hutcheson to pull one back for the students. However, the points were sealed with a last minute penalty conversion from Davie to restore the two goal cushion.
CALA built on their opening victory with a comfortable 5-1 win over Grange, the highlight was a double from Shona McNab.
In the final game of the day Grove Menzieshill finally hit their stride with a comfortable 8-2 win over Edinburgh University, this result pushed the Taysiders into the top four and consigned the students to second bottom spot.
Jude McMullan, Corrie May, Susan Hamilton and Ellie Stott gave the Dundonians a 4-1 lead at the interval, Ella Watt replied for Edinburgh. It was a similar score in the second half with a double from India Fraser, another from Stott and Sam Sangster completed the scoring, this time Sophie Maunder got the students` consolation.
Scottish Hockey Union media release
Under-13s Put On Super Start To Australian Indoor Hockey Festival
Ben Somerford
The New South Wales Lions and Stars have taken out the girls and boys Under-13 titles at the Australian Indoor Hockey Festival at Goulburn’s Veolia Arena on Monday.
The Under-13’s division, which started on Friday 4 January, culminated with the finals on Monday.
In the girls’ division, the Lions rounded out a successful week with a 4-3 win over the NSW Stars as they finished ahead of Queensland Fire on the final standings.
ACT claimed the Play the Whistle award, while Queensland Flare’s Alexandria Risetto was a star performer with 15 goals.
In the boys’ division, the Stars defeated Victoria 4-2 in the final fixture to secure top spot, ahead of the NSW Lions.
There was a unique four-way tie for the Play the Whistle award, shared between NSW, ACT, Victoria and Queensland
Kurt Walters from the NSW Stars was a shining light with 12 goals for his side.
The standard of Indoor Hockey at the Under-13s impressed all and was an exciting start to the upcoming three weeks at the Festival.
The Festival will run from Friday 4 January to Saturday 26 January 2019, across Under-13, Under-15, Under-18, Under-21 and Open divisions, with the Masters divisions having already competed in December.
Hockey Australia have partnered with Destination NSW and the Goulburn Mulwaree Council to make the Festival possible and we thank them for their support.
Head to https://hockeyaustralia.altiusrt.com/competitions/ for fixtures and match information. Follow @HockeyAustralia on Twitter for updates. Entry is free at Veolia Arena.
Hockey Australia media release