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News for 06 June 2019

All the news for Thursday 6 June 2019


FIH Men's Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019 - Day 1
Bhubaneswar (IND)

Fixtures (GMT +5:30)

6 Jun 2019 08:45     RSA v USA (Pool B)     0 - 2
6 Jun 2019 17:00     POL v UZB (Pool A)
6 Jun 2019 19:00     IND v RUS (Pool A)
7 Jun 2019 08:45     JPN v MEX (Pool B)
7 Jun 2019 17:00     RUS v UZB (Pool A)
7 Jun 2019 19:00     POL v IND (Pool A)

Live streaming and full game replay on https://fih.live (Geo blocked if there is TV coverage)

FIH Match Centre



Strong Start by USMNT with Opening Win Over South Africa in FIH Series Finals


Image Courtesy of Hockey India

BHUBANESWAR, India – June 6, 2019 – In the first game of the FIH Series Finals, No. 25 U.S. Men’s National Team took to the pitch at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, India against No. 16 South Africa. Although it has been six years since these Pool B teams met, USA produced a well-executed game plan to keep South Africa’s pressure under control. Scoreless after three quarters, the red, white and blue tallied two in the fourth and used smart possession hockey to secure a 2-0 victory.

“It is always great to win the game but winning the opening game usually provides momentum and growing confidence moving forward,” said Rutger Wiese, USMNT Head Coach. “We are very happy with the result.”

After winning the opening push back, USA knew that a half-field press was critical in maintaining South Africa’s pressure. A close chance came for South Africa in the 3rd minute after a free hit taken quickly followed with Austin Smith sending a ball to Richard Pautz who just missed a reverse deflection on goal. Midway through the first quarter USA earned their first circle penetration after Patrick Harris (Moorpark, Calif.) dumped it back to Kei Kaeppeler (Stuttgart, Germany) who attempted a turning shot, but it was well defended. Higher ranked South Africa held much of the possession for the remainder of the quarter as USA’s defensive effort kept the game scoreless.

The second quarter was action-packed as both teams produced more scoring opportunities. Deegan Huisman (Almere, The Netherlands) registered USA’s first shot after quick touches found him with space but his shot was saved by South Africa’s goalkeeper Rassie Pieterse. Down the other way, South Africa produced another close chance as Nicholas Spooner deflected a backhand out of the air that hit the crossbar. This was followed shortly after by a succession of four penalty corners in a row for South Africa. The first three attempts were read well by flyer K. Kaeppeler as the fourth saw South Africa recover from a missed trap at the top and Spooner get a backhand shot off. The halftime score remained tied 0-0.

After trailing in all statistic column, the third quarter saw USA come out of halftime with a fighting mentality. The red, white and blue produced five shots to South Africa’s three while also earning two penalty corners. The frame started with South Africa earning three consecutive penalty corners but USA goalkeeper Jonathan Klages (Berlin, Germany) denied the chances. Positive offensive movement started to connect for USA as they were rewarded in the 38th minute with their first penalty corner of the game after Johnny Orozco (Ventura, Calif.) sent a hard ball into the circle. Aki Kaeppeler’s (Stuttgart, Germany) drag was saved and P. Harris followed up and scored but the whistle blew before issuing another penalty corner. Not outcome came as the game headed into the final quarter still scoreless.

With continued determination, it took USA only one minute into the fourth quarter to earn another penalty corner after a long-threaded ball. A different variation on the top saw Paul Singh (Simi Valley, Calif.) send a hard push toward goal and inserter Christian DeAngelis (Doylestown, Pa.) got a touch on it behind goalkeeper Pieterse to finish and give USA a 1-0 lead. Trailing one goal fueled South Africa as they continued to impend forward with chances, but they were continually met by Klages and a collective USA defensive effort. In the 57th minute, a run down the right side of the field through Huisman found Michael Barminski (Ventura, Calif.), was bumped through K.Kaeppeler and strongly finished off a support run by Singh to extend the lead. USA used smart possession hockey and passes in the final three minutes to keep control and secure a 2-0 victory.

With eleven saves and part of the unit that denied nine penalty corners, USA goalkeeper Jonathan Klages (Berlin, Germany) was named Man of the Match following the game.

“I’m extremely happy with this result,” said Klages, following the game. “It was the first game of the tournament and we did a lot to prep for it. Of course, we can’t get comfortable and we need to continue to build upon this.”

“We needed the first half to really grow in the game,” commented Wiese on takeaways from this game. “The second half we played well especially the third quarter when we created some chances and penalty corners. Now are focus will shift to the next game against Mexico.”

The U.S. Men’s National Team will return to action on Saturday, June 8 at 7:30 a.m. ET for their second game in Pool B against Mexico. For more information, including results, full schedule, rosters and more, check out the FIH Series Finals event page by clicking here. #FIHSeriesFinals



USFHA media release



USA surprise South Africa in Hockey Series Finals Opener


The South African Hockey Men returned to the scene of the 2018 FIH Hockey World Cup, the Kalinga Stadium, with a view on creating better memories and beginning their Road to Tokyo at the FIH Hockey Series Final. They opened their campaign this morning against United States of America.

With the FIH Hockey Series Final an Olympic qualifying event, the top 2 nations qualify for the Olympic Qualifying matches later this year to earn a place in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. With the ultimate carrot dangling between all teams the tournament promised to deliver superb excitement and tons of anxiety for good measure!

The opening quarter saw both sides play a bit on their back foot as both looked to not concede an early goal, but it was South Africa with the best early chance as Matt de Sousa fired wide after some good work. In the second quarter South Africa then raised the tempo and intensity and struck the post through the impressive Nic Spooner. In fact, South Africa did everything right except score in a quarter that saw USA Keeper Jonathan Klages the standout player in the half.

Despite all the penalty corners the South Africans won, they could not convert as USA eventually took the lead controversially at their own penalty corner when the ball was put home by Christian de Angelis after it appeared to strike his body. With no video referrals, the South Africans had to accept the call and charge up the other end.

As the Americans sat further back South Africa sieged forward but they were met time after time by the type of wall that would make an American president proud. The South Africans were then caught on the counter to rub salt into a very fresh wound and Paul Singh made no mistake to fire home. It deflated a South African side who will be left to rue the opportunities missed, having had three times as many penalty corners

South Africa will have very little time to wallow in disappointment as focus will quickly shift to the second game of the group stage against Japan on Saturday. The importance of this game has rocketed up as the tournament moves forward. And South Africa would definitely like to start creating happy memories at a venue that has frustrated more than pleased so far.

South Africa 0-2 USA (De Angelis 47’ & Singh 58’)

SA Hockey Association media release



All systems go for FIH Hockey Series Final for SA Hockey Men


Picture - Hockey India

When the saying “time flies” was first phrased, the relevant person must have had the build up to an International Hockey tournament in mind because somehow, we are on the eve of the FIH Hockey Series Final in Bhubaneswar. The tournament is a Road to Tokyo Olympic Qualifying event, where the top 2 team progress to the Olympic Qualifying Matches later this year.

For South Africa’s Hockey Men, there is the added incentive that SASCOC will be using the event as a measure on the competitiveness of the side for inclusion in the Tokyo Olympics, with the goal of a top 2 finish to keep Olympic dreams alive.

South Africa’s Men have been in India for a couple of days and have prepared with two warm up games against India (3-1 defeat) and Poland (2-0 victory) ahead of the tournament. This was on the back of a successful three test home series a Randburg where they won all three encounters without conceding a goal. 

Garreth Ewing has also made two changes to the squad initially announced. Before travelling Mo Mea withdrew and was replaced by Owen Mvimbi, while Dayaan Cassiem suffered a concussion in the friendly against India and for medical reasons has been withdrawn from the series. Tevin Kok has flown to India to join up with the team as a replacement.

South Africa were of course at the same venue in December playing at the FIH Hockey World Cup and speaking to the press in India Rassie Pieterse shared his thoughts: “The World Cup was not a good outing for us because as per our world ranking, we should have finished at least in No.8 - No.12 position but there were a lot of positives we have taken from that event and the team is confident of a good show here because we are familiar with this atmosphere, the stadium and the crowd and would like to use it to our advantage.”



South Africa are currently ranked 16th in the world but showed in bits and pieces at the FIH Hockey World Cup last year that they can thrill. In Nic Spooner and Bili Ntuli they have two men who know how to score on the biggest stage, while the experience of Tim Drummond, Jethro Eustice and Austin Smith will be pivotal in the chase for top 2.

South Africa’s first opponent will be USA, currently ranked 25th in the world. USA secured their place at the series when they won the FIH Open Series in Salamanca in Mexico. They are coached by Dutchman Rutger Wiese. Aki Kaeppeler, who plays club hockey Mannheimer HC, will be someone to keep an eagle eye on at penalty corner time while HC Almeerse player Deegan Huisman carries a big goal threat.

As far as I can go back on the FIH Tournament Management Site, there has not been a meeting between the SA Hockey Men and the USA Men. It promises to be a classic at 5:00 am South African time live on Supersport 8.

FIH Hockey Series Finals – South African Fixtures

06 June – South Africa vs. USA   0 - 2
08 June – South Africa vs. Japan
10 June – South Africa vs. Mexico
12 June – Crossovers
14 June – Semi-Finals
15 June – Final

SA Hockey Mens Squad

Tim Drummond (Captain), Matthew Brown, Taylor Dart, Tyson Dlungwana, Jethro Eustice, Keenan Horne, Ryan Julius, Tevin Kok, Nduduzo Lembethe, Owen Mvimbi, Siyavuya Nolutshungu, Nqobile Ntuli, Richard Pautz, Rassie Pieterse, Austin Smith, Matthew de Sousa, Nicholas Spooner & Alex Stewart.

SA Hockey Association media release



With new coach Graham Reid at saddle, India look to shrug off familiar frailties in quest for redemption

Sundeep Misra


India start favourites in the eight-team event. Twitter@TheHockeyIndia

Regaining control of Indian hockey’s destiny may seem slightly far-fetched, but it is not totally out of reach. The path appears rocky, with yet another foundation now being laid by new coach Graham Reid. But the Australian great and former coach may feel skills come easy to this Indian outfit. But it’s the structuring and adhering to it that may, at times, drive him to extreme frustration. Discipline, self-control and sticking to a ‘coaching methodology’ hasn’t been our strength and 2018 is a testament to that.

Quite amazingly, the city that has adopted the sport, Bhubaneswar, is recovering from challenging times — cyclone Fani lashed the Odisha capital on 2 May. It left devastation in its wake; uprooted trees, collapsed roofs and walls. Bhubaneswar showed it didn’t have a glass chin as it took the storm head on and is now bravely rebuilding.

Indian hockey has a similar story — beleaguered, unable to take the pressure, it slipped at crucial moments to not only shift momentum to the opponents but also dig themselves into a hole. The semi-final defeat to Malaysia at the Asian Games and the quarter-final defeat to Holland at home in the World Cup, were examples of matches slipping away, not because of a lack of form but simply lost focus and not being able to play a strategic game when the moment begged for it.

Maybe, the city’s courage would rub off on the team when India take on Russia in the opening game of the FIH Men’s Series Finals, an eight-nation tournament that is the first step to qualifying for 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. India have been clubbed in Pool A with Russia, Poland, and Uzbekistan. In Pool B are South Africa, Japan, USA, and Mexico.

India are ranked fifth and the next highest ranked team is South Africa at 16. Japan (18), Poland (21), Russia (22), USA (25), Mexico (39) and Uzbekistan (43) are ranked much lower.

It is almost a given that India would play the final on 15 June. And if things go right, it could just be an India vs Japan final. The tournament for India, is, however, not about that. A young team needs to come together after the topsy-turvy display last year. Somewhere the decision of not playing the Pro-League will hurt India. That lot has played such high-intensity hockey that India have almost slipped a few years back. Not only the competition, but the players learning and adjusting to worldwide changes in terms of the gameplan, strategies, and tactics would have been something they were exposed to every week. In a way, India dropped down to Division 2.

Rebuilding is something that Indian hockey does every two years. New faces, new coaches and even captaincy changes have hurt the progress of the sport. Hopefully, this is a team that has all the attributes that a coach needs to go all the way to 2022, the next World Cup. In between, lies the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. It’s a tough road. But not at all impossible.

Graham Reid will take his own time. One, honestly, shouldn’t count those two defeats against Australia at Perth in a Test series as Reid’s ‘report card’. It was too soon, and Reid needs plenty of time. As a coach, he would exactly know where the issues are. But can he respond fast to be able to pinpoint it and eradicate the issue? At this point, Reid believes it is the lack of finishing that makes it tough for India.

At his first press conference in Bhubaneswar, he said, “As a team we need to improve in a lot of areas. I have talked about it in our tackling, in our pressing, and finishing our PCs, those areas we need to get better at and that’s what we are working towards.”

Consistency has never been a hallmark either. And that affects finishing. At the 2017 HWL Semi-Finals in London, defeats against Malaysia and Canada so affected confidence that even strikes in front of the opposition goal were either hit out or pushed against the post. The nature of the beast, in this case, India, needs to be understood. Otherwise, try and decipher the fourth place at the Commonwealth Games, second spot at the Champions Trophy, third spot at the Asian Games, joint winners at the Asian Champions Trophy and then the sixth spot at the World Cup.

The numbers don’t add up. Or at best, they can be termed as a team that cannot make the moments count. In the Champions Trophy, India had Australia on the mat in the fourth quarter but didn’t push the dagger in. The same was the case against Malaysia in the Asian Games semi-final — chances squandered and then when the intelligent defence was the need, India back-tracked and blinked first. Against Holland in the World Cup, the midfield should have woken up in the third quarter. But India lost focus and conceded PCs.

Not crossing the line has been a recurring theme. Try and understand the 2018 Azlan Shah final against South Korea which could have been closed in the second and third quarter. But dragged on till the shoot-out and from there on, Korea wrote the winning script.

Even if Graham is not too worried about the FIH Men’s Finals here, he doesn’t show it. “The strategy for me is about treating every game as it comes, and every game is important. To me that is an important step and it doesn’t matter whether we are playing Russia or Uzbekistan or whoever. The important part is that we prepare as though it is the final.”

Reid’s vision is about the process. “My vision? Is to be a better team to be in the end than they are now. And if we focus on the process rather than worrying about the outcome, the outcome will come if we focus on the process.”

Most coaches have spoken along these lines and they include Roelant Oltmans and Terry Walsh, two who have had the maximum impact on the Indian team in terms of results and decision making among players. Reid is a fresh face for the Indian team. And it will be good if he stamps his authority quickly. Players listen to a strong voice; they listen to someone who has played at the highest level and they understand innovation.

In the past 16 years, we have had ten foreign coaches. Players are adaptable and they become like moons orbiting around the coach, each creating his own power centre. That has led to issues which may not have been spoken about but has been visible in various tug-of-wars fought between senior players. Graham needs to stem that and focus on bringing hockey back as a credible sport in terms of performance and winning percentage.

A foreign coach once said, “Indian players have the skill, but do they have the intelligence to understand the flow of the game?” These are many of the questions that Reid would confront. He may not acknowledge it publicly and rightfully so. But like a light mist, early in the morning, it hangs over the Indian team.

The Indian captain Manpreet Singh is the OS (operating system) around which the Indian team functions. He said, “If you would have ever talked with Graham Reid, you would have seen that he is very friendly and smiles a lot. He is very comfortable with the player and so are players comfortable with him. He always mixes up with all the players. If any player faces any problem or if any problem occurs on the ground, he always talks with them openly. He explains every player affectionately. He says that we need every player on the ground so if any player does not perform, he always motivates them and tries to bring him in the game.”

Not much is known about Russia and a few other teams. “Talking about Russia and other teams, we have not seen them much so don’t know how they will play,” said Manpreet. “Recently we have heard that they played the match with Belgium and gave just one PC in the entire match. So, we come to know that their defence must have been good. No team should be underestimated. If we miss and the other avail the chance, they will score good.”

On paper, this Indian team can work their magic in the tournament and rightfully claim the top spot. With Sreejesh and Krishan Pathak, the team is secure in goal. In the defence, we have Harmanpreet Singh, Birendra Lakra, Amit Rohidas, Surender Kumar, Varun Kumar, and Gurinder Singh. The midfield is talented and for Reid, a midfielder himself, it should be exciting to work with these lads — Manpreet, Sumit, Hardik, Nilakanta and Vivek Sagar Prasad. Ramandeep Singh's return from an injury after almost nine months is a good sign and along with Akashdeep, Simranjeet, Mandeep and Gursahibjit Singh, it should be a strong force.

The 2018 Asian Games semi-final loss still rankles. “If we would have won Asian Games, we would not have to qualify for this round,” said Manpreet. But that hurt can be channelised. Players of the 2008 team that couldn’t qualify for the Beijing Olympics, still feel the pain; the only time an Indian hockey team didn’t play the Olympic Games. Indian hockey cannot afford that anymore.

“We are focusing on finishing,” said Manpreet. “Finishing means when we are in the opponent’s circle and get a chance, we hit a goal, 100 percent. Our focus is to either hit a goal or create a PC. We need to bring improvement in this, and we are doing it. So, I feel that in this tournament we won’t lag in this.”

Ironically, the last time India played Russia was at the 2008 Olympic qualifier in Santiago, Chile where India won 8-0. Out of 26 matches, India have won 12, drawn 6 and lost 8. These numbers also include the matches against the former USSR which is now Russia.

Reid’s boys or should we call them men, need to show more ambition and less brittleness at the back. Players need to be like actors, self-possessed and always looking to dominate the stage; in the next ten days, that’s exactly what we might see from this Indian side.

Firstpost



India kickstarts its journey for an Olympic spot

Faces 22nd ranked Russia in its first game

Uthra Ganesan


A lot to play for: P.R. Sreejesh, right, will have a key role under the bar for India.

Initially not scheduled to train on the eve of its opening game of the Hockey Series Finals (HSF) here, India decided to turn up after all on Wednesday evening, for a brief workout.

The only request was to have it later than usual with the team keen on catching up with the cricket team’s opening World Cup encounter against South Africa in England.

Unlike the latter, however, the hockey team would face a more modest opposition in Russia (ranked 22) to kickstart its journey for an Olympic spot.

On paper, the target for fifth-ranked India is an easy one with the next best team here being South Africa, at 16. The stakes, though, are much higher.

The Indians missed the bus at the Asian Games last year and paid for it by losing a handful of senior players. The World Cup here six months ago was a disappointment and saw the team end up being coach-less for a good part of the first four months of 2019.



No worries

Graham Reid is unlikely to worry about suffering a similar fate here, a top-two finish being enough for India to advance to the Olympic Qualifiers.

But reaching the final would not suffice with India expected to win the competition and set a few scoring records en route, like it did in Jakarta before fumbling in the semifinal.

The team seems to have learnt its lessons well.

“We are not complacent. One good day in the field and you never know.

“We felt our finishing needed improvement and the past three weeks have been very important for us in terms of getting these right,” India skipper Manpreet Singh said.

Ramandeep Singh’s return is part of trying to shore up the finishing and going by his outings in the practice games so far, the forward has recovered completely from his knee injury.

India did not have a great build-up to the tournament, losing big against Australia in its tour Down Under but won its two practice matches here easily.

An honour

Russia, meanwhile, said it was an honour to play India in the opener.

“India is an excellent team. We watched the World Cup matches here and are looking forward to experience that feeling,” Pavel Golubev said.

Hot weather

With the temperatures shooting past 45 degrees and the state government advising people to stay indoors during the day, the organisers have tried to work around the conditions by slotting some of the games early morning.

On Thursday, South Africa and USA would be the first ones to do so while Poland plays Uzbekistan in the day’s other game.

For the Indians, though, the unknown factor has always been a banana peel they have often tripped on.

Barring Japan and South Africa, they haven’t played the rest anytime in the near past and, as the team admitted, that makes it difficult to plan. The best option would be to emulate Australia, which simply goes all out against unknowns, leaving no scope for upsets.

That would be the biggest contribution from Reid in his maiden test.

The Hindu



World ranking not important in international hockey, says Graham Reid

Indian men's hockey team coach Graham Reid is not underestimating the lower-ranked teams at the FIH Series Finals beginning with the match against world no. 22 Russia.


Indian men’s hockey team captain Manpreet Singh (L) and Birendra Lakra (R) along with head coach Graham Reid (C) ahead of FIH Series finals in Bhubaneswar.   -  PTI

Complacency is something which has no place in any high performance sport, said Indian men’s hockey team chief coach Graham Reid, insisting that respect for any opponent is the hallmark of a good team.

The Australian tactician will take charge of his first big assignment as India's head coach with the FIH Series Finals beginning on Thursday at Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar against world no 22 Russia.

India is the highest ranked side in the tournament. South Africa (16th) and Asian Games champion Japan (18) are the closest to the host in terms of world ranking. The other participating teams are Poland (21st), Uzbekistan, United States (25) and Mexico (39).

However Reid, who replaced Harendra Singh as India coach in April this year, said ranking hardly has any significance in any modern day hockey.

“World ranking is something that FIH (International Hockey Federation) uses to put teams in a particular order but on any given day any team can beat another.

“World hockey has got very close. For me I know what I can control and that’s what I will be focussing on doing. Whatever happens in terms of results will work its way,” Reid said.

Reid made the statement in context of the FIH Series Finals, where India starts as overwhelming favourite having been pitted against seven other lower-ranked sides.

“Complacency for me is not an option in high performance sport. I always try and respect the opposition no matter who they are. They can always score a goal against you and there is no referral here as well,” Reid told PTI on the eve of India’s opening Pool A match against world no. 22 Russia.

Talking about India’s tournament opener against Russia, the Australian said: “We don’t know too much about Russia so we will be treating them like a real threat. We would be preparing for Russia like we do for any good opposition.”

Reid said the recent tour of Australia was a good preparation for India. The team embarks on its quest for Tokyo Olympic qualification with the FIH Series Finals, a tournament from where two teams will seal their places in the FIH Olympic Qualifiers in October-November this year.

“The good part of the Australian team was that it gave us focus for these few weeks. I see real focus now in the boys. They understand this is where we need to be and what we need to do get to,” Reid said.

Sportstar



Complacency has no place in modern hockey: Graham Reid



Complacency is something which has no place in any high performance sport, said Indian men’s hockey team chief coach Graham Reid, insisting that respect for any opponent is the hallmark of a good team.

Reid made the statement in context of the FIH Series Finals, where India start as overwhelming favourites having been pitted against seven other lower-ranked sides.

“Complacency for me is not an option in high performance sport. I always try and respect the opposition no matter who they are. They can always score a goal against you and there is no referral here as well,” Reid told PTI on the eve of India’s opening Pool A match against world no. 22 Russia.

At fifth position, India are the highest ranked side in the tournament, which kickstarts in Bhubaneswar on Thursday.

South Africa (16th) and Asian Games gold medallist Japan (18) are the closest to the hosts in terms of world ranking. The other participating teams are Poland (21st), Uzbekistan, United States (25) and Mexico (39).

However Reid, who replaced Harendra Singh as India coach in April this year, said ranking hardly has any significance in any modern day hockey.

“World ranking is something that FIH (International Hockey Federation) uses to put teams in a particular order but on any given day any team can beat another.

“World hockey has got very close. For me I know what I can control and that’s what I will be focussing on doing. Whatever happens in terms of results will work its way,” Reid said.

Talking about India’s tournament opener against Russia, the Australian said: “We don’t know too much about Russia so we will be treating them like a real threat. We would be preparing for Russia like we do for any good opposition.”

Reid said the recent tour of Australia was a good preparation for India. The team embarks on their quest for Tokyo Olympic qualification with the FIH Series Finals, a tournament from where two teams will seal their places in the FIH Olympic Qualifiers in October-November this year.

“The good part of the Australian team was that it gave us focus for these few weeks. I see real focus now in the boys. They understand this is where we need to be and what we need to do get to,” Reid said.

Indian Express



Manpreet Singh: Patient and optimistic Graham Reid understands his players

Graham Reid’s ability to maintain his composure at all times makes him a special coach, according to Indian men’s hockey team captain Manpreet Singh.

Samarnath Soory

Understanding the pressure of being an athlete and being optimistic at all times are the stand-out qualities of head coach Graham Reid, said Indian men’s hockey team captain Manpreet Singh.

India has played three tour matches and two Tests in Australia since Reid's appointment as the national team's head coach in April. He will begin his first major assignment on Thursday with the FIH Series Finals at Bhubaneswar.

“The best thing about Graham Reid is that he is always positive. He is someone who is always calm and composed. He is able to look at players who feel pressurised and motivates them in the training. He is very patient with us when he is explaining things to us and never gets irritated,” Manpreet told Sportstar.

Ahead of India's first match against Russia at the Kalinga Stadium, the midfielder stressed on the need for improved finishing and stronger defending, especially after India's defeats (4-0, 5-2) against Australia last month.

“The main thing is we would like to improve our finishing. (During Australia tour,) we have given away too many easy chances to Australia, which is another thing we have worked on and have improved,” Manpreet said.

Reid’s time as coach of Dutch club Amsterdam has seen his teams playing a highly-intense direct style of hockey. When asked if fans will get to see India play a similar brand of hockey, Manpreet said: “He has been a player before and he understands what it takes to be an athlete. He has a very good idea on how to develop his style within this team and we will get there,” the Indian skipper said.

'Kya haal hai?'

Reid’s familiarity with India from his playing days and touring with the Netherlands team has helped him pick up a few Hindi words and the members of the Indian team have helped him some more.

“Few words like ‘Jaldi, Jaldi’, ‘Kaise Ho?’ are something which he already knows. We have taught him with some more such as ‘Kya haal hai?’, ‘Shukriya’. Its funny when he says them,” Manpreet said.

Currently fifth in the world, the FIH rankings will be crucial for India in the upcoming months as the higher-ranked team will have the advantage of playing a two-legged tie at home. However, Manpreet is not looking too far ahead.

“For India to move up in the rankings, we have to primarily focus on the main FIH events and aim to win them,” he said.

Check out India’s full schedule, match timings in the Men’s Series Finals below:

Schedule for Men's Series Finals, Bhubaneswar (Timings in IST)

June 6, Thursday - Pool A

- India vs Russia - 7pm

June 7, Friday

- Pool A - India vs Poland - 7pm

June 10, Monday

- Pool A - India vs Uzbekistan - 7pm

June 12, Wednesday

- Cross-over 1 (C1) - 2nd Pool A vs 3rd Pool B - 5pm
- Cross-over 2 (C2) - 2nd Pool B vs 2nd Pool A - 7.15pm
- For 7th/8th place - 4th Pool A vs 4th Pool B - 8.45pm

June 14, Friday

- Semifinal 1 - 1st Pool A vs Winner of C2  - 5pm
- Semifinal 2 - 1st Pool B vs Winner of C1 - 7.15pm
- For 5th/6th place - Loser of C1 vs Lose or C2 - 8.45pm

June 15, Saturday

- Final - 7.15pm
- 3rd/4th place match - 5pm

Sportstar



Stakes high for Reid

Team must win, and win well, in FIH Series Finals for new coach to impress India

Indervir Grewal


Indian men’s hockey team captain Manpreet Singh and Birendra Lakra with coach Graham Reid ahead of the FIH Series Finals in Bhubaneswar. PTI

Chandigarh: Another coach begins his journey with Indian hockey. Hopefully, this journey will not be cut short before its time — at least not without a rational reason — like many before it.

It took a patient search, of almost three months, for Hockey India to settle on Graham Reid as the replacement for the sacked Harendra Singh. He came highly recommended as well. The legendary Ric Charlesworth, who was also being talked about as a contender for the job, apparently put in a good word for his former protégé. Reid has the credentials as well. The 55-year-old Australian has an Olympics silver (in 1992) and World Cup bronze (in 1990) from his playing days. As a coach, he learnt from the best. He was Charlesworth’s assistant from 2009 to 2014, a period that included two World Cup gold medals. As the head coach, he guided Australia to two Champions Trophy gold medals. However, at the 2016 Olympics, Australia finished sixth, leading to Reid resigning.

First test

The patience the federation showed despite pressure from the media and former players and Reid’s credentials point towards the probability that he would complete his contract period till December 2020. The initial exchange was nothing but words of flattery — the federation proud of their find, Reid expressing his fanfare for Indian hockey, which has become customary for incoming foreign coaches. The players have remained largely quiet about their new coach, or they have been very correct — encouraging signs, though in Indian hockey, relationships can turn sour in no time.

That moment has arrived for Reid when his relationship with the players and the federation will be tested. After almost two months of his appointment, the Australian will face his first real test in charge of the team — the FIH Series Finals in Bhubaneswar.

India’s performance at this Olympics qualifying tournament will potentially decide Reid’s future — or set the tone for his dealings with the federation and players — in India.

Though the Series Finals is not a high-profile tournament, owing to the low-ranked participants, the stakes for the team and Reid are equally very high. India will have to finish among the top-two in Bhubaneswar to be assured of a spot in the final Olympics qualifiers. If they fail, India will have to hope to get in on the basis of their world ranking.

Reaching the final in Bhubaneswar should not be too hard for India. The world No. 5 hosts will play Russia (world No. 22), Poland (21) and Uzbekistan (55) in Pool A. Pool B has Japan (18), South Africa (16), United States (25) and Mexico (39). India’s first real test could against either Japan, the reigning Asian Games champions, or South Africa, the second-highest ranked team in the tournament, in the semifinals.

Attacking Africans

The attacking Africans tend to trouble India, but lately the Men in Blue have been dominant. India won their last fixture, at the World Cup in Bhubaneswar, 5-0.

Japan could prove a little trickier. However, the continental champions have not even been able to manage a draw against India in recent times. Over the last couple of years, India have registered wins as big as 9-0 over Japan. But the margins have shrunk lately, especially in crunch matches. At last year’s Asian Champions Trophy, despite having beaten Japan 9-0 in the league stage, India just about got past them (3-2) in the semifinals.

Winning enough?

India haven’t felt that sort of pressure in months, and Reid hasn’t had much time to prepare them either. The Australian oversaw the year’s first national camp, which lasted a month and had 60 probables, but he joined only midway through. He got to test the players in friendly matches in his home country, which led him to an obvious conclusion – India need to improve their finishing. “Our ability to score goals under tight marking pressure will be critical if we are to close the gap with teams like Australia,” Reid said after the team’s return from Australia, where India were beaten 4-0 and 5-2 by the hosts.

The tour was followed by a 15-day camp in Bhubaneswar, where the team worked on creating “as many opportunities as possible for our attackers to experience this tight pressure”, Reid said. But will the training translate into results? Most of Reid’s predecessors have been left frustrated with the answer, and the Australian will soon find out. India tend to struggle against teams that are disciplined in defence, especially when the pressure is high. Japan is one such team.

India are still the odds-on favourites to win the tournament. Reaching the final shouldn’t be too difficult, barring a meltdown. However, just winning the tournament or reaching the final might not be enough for Reid to impress the demanding Indian federation and fans. Anything other than convincing wins over the “minnows” would attract criticism. In that case, Reid could also lose the respect and support of his team. A coach losing control over his players is not a new scenario in Indian hockey; and Reid is not known to be a hard taskmaster.

Reid’s lack of time with the team would work in his favour. It’s easy to assume that analytical coach Chris Ciriello, who has been in India for over a year now, had a say in the training and selection decisions before the tournament. Yet, the Series Finals is a perfect opportunity for Reid to make an impressive opening statement and take control of the team.

The Tribune



Former Indian captain Sandeep Singh inspires Mexican players


Sandeep Singh

Bhubaneswar:Mexicans love their culture – their folk music, food, colourful embroidered clothes and last but not the least their Mexican hats. But most importantly, the hockey players adore an Indian star.

No, it’s not either Shah Rukh Khan or Salman Khan. He is former Indian hockey captain Sandeep Singh. Yes, you heard right. To the Mexican men’s hockey team Sandeep is an inspiration for his brave deeds.

“Sandeep Singh inspires us. We watch videos of him on the net. He is huge example to us for battling all odds and emerging victorious, we all want to emulate him,” said Miguel Leon taking the help of a translator at the Kalinga Stadium, Tuesday.

Haryana-born Sandeep made his international debut in 2004 but a freak shooting incident where he took a bullet in his waist almost ended his career. He was almost paralysed and confined to a wheelchair for a year.

However, Sandeep’s immense determination saw him return to the national fold. In 2009, he led India to their first Sultan Azlan Shah Cup triumph after 13 years. His life’s journey was documented in the film ‘Soorma’ which received nationwide appreciation last year.

However, it’s not only Sandeep in particular that the Mexican players look up to. They keep tabs on other Indian players as well through various social media platforms.

“There are many other Indian players we follow to keep ourselves updated. We derive inspiration from them,” added the young Mexican star.

The Mexican men’s hockey team are currently here for the FIH Series Finals and they have been clubbed with Japan, USA and South Africa in Pool B.

India and Mexico have never played against each other except the 1968 Mexico Olympics and 1972 Munich Games. On both occasions, India emerged victorious against the North American team by an identical 8-0 margin. Incidentally these were the only two occasions Mexican hockey has been visible at global events.

This is Mexican hockey team’s maiden visit to India and they are in complete awe of what they have seen.

“We are really excited to be here. The reception has been great and the hockey stadium looks stunning,” quipped Miguel. He also informed that these kinds of tournaments will not only help Mexican hockey but benefit the players as well.

“This is a good opportunity for us to showcase our talent and also a chance to learn from the sides who are ranked higher than us,” pointed out Miguel.

Speaking on their expectations from this tournament, Miguel said that gaining experience is their prime objective and winning at least a game their goal.

In a country where football is passion who do the upcoming hockey players look up to?

“We have quite a few hockey players of repute. Our coach Pol Moreno is one of them. Then there is Francisco Aguillar who plays in Europe regular, I also play sometimes in Spain,” Miguel informed.

Orissa Post



2019 FIH Pro League (Men) - 6 June

6 Jun 2019 19:30 (GMT +1)    GBR v GER (RR)     Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, London    

Live streaming and full game replay on https://fih.live (Geo blocked if there is TV coverage)

FIH Match Centre



Hinch returns for FIHPL alongside Townsend, Burge and Willars


Maddie Hinch of Great Britain

The women's and men's squads have been announced for Great Britain's FIH Pro League matches at home to Germany and Australia this weekend.

World Goalkeeper of the Year Maddie Hinch is included and is set for her first international hockey since last summer's Vitality Hockey Hockey Women's World Cup.

Susannah Townsend is back after injury kept her out of the last games against Belgium and the Netherlands, while young Esme Burge is in line for her international debut.

For the men there is one change, Ollie Willars replacing fellow defender Luke Taylor.

There are a number of milestones across the weekend, with men's captain Adam Dixon set to play his 250th game for Great Britain and England combined, a very significant achievement for the Beeston man. Under his captaincy the men's team have made encouraging progress, highlighted again with a super 3-1 win away to the Netherlands last weekend.

For the women, Townsend will reach 150 caps if she plays in both matches, while Jo Hunter will make her 50th combined international appearance if she faces both Germany and Australia.



Women’s squad:
Giselle Ansley (Surbiton) (ENG)
Grace Balsdon (Canterbury) (ENG)
Esme Burge (University of Nottingham) (ENG)
Amy Costello (University of Birmingham) (SCO)
Emily Defroand (Surbiton) (ENG)
Sarah Evans (Surbiton) (ENG)
Maddie Hinch (Stichtsche) (ENG) (GK)
Tess Howard (Durham University) (ENG)
Jo Hunter (Surbiton) (ENG)
Sarah Jones (Holcombe) (WAL)
Hannah Martin (Surbiton) (ENG)
Lizzie Neal (Loughborough Students) (ENG)
Hollie Pearne-Webb (Surbiton) (ENG) (C)
Izzy Petter (Surbiton) (ENG)
Suzy Petty (Wimbledon) (ENG)
Sarah Robertson (Hampstead & Westminster) (SCO)
Amy Tennant (Reading) (ENG) (GK)
Anna Toman (Wimbledon) (ENG)
Susannah Townsend (Canterbury) (ENG)
Laura Unsworth (East Grinstead) (ENG)



Men’s squad:
David Ames (Holcombe) (ENG)
Will Calnan (Hampstead & Westminster) (ENG)
David Condon (East Grinstead) (ENG)
Brendan Creed (Surbiton) (ENG)
Adam Dixon (Beeston) (ENG) (C)
Alan Forsyth (Surbiton) (SCO)
James Gall (Surbiton) (ENG)
Harry Gibson (Surbiton) (ENG) (GK)
Chris Griffiths (East Grinstead) (ENG)
Mikey Hoare (Wimbledon) (ENG)
Harry Martin (Hampstead & Westminster) (ENG)
George Pinner (Holcombe) (ENG) (GK)
Phil Roper (Wimbledon) (ENG)
Ian Sloan (Wimbledon) (ENG)
Tom Sorsby (Surbiton) (ENG)
Zach Wallace (Surbiton) (ENG)
Jack Waller (Wimbledon) (ENG)
Sam Ward (Old Georgians) (ENG)
Henry Weir (Wimbledon) (ENG)
Ollie Willars (Beeston) (ENG)



Fixtures
All at Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre and live on BT Sport.

Thu 6 Jun
Great Britain men vs Germany, 7:30pm

Fri 7 Jun
Great Britain women vs Germany 7:30pm

Sun 9 Jun
Great Britain men vs Australia, 2pm
Great Britain women vs Australia, 4pm

Tickets for the Germany games are available online in advance by clicking here or in person at the venue. The Australia matches are sold out.



Standings

Britain's men's games could play a significant part in the team's chances of finishing in the top four in this year's league. Danny Kerry's side are currently third in the table, and face a German side who are sixth before the table-topping Australians come to town.

Britain's women currently reside in seventh, and will be looking for positive results against the fifth-placed Germans then the third-placed Australians.

Twickenham Stoop draws closer

The final day of our FIH Pro League season will take place at the near 15,000-capacity Twickenham Stoop, home of Harlequins. The final day's matches against New Zealand on Sunday 23 June 2019 will be at Quins’ stadium, using ground-breaking technology that will see an artificial pitch laid on top of the existing grass surface.

Tickets are on sale now, and moving venue means that more than twice as many supporters will now be able to see our national teams in action on this day, when Great Britain's men's and women's teams take on New Zealand back-to-back at the conclusion of the first ever FIH Pro League campaign. Tickets start at £11 for Under 18s and £34 for adults. One ticket includes access to both the women's and men's matches, so it is great value to see our teams, including the current Olympic champions. Click here for details.

Great Britain Hockey media release



Maddie Hinch needed break from international hockey after Rio 2016 gold

By Becky Grey


Maddie Hinch takes a team selfie at the Rio Olympics victory parade. Maddie Hinch became a sporting star after Great Britain won Olympic gold in Rio

Olympic gold medallist Maddie Hinch says the pressure to always put in a "superhuman performance" was why she stepped away from international hockey after last year's World Cup.

Goalkeeper Hinch played a pivotal role in Great Britain's first women's hockey Olympic gold at Rio 2016.

The 30-year-old is set to play her first GB match in nine months on Friday and wants to do things differently.

"I was trying so hard to live up to the expectation after Rio," said Hinch.

"We were thrown into a situation where it had gone from people not knowing your name to stopping you in the street. It was so unusual.

"You want to continue to please those people but it's not about them.

"I needed some time to work out how I'm going to carry that expectation and deal with that. This time has allowed me to work that out."

Hinch kept out all four Netherlands attempts in the shootout to decide the 2016 Olympic final, as Britain won it 2-0 after a thrilling 3-3 draw.

She has played 133 times for England and GB since making her international debut in 2008, aged 19.

"It took a while to get to the point where I started to miss it. I watched a few games and all of a sudden I wanted to be there," she told BBC Sport.

"Everything had been a bit of a slog and had gone stale for me. I'd lost my love for the game so as soon as I started getting butterflies putting my pads on, I knew I was ready."


Hinch returned to training with the Great Britain team on Tuesday

'Oh, now you show up'

The Rio final was watched by 9.7 million people on the BBC and Hinch was celebrated afterwards on social media.

Seven of the 16 players who won gold have now retired and GB's women have been struggling for wins, sitting seventh in the Pro League with little chance of qualifying for the semi-finals at the end of June.

Hinch says this contrast can be hard to handle and that the timing of her return has met with some mockery from her team-mates.

"Everyone was taking the mickey a bit at my first training session back," she explained. "They were saying, 'Oh, now you show up'. It's fair, I deserve it.

"But it was nice to be there and once I'd settled into the first session and the nerves had settled a bit, it felt like I'd never left.

"To go from such extremes post-Rio to a difficult transitional phase was tough. It's not just myself that felt that, it was a lot of the Rio players.

"When you get a taste of those finals, it's something that you want so much. It's hard to find yourself losing games, playing for fifth or sixth place.

"But from the moment I gave the news around my break to the moment they heard I was coming back, they've been incredibly supportive which has made the whole thing a lot easier."

'A different role to play'

Despite Britain struggling for results after Rio, Hinch remains a world-renowned goalkeeper, winning FIH goalkeeper of the year in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

She has been playing for SCHC Bilthoven in the Netherlands for the past three years, but left when she decided to return to international hockey.

Hinch's last international appearance was at the 2018 World Cup in London, where England lost to the Netherlands in the quarter-finals.

She could replace Sabbie Heesh in Britain's team to face Germany in the Pro League on Friday and, as the side goes through a transitional phase under new coach Mark Hager, Hinch has valuable experience to offer.

She says stepping up as one of the side's leaders "will challenge her every day".

"The role I have to play in this team is different to when I started aged 20," she added.

"I'm much older, more experienced. I have more of a voice. The girls look for me to give them an opinion and to challenge them in training. That's not something I ever really did.

"It's not something that has been natural to me but I now like the opportunity to be able to do that.

"I definitely think the experience is welcomed back."

'Anything can happen in Tokyo'

Hinch will hope she can help GB turn their fortunes around before defending their Olympic title at Tokyo 2020.

But the side need to secure Olympic qualification first, with qualifiers taking place in October or November.

If they do get to Japan, Hinch says that their performance in 2016 demonstrated anything can happen on the Olympic stage.

"We were a team ranked seventh in the world going into Rio," she said. "We finished second to bottom in the tournament that took place previous to it.

"No-one should underestimate anyone. If we go into the tournament one of the lower-ranked teams, people should still back us to go on and achieve something. Sport can do strange things.

"Fingers crossed, who knows what could happen?"

BBC Sport



Revolutionary innovations take centre stage as hockey heads to The Stoop



Hockey has long been a sport synonymous with innovation. From pioneering rule changes to the introduction of video umpire referrals, a willingness to embrace change has been crucial to the sport’s evolution. However, few - if any - of these adjustments to the status quo have had quite the same impact on hockey as the arrival of synthetic pitches.

Since their introduction in the 1970s – most significantly at the Montreal 1976 Olympic Games, the first Olympic hockey competition to use a technology that has been employed at every Olympiad since – synthetic surfaces have changed the game almost beyond measure, providing a consistent, predictable surface which made hockey even faster and triggered the development of an array of new skills.

Over the past 40 or so years there have been huge technological advancements in order to constantly meet the ever-changing requirements of the sport, moving from sand-dressed surfaces right through to the development of water-based pitches and on to the water-saving surfaces that will be in use at the hockey competitions of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. While these high-tech surfaces often take months to install, the option of simply constructing a hockey pitch in any stadium you choose for one-off international matches has not been on the table. However, thanks to a ground-breaking partnership in the United Kingdom, boldly spearheaded by England Hockey, that dream is rapidly moving towards reality.

In October 2018, it was announced that Great Britain’s FIH Pro League double header against New Zealand’s Black Sticks on 23rd June 2019 would be played in west London at the Twickenham Stoop, home to Gallagher Premiership Rugby team, Harlequins. As The Stoop does not have a synthetic surface, the decision to move to the 15,000 seater stadium - which if at capacity will see the largest hockey attendance in the United Kingdom since the London 2012 Olympic Games – for just one day of hockey certainly raised a few eyebrows.

“It’s all part of our bigger plan to promote the sport, tied in very closely with hosting the FIH Pro League”, said England Hockey Chief Executive Officer Sally Munday. “We have a really good relationship with the RFU [Rugby Football Union], so I called them and said we were going to approach a rugby club in and around London, explaining what we were trying to do and also the level of our ambition. They said, straight away, that we should speak to Harlequins. We then met with David Ellis, the Chief Executive of the club, to discuss our crazy idea and it soon became clear that we would work really well together. After that we had to see if it was technically possible, so we got a group of experts who know about pitch laying, how to protect grass and what sub-structures we would need and hammered out a few ideas about what could be possible.”

It is not the first time that a non-hockey specific stadium has been used. The Netherlands staged both the 1998 and 2014 Hockey World Cup events in existing football stadiums. However, there is a significant difference between what happened at Utrecht in 1998 and The Hague in 2014, where essentially permanent constructions were put in place for a relatively short period of time, to the temporary and endlessly repeatable model being trialled at The Stoop, a trail-blazing move which has happened as a direct result of a National Association’s desire to maximise the opportunities that come with the FIH Pro League’s home and away format. The ground-breaking developments that lie at the heart of England Hockey’s project could, according to FIH Facilities & Programme Manager Alastair Cox, be genuinely game-changing for the sport.

“If we can make this work, it suddenly means that hockey can be played in any venue anywhere in the world”, says Cox, who has been working in close partnership with England Hockey, world class pitch manufacturers and FIH Global Partner Polytan, innovative sub-base and water management experts Polypipe, natural sports turf research and development specialists STRI Group and Harlequins on the project. “There is a hardcore community in hockey that loves the sport and will go and watch it regardless of the venue, which is fantastic, but if we want to engage with the broader audience, we have to make it as an attractive, appealing and enjoyable experience as possible.”

With the upcoming FIH Pro League matches at The Stoop being something of a one-off, construction work is already very much underway. “There is a bit more time this year, so this has allowed us to remove the turf, level the ground and enhance the drainage to provide the platform on which the temporary hockey pitch will be put in place, this year and into the future” continues Cox. “The model for this year is that which would be used when hosting a world cup.”

However, thanks to some of the innovations currently being trialled, the proposed turnaround for FIH Pro League matches in the coming years will, says Cox, be incredibly quick. “The plan will be that they [Harlequins] play rugby one weekend, then we can build a hockey pitch over the turf and play hockey the following weekend, before taking the hockey pitch out and ready for rugby to be played the weekend after. So we’d be aiming to be in and out of a stadium - laying the pitch, playing the match, removing the pitch - in six to eight days.”

While many of the questions regarding exactly how achieving this quite remarkable turnaround cannot be answered due to commercial confidentiality, there are certainly plenty of reasons why the ability to rapidly construct a fully functioning international standard hockey pitch in virtually any stadium in the world would be hugely advantageous to the sport. Rather than having to spend huge sums of money overlaying an existing hockey venue with the required infrastructure (constructing spectator stands, broadcast and media facilities, marquees for hospitality, pitch lighting suitable for television broadcast), a ready-made stadium comes with all of these things and more.

“We are hugely excited about the opportunity to work with Harlequins, not just for the upcoming matches and the fact that we are testing these new pitch technologies, but also the long-term potential relationship with them. They have got some really exciting plans for the development of their stadium, and for us to be in the discussion stages of how that could work for both rugby and hockey in the future is really exciting. We’ve really enjoyed working with them to date. Their values are very similar to ours in terms of how they go about their business, and we are excited about the opportunity we are going to get on 23rd June to see this new technology in action. We’re really grateful also to Sport England for their appetite to support this innovation and make it possible.”

The surface currently being installed at The Stoop for the upcoming FIH Pro League matches will be a version of Polytan’s Poligras Tokyo GT, the turf system that will be used at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. The surface - which is made from a sugar cane, a sustainable product - requires up to 65 percent less water than the surfaces used at previous Olympics. Polytan have been one of the driving forces behind the innovations that will be trialled at The Stoop, finding new ways to both lay and lift a synthetic surface in a very short period of time, doing so in a manner that will allow the surface to be re-used time and time again.

Also involved in the partnership are Polypipe, the developers of the Permavoid system which supports the turf by ensuring that drainage is provided in a temporary location whilst also allowing air to flow, keeping the grass alive over the period of use. The STRI Group have advised England Hockey on appropriate ground preparations at The Stoop to ensure that the grass pitch is ready for the rugby season.

In March of this year, the project took a big stride forward when a temporary pitch replicating what will be in place at The Stoop was constructed at Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre, where Great Britain’s men and women trained vigorously on the surface for two days. It was a crucially important move, allowing elite athletes to provide vital feedback about their experiences. “A lot of lessons were learned at Bisham”, says Cox. “From an FIH point of view, we absolutely insisted on that trial taking place. It was very good for everyone involved and the feedback was invaluable. It is important that we get things right or the players will simply not accept it.”

Looking ahead to what promises to be a momentous occasion at The Stoop, Sally Munday said: “The opportunity for loads of people to see top level hockey live and in a completely different environment is very exciting. This is something that has never been done before, and if I was a hockey fan – or even a rugby fan – I’d want to see how this is going to work. I’d encourage hockey fans to come along and be part of a moment in history, because this is not going to happen for the first time again. Witnessing something which could be game-changing for the sport is pretty special, I think.”

Tickets for Great Britain’s FIH Pro League matches against New Zealand at The Stoop on 23rdJune can be purchased by clicking here.

#FIHProLeague

Official FIH Pro League Site



Rotation is key to success



It is coming up to the business end of things in the FIH Pro League as the scramble to be in the top four and earn a place at the Grand Final begins. One team that never seems to be ‘scrambling’, but rather sailing through competitions serenely, is the world number one team, Netherlands women.

So far in the FIH Pro League, Alyson Annan’s team has continued its unbeaten progression, with one exception – a 1-0 loss at the hands of Australia. That result apart, Netherlands have played ten matches, winning nine and scoring 28 goals in the process. Barring a complete reversal of form, the Oranje will be appearing at the Grand Final in Amsterdam, where they will seek to add FIH Pro League champions to the host of other titles they have won under the guidance of Annan.

Four of their remaining games will be played at home venues in front of packed stands of mainly Dutch supporters. Until this month, Alyson Annan has been rotating players for each game. In the last two matches – a 2-0 victory over Great Britain and a 2-1 win over Germany – the world caught a glimpse of a full-strength Dutch squad for the first time and it was impressive. Among the coaching staff and entire squad there is a sense of exhilaration and excitement. The question really is how good can this current crop of players become? There is little doubt that the Netherlands are enjoying the Pro League experience.

We caught up with midfield superstar and 2018 FIH Player of the Year, Eva de Goede, ahead of Netherlands’ clash with European rivals Great Britain. The midfielder, whose club side AH&BC Amsterdam had just been crowned 2018/19 European Club Champions, explained how a rotating squad system was one of the key factors in the World Cup champion’s incredible consistency.

“I think our Pro League campaign is going great so far,” said the midfielder,

“We’ve travelled the world and played our games with a different team every time. It has been amazing to see youngsters play in the squad like they’ve already playing there for years. And it is amazing to see that we can still be great with a lot of different players each time.”

The conundrum for the Dutch team and their head coach has been how to keep challenging the team to improve on their performances but, by constantly rotating the squad, there has been a pressure on the players to adapt to new people around them. De Goede says that has been a tough challenge.

“For us it’s mostly about growing each time we play. Especially because we do have a lot of new and young players in our team. We really try to focus on how we want to play as Holland and what we want to show the world.

“It’s all about being a team and playing as a team. With a different team every game that’s hard. We have a busy schedule in June coming up so we’re aiming on growing every game and really get that team feeling in the squad.

“Of course it hasn’t been easy. It’s hard work, you have to invest in the whole squad to make it work and that is tough mentally. Playing the style of hockey we want to play takes some time, it doesn’t just happen overnight. We push ourselves to improve with every game we play.”

Netherlands next FIH Pro league match will be against Belgium, in Antwerp on 8 June.

#FIHProLeague

Official FIH Pro League Site



Dharmaraj's girls ready to roar


Kirandeep Kaur is one of the 18 players picked by national women’s coach K. Dharmaraj for the FIH Series Finals, which starts on Friday, in Banbridge, Northern Ireland. PIC BY HALIMATON SAADIAH SULAIMAN

KUALA LUMPUR: National women’s coach K. Dharmaraj named his final 18 on Tuesday for the FIH Series Finals, which starts on Friday, in Banbridge, Northern Ireland.

The coach trimmed his squad from 20 players after assessing them in five matches in Rome and Glasgow where they recorded two wins, one draw and two defeats.

“All 20 players were given equal chances to perform in these matches. We had four tough matches in Rome against Italy and Spain,” Dharmaraj told mhc.org.my.

“Many thought I would drop pint-sized Siti Zulaikha Husain from the squad. However, I included the youngster as she was outstanding in these matches. She is a special player and is also very confident.”

Malaysia will start their Group A campaign against Ireland on Friday, followed by Singapore (Saturday) and the Czech Republic (Tuesday).

The squad — Farah Ayuni Yahya, Mas Huzaimah Md Aziz, Siti Noor Amarina Ruhani, Julaini Din, Nuraini Abd Rashid, Raja Norsharina Raja Shahbuddin, Nurul Syafiqah Mat Isa, Noor Hasliza Md Ali, Fatin Shafika Mahd Sukri, Fazilla Sylvester Silin, Wan Norfaiezah Md Saiuti, Surizan Awang Noh, Kirandeep Kaur, Hanis Nadiah Onn, Norazlin Sumantri, Nur Maizatulhanim Syafi Syeik Fuad, Nur Amirah Shakirah Zulkifli, Siti Zulaikha Husain.

New Straits Times



Barreiros extends stay with Mannheimer HC for three more years


©: Dirk Markgraf

Mannheimer HC has extended 48-time Argentinian international Guido Barreiros’s stay at the club for another three years. The 29-year-old will play for MHC at least until summer 2022.

The Buenos Aires-born striker will lengthen his stay into a ninth season for Mannheim, a fine run that has seen him win the German national championship in 2017 as well as both the 2019 Euro Hockey League bronze medal and German silver earlier in 2019.

"I've been in Mannheim since 2011 and found my home club here. I have everything I need in Mannheim. The team has incredible quality and potential for the coming years. I am very much looking forward to what is to come” Barreiros said of the extension.

"We're very happy to keep Guido in our team. He has been part of the MHC family for many years and he likes Mannheim a lot. He is a top international striker with extremely good defensive qualities and one of the best first runners in corner defense in the German Bundesliga," coach Michael McCann added.

Euro Hockey League media release



Glens facing tough Swiss test in pursuit of second Irish EHL ticket


Glenanne prior to the EY Champions Trophy semi-final. Pic: Adrian Boehm

Joe Brennan is anticipating a huge challenge as his Glenanne side take on Belarussian, Swiss and Portuguese opposition in the group stages of the EuroHockey Club Trophy in Wettingen this weekend, gunning for a first place finish.

The stakes are high with top spot set to give Ireland a second place in the Euro Hockey League while a finish in the top five assures one spot in the EHL remains in place. After that, the permutations become far more complex.

They are placed in an initial four-team group with top spot going through to Monday’s final while second goes into a third place playoff, third battles for fifth while fourth place leads to relegation.

For the Glens, it is over a month since their last competitive outing when they bowed out of the EY Champions Trophy in the semi-finals 6-0 to Lisnagarvey, albeit a weird game in which they had more shots, circle entries and lots more corners but could not convert.

“It is tough having been so long since our last game,” Brennan said of their preparations. “We have had three good games against the Irish Under-21s – who are a pretty good side, beating us each time – but we have been working off 12 or 13 each time with Shannon [Boucher] and Rixi [Rowland Rixon-Fuller] getting married in the last few weeks.”

The nature of the break has proven another challenge with Jerome Saeys unavailable and Cedric Jakobi returning to Germany, though he is set to play. David Keogh is injured and so will take on a coaching role with Michael Styles.

On the flip side, Iain Walker missed the Champs Trophy but will return to give a big boost between the posts.

The tournament will, in all likelihood, not just be Brennan’s last European campaign but his last game on the field as he looks set to retire.

It will be his fifth European campaign with the club, the first coming in Bloemendaal back in 2001 in the EuroHockey Club Champions Cup before playing in the EHL in both the 2009/10 and 2010/11 seasons.

Most recently, he played at this level in 2015 with Three Rock Rovers alongside McCormack when the hosts finished fourth at Grange Road. That experience gives him plenty of reason to be wary of how hard this competition can be, especially as getting relevant match video of their opposition is very hard to come by.

“We have been training really well and are confident going over but this is a very tough tournament,” he said. “Jonny McCormack has been really good talking about that – he was with Three Rock in 2015 and knows it is so, so difficult. Even hosting, we still didn’t win it.

“The teams from Belarus [SC Stroitel Brest] and Switzerland [Rotweiss Wettingen] have a lot of internationals and are used to playing this kind of competition with four games in four days, adapting quickly to unusual styles of play where it is important to adapt quickly.

“The first game is really important and corners will be crucial, especially for goalkeepers who won’t be used to a flick like Shannon’s. It is really important for us to do well and get that second EHL ticket for Ireland!”

They start their campaign on Friday at 4.30pm at 3.30pm (Irish time) against SC Stroitel Brest; each game will be streamed live on eurohockeytv.org.

Glenanne squad: I Walker, S O’Connor, C Jakobi, S Brownlow, R Rixon-Fuller, J Brennan, N Byrne, J McCormack, G Shaw, J Rogan, R Couse, E O’Malley, S Boucher, B Venter, C Kennedy, G Gibney, K Crosbie
Reserves: A Clayton, S Ronan

EuroHockey Club Trophy (all at Rotweiss Wettingen, June 7-10 – all times Irish)
Friday, June 7: Glenanne v SC Stroitel Brest, 3.30pm
Saturday, June 8: Glenanne vs Rotweiss Wettingen, 3.45pm
Sunday, June 9: Glenanne vs Casa Pia Atletico Clube, 1.30pm
Monday, June 10: classification matches

The Hook



National hockey player, 24, suffers stroke after collision

Hockey Federation to review safety protocol after delay in treatment of national player

Deepanraj Ganesan


PHOTO: Syahreena Zainudin

National hockey player Siti Nur Raihanah Waled had been looking forward to the Hari Raya Aidilfitri festivities yesterday.

Instead, the 24-year-old ended up being warded at Sengkang General Hospital on Sunday after suffering a head injury.

Miss Raihanah, who plays for the Vanquishers Hockey Club, had collided with an opponent during a 4-1 defeat by Crescent Hockey Club in the National Hockey League match.

The incident at the Sengkang Hockey Stadium also sparked concerns after a delay in medical assistance. With no medical personnel on standby, it took at least an hour before an ambulance was called.

Miss Raihanah said yesterday that doctors told her the collision caused her to suffer a stroke, which was evident from the "small black dots" that showed up in her brain from an initial magnetic resonance imaging scan.

She has been unable to walk on her own because she suffers from dizzy spells.

The doctors have not said when she can be discharged, as more scans are planned in the coming days.

She told The New Paper how she felt after the collision: "It felt as if my brain was shaking. I was in so much pain. It was a feeling I had never felt before.

"Normally, my instinct would have been to get up, but I could not feel anything from my neck down. My body was just numb. I closed my eyes and wished for the pain to stop."

Match officials told the players to carry Miss Raihanah to the sidelines and continue with play, with four minutes left of regulation time.


PHOTO: Syahreena Zainudin

"I was shocked they were told to carry on. Clearly, the officials were not taking my injury seriously," said Miss Raihanah, who has been playing hockey for 15 years.

"Does it take someone to die for them to realise that they should take injuries in the game more seriously?"

After the match ended, her teammates carried Miss Raihanah to a covered area, where lifeguards from the nearby swimming complex assisted her with a portable oxygen tank as she had breathing difficulties .

One of her teammates, Miss Syahreena Zainudin, told TNP that players from both teams were at a loss as to what to do, with no guidance from the officials. An opponent applied an ice pack to her head.

Miss Syahreena said they then approached Miss Lim Hui Min, a Singapore Hockey Federation (SHF) official, for help.

"She told us it was not the SHF's business to call for medics or an ambulance. She said we had to handle the situation on our own," Miss Syahreena alleged.

When TNP contacted Miss Lim, she denied the allegations and declined to comment further.

Another teammate, Miss Syasya Ruzana, who is also the club's head committee member, wants the SHF to review its protocol. She said: "This was a head injury and yet we had to be the ones taking a decision on what to do.

"Our players were panicking and just looking for guidance. The first response from the officials is unacceptable. There must be a change in how we deal with injuries."

In the end, a staff member in the swimming complex called for an ambulance.

SHF president Mathavan Devadas told TNP that his team would investigate the matter.

He said: "Before the season started, we had discussions with the clubs and it was decided that they will be handling matters related to injuries."

He added that the SHF will render any assistance needed to Miss Raihanah and that as a national athlete, she is covered by insurance. "We will have to speak to the clubs again and work together on a more robust protocol in dealing with injuries that occur during the game."

When told of the SHF's response, Miss Raihanah said: "The situation could have been handled better. Hockey is a dangerous sport and there should be at least a medic on standby or some kind of protocol when dealing with injuries. There was no urgency when I got injured and I do not want another player to go through that."

The New Paper

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