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All the news for Tuesday 10 September 2019

FIH Hockey Olympic qualifiers: matches, dates and venues confirmed



Lausanne, Switzerland: The FIH Hockey Olympic qualifiers have been determined by a draw held today at the headquarters of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) in Lausanne as follows:

Men

25/26 October: Spain – France, Valencia
26/27 October: The Netherlands – Pakistan, Amsterdam
26/27 October: Canada – Ireland, West Vancouver
1/2 November: India – Russia, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: New Zealand – Korea, Stratford
2/3 November: Germany – Austria, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Malaysia, London

Women

25/26 October: Australia – Russia, Perth
25/26 October: China – Belgium, Changzhou
25/26 October: Spain – Korea, Valencia
1/2 November: India – USA, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: Germany – Italy, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Chile, London
2/3 November: Ireland – Canada, Dublin

Each qualifier consists of two back-to-back matches which will be played in the same venue. The match times will be confirmed at a later stage and updated on www.FIH.ch.

The winners of these FIH Hockey Olympic qualifiers will qualify for the 2020 Olympic hockey tournaments which will be staged in Japan’s capital city from 25 July to 7 August next year and involve 12 Men’s and 12 Women’s teams. The following teams are already qualified:

Men
Japan
Argentina
South Africa
Belgium
Australia

Women
Japan
Argentina
South Africa
The Netherlands
New Zealand

The final participation in the Olympic Games for any team must be approved and confirmed beforehand by their respective National Olympic Committee.

#Tokyo2020
#RoadToTokyo
#GiftOfHockey

FIH site

Pakistan face Dutch test for Tokyo Olympics spot

LAUSANNE: Pakistan’s hockey team, ranked 17th in the world, face an uphill task to make it to next year’s Tokyo Olympics after being paired with the Netherlands in the qualifying draw on Monday.

The draws were made at the International Hockey Federation (FIH) headquarters in Lausanne on Monday with Pakistan and India kept apart after hockey’s world governing body dismissed suggestions earlier this week that the two-legged tie could be held in Europe if the arch-rivals were drawn together amid diplomatic tensions bet­ween the two countries.

Three-time Olympic cham­pions Pakistan will instead take on the Nether­lands, the world’s third-ranked side, in Amsterdam on October 26 and 27 in the 14-team final qualification phase for the Tokyo Games which will see the aggregate winners earning a place at next year’s Games.

India, meanwhile, will face Russia while the other ties see Britain taking on Malaysia, New Zealand facing South Korea, Spain playing host to France, Canada hosting Ireland and Germany and Austria going head-to-head.
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Japan, Argentina, South Africa, Belgium and Australia have already secured qualification as the five continental winners.

The 2020 Olympic hockey tournament will be staged between July 25 to August 7 at Oi Hockey Stadium.

Dawn

OQ: Men gets it easy while for women it is not

s2h Team

India avoided arch rivals Pakistan and will instead square up to Russia in the men’s 2020 Tokyo Olympic hockey qualifier scheduled to be held in Bhubaneswar on November 1 and 2. However, the things look a bit tough for the Indian women. The Indian women have a tougher task when they play the USA also in Bhubaneswar on the same days.

The draw was conducted at the FIH headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Monday by CEO Thierry Weil. India (World Ranking 5) enjoy the privilege of hosting the two-legged qualifier against Russia (WR 22) by virtue of being the higher-ranked nation.

In their last meeting at the FIH Series Finals in Bhubaneswar, India ran the Russians ragged in 10-0 win. The Indian (WR 9) women too play at home but have a tougher task against the Americans (WR 13). The Indian women drew with the USA 1-1 at last year’s World Cup in London but despite being four rungs adrift in the rankings the Americans are likely to prove a handful.

The qualifying aspirants hope to join five teams which have booked spots at Tokyo 2020 by virtue of winning their continental championships and, in Japan’s case, earning the right as hosts.

In the men’s section, Belgium (WR2, Europe), Argentina (WR4, Pan America), South Africa (Africa, WR14) and Australia (WR1,Oceania) emerged champions.

Japan (WR15) won the Asian Games to qualify on two counts and in the process extend the qualifying field to 14 nations who will vie for seven spots in the 12-nation strong Olympic tournament.

Argentina (WR3), South Africa (WR16), New Zealand (WR6) and the Netherlands (WR1) won their continental titles and with Japan (WR14), like their male counterparts clinching the Asian Games gold, the qualifying field similarly extended to 14 nations.

In other men’s qualifiers, Netherlands (WR3) take on Pakistan (WR 17) in a clash of former Olympic and World Cup champions.

The Dutch are twice Olympic champions and three-time World Cup winners. Pakistan have three Olympic gold medals in their cabinet and have inscribed their name on the World Cup on four occasions.

The quirk encounter in Amsterdam has stemmed from Pakistan’s low ranking amid financial difficulties and an isolation caused by security concerns.

The Asian powerhouse were allowed entry into the qualifiers after agreeing to pay a fine for pulling out of the inaugural FIH Pro League earlier this year.

Germany (WR 6) take on Austria (WR 20) in what seems like an easy encounter for neutral observers. However, irrelevant as it may seem, the Germans were beaten at the last indoor final at home by Austria and one wagers that the four-time Olympic champions and twice World Cup winners may well aim to get do the job with little or no presumptions.

Great Britain (WR 7) play at home against Malaysia (WR 11) in an intriguing match.

Malaysia may still be remorseful on coming within 20 seconds of qualifying directly for Tokyo in the Asian Games final which they lost in a shootout to hosts Japan and only qualifying for the Olympics will soothe the pain.

Great Britain without an Olympic medal for 31 years after clinching a monumental gold medal at Seoul 1988 will take on their Asian adversaries who aim to make their first Olympics since Sydney 2000.

Spain (WR 8), three times silver medalists, have a tricky encounter with fast rising France (WR 12) whose feats in the 2018 Odisha World Cup where they beat Olympic champions Argentina 5-3 are still rife in the memory.

New Zealand (WR 9), with an Olympic gold medal in the showcase circa 1976, have a task on hand against South Korea (WR 16).

The Koreans have been in the doldrums since the 2014 World Cup where they last featured in a global major but are plotting a resurgence to the top bracket.

The Kiwis, on their part, have shown flashes of brilliance in their recent Oceania Cup series against top guns Australia but consistency has been the Black Sticks’ bugbear.

To complete the list of seven playoffs, Canada (WR 10) were drawn against Ireland (WR 13).

The Canadians, grit and fortitude their allies, may fancy their chances against the Irish who have fallen off the top Euro tier.

In the women’s draw, other match-ups pit Australia (WR 2) vs Russia (WR 19) which should go by the script given the disparity in rankings.

So too Germany (WR 4) vs Italy (WR 17) and Great Britain (WR5), the reigning Olympic champions, vs Chile (WR18).

But Ireland (WR 8), who stunned the world while entering the World Cup final last year, take on a fast improving Canada (15) in a match that could go either way.

In other expected close battles, Spain (WR 7) play Korea (WR 11) and China (WR 10) cross swords with Belgium (WR 12) eager to put their recent Euro Championship disappointments behind them.

Teams for the qualifiers have made their way from three routes: The FIH Pro League, FIH Series Finals and World Rankings.

Intricate, as some observers feel, this edition’s qualification for a global major (the Olympics/ World Cup) brings about transparency in the final phase which held the drama of the draw.

With qualifying routes planned in a phased manner, the final seven slots will be filled in do-or-die battles unlike the ambiguity of the past.

For instance, on the road to Rio 2016, the Ireland men’s squad woke up at the crack of dawn to watch the live stream of the Australia vs New Zealand Oceania Cup on the other side of the globe to learn whether they were to exult or groan.

It turned out to be celebrations but it would have been so much sweeter had it been so in a clear-cut manner. This time around, though, there will be no ifs and buts and the calculators can be cast aside.

Seven teams of each gender will face their moment of reckoning when the nerve-wracking qualifiers get going.

Men
25/26 October: Spain – France, Valencia
26/27 October: The Netherlands – Pakistan, Amsterdam
26/27 October: Canada – Ireland, West Vancouver
1/2 November: India – Russia, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: New Zealand – Korea, Stratford
2/3 November: Germany – Austria, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Malaysia, London

Women
25/26 October: Australia – Russia, Perth
25/26 October: China – Belgium, Changzhou
25/26 October: Spain – Korea, Valencia
1/2 November: India – USA, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: Germany – Italy, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Chile, London
2/3 November: Ireland – Canada, Dublin

Each qualifier consists of two back-to-back matches which will be played in the same venue. The match times will be confirmed at a later stage and updated on www.FIH.ch.

The winners of these FIH Hockey Olympic qualifiers will qualify for the 2020 Olympic hockey tournaments which will be staged in Japan’s capital city from 25 July to 7 August next year and involve 12 Men’s and 12 Women’s teams. The following teams are already qualified

MEN
Japan
Argentina
South Africa
Belgium
Australia

WOMEN
Japan
Argentina
South Africa
The Netherlands
New Zealand

Stick2Hockey.com

Stats Speak:  Indian men have all wins record against Russia; Indian eves have to face formidable USA

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

World Ranked-5 India will face World Ranked-22 Russia in Olympic Qualifier for Tokyo-2020. India (men) has played 5 matches and won all by fetching 30 goals and concede just only 7. Last time India beat Russia 10-0 in Hockey Series Finals played at Kalinga Stadium Bhubaneswar. India women have a poor record versus USA, they won 4, lost 16 and drawn 9 in 29 matches played so far. However in London World Cup (July 2018) India drew with USA and qualify for quarter final’s play off. Brief records of all the 28 qualifier teams are given below:

Fieldhockey.com

India men’s hockey team to take on Russia

Tricky opponent for women, face USA for Olympic spots

Uthra Ganesan

The Indian men’s hockey team was handed a relatively easier tie for the Olympic Qualifiers on Monday, drawing World No. 22 Russia for the two-legged clash that would decide who goes to Tokyo 2020. The women, meanwhile, face a tricky opponent in USA.

The draw to decide the seven pairs for the remaining Olympic slots was held at the FIH headquarters in Lausanne with the top-ranked teams getting to host the ties. India would be hosting both the men’s and women’s ties at Bhubaneswar with the matches being played back-to-back on November 1 and 2.

India has played Russia only twice in the past 12 years, the last being a 10-0 victory at the FIH Series Finals earlier this year at the same venue. That game saw the Indians take time to warm up before the comprehensive win against a doughty Russian defence. Prior to that the teams had clashed at the 2008 Olympic qualifiers, when India ominously missed out on an Olympic ticket for the first time ever.

No complacency

“We cannot take any team lightly. There is no room for complacency because we have seen what Russia is capable of.

“Weather conditions in June were challenging for them but that may not be the case this time. I am sure they will come well prepared so it is important to remain focused and play our best,” captain Manpreet Singh said. The Indians would prep for the clash with a Europe tour against World No. 2 Belgium later this month.

For the women, though, the road would be comparatively tougher.

Ranked 9th, India would take on former bronze medallist and World No. 13 USA. The two played out a close 1-1 draw at the World Cup last year, a result that helped India edge through to the knockout stage. However, as per FIH database India has had just one win against USA in its 10 previous meetings. India would travel for a five-match series against England ahead of the tie.

“The team has been performing well in the last few months. “ We have gained momentum at the right time, the players are confident and charged up to achieve the team’s goal,” coach Sjoerd Marijne said.

The Hindu

India men's hockey team to face Russia, women's team to host USA

Indian men's hockey team will take on Russia, while the women's team faces USA in the FIH Olympic Qualifiers in November.


India qualified for the Olympic Qualifiers by winning the FIH Series Finals in June.   -  Twitter/ @TheHockeyIndia

Indian men's hockey team will take on world No. 22 Russia in the FIH Olympic Qualifiers to be played from November 1-2. While, India's women's team will host world No. 13 USA for a place in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in a two-legged tie. Both the qualifiers have been scheduled to be held in Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar.

A possible clash with arch-rivals Pakistan was avoided when the Green Shirts were drawn against The Netherlands.

In June, the men's reached the final of Series Finals against South Africa in Bhubaneswar, while the women's team booked a berth in the Olympic Qualifiers after reaching the final at Hiroshima, Japan. It was a longer road for India after the men's and women's team failed to win the gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games.

The Indian men's team has previously met Russia in the group stage of the 2008 Olympic Qualifying event and beat the Europeans 8-0. However, the eight-time Olympic gold medallist failed to qualify for the time in its history after it lost the final to Great Britian. Both the sides clashed again in June's FIH Series Finals where India thrashed Russia 10-0.

The Indian women's team faced off against the United States in 2018 Women's World Cup in a group encounter which ended in a 1-1 draw. The Rani Rampal-led side finished 10th in the tournament after losing the quarterfinal to tournament finalist Ireland while USA finished 14th among 16 teams.

So far, five teams have gained automatic qualification for the Olympics after winning their continental champions.

FIH Olympic Qualifiers draw

Men

New Zealand vs Korea
Great Britian vs Malaysia
Canada vs Ireland
Spain vs France
Netherlands vs Pakistan
India vs Russia
Germany vs Austria

Women

Germany vs Italy
Ireland vs Canada
Australia vs Russia
Great Britian vs Chile
India vs USA
China vs Belgium
Spain vs Korea

Sportstar

Opposition named for decisive Olympic Qualifiers



Great Britain’s men’s and women’s teams have discovered the opposition that will stand between them and a place at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

GB's men have been drawn against Malaysia whilst GB's women will tackle Chile at Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre over the weekend of 2-3 November 2019 in what is the last opportunity for teams to qualify for the Olympics.

Great Britain's women have never played Chile at a major tournament with their opponents currently ranked 18th in the world.

Malaysia’s men – ranked 11th in the world – are more familiar to the British men. The likes of Adam Dixon, David Ames and Phil Roper all recently featured for England in a 3-3 draw against Malaysia at August's Four Nations Tournament, whilst Alan Forsyth scored for Scotland in a 2-1 defeat to The Tigers at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Upon the draw being made, men's Head Coach Danny Kerry commented: “Malaysia are a good side with some great individuals and a number of threats, but having played them recently gives you that understanding of what that threat is.

“They have some good corner routines and some very fast players who are individually skilful. They also have some very large aerial passes, play well on the counter-attack and, with a very experienced coach in Roelant Oltmans, will be very well prepared. We will respect them and prepare accordingly.

“Playing at Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre and having a home crowd is something I personally enjoy and feel the athletes enjoy having the support behind us too. It’s a great atmosphere there and I think it will be a cracking couple of days that myself and the athletes will really look forward to.”

Both the men's and women's teams need to qualify separately through the two-legged matches; if one gender qualifies it does not mean the other progresses alongside them. Though Great Britain’s women are the reigning Olympic champions, they do not qualify automatically for the Tokyo Games.

Tickets are set to go on general sale for the Olympic Qualifiers on Monday 16 September.

Great Britain Hockey media release

Great Britain women face Chile, men draw Malaysia


Suzy Petty was part of Great Britain's squad at the FIH Champions Trophy and will play in the Pro League

Great Britain's women will have to overcome Chile in a two-legged tie for the right to defend their Olympic title in Tokyo next year.

The FIH Olympic qualifiers draw also pitted Great Britain's men against Malaysia.

Both sets of matches will take place at Lee Valley in London over the weekend of 1-3 November.

Ireland's women, who reached the World Cup final, face Canada at home while the men's team are away to Canada.

The play-offs provide the final opportunity for teams to qualify for Tokyo.

Olympic hockey qualifiers (home side first)

Women's draw

Spain v Korea
Ireland v Canada
China v Belgium
India v USA
Great Britain v Chile
Australia v Russia
Germany v Italy

Men's draw

New Zealand v Korea
Great Britain v Malaysia
Canada v Ireland
Spain v France
Netherlands v Pakistan
India v Russia
Germany v Austria

BBC Sport

Battle in London for Olympics spot

By Jugjet Singh


(NSTP File Pix) National coach Roelant Oltmans.

Malaysia will battle Britain for a spot in next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

World No 11 Malaysia were picked to play Britain in a draw conducted in Lausanne, Switzerland, yesterday.

Britain will entertain Malaysia in the two-legged qualifier on Nov 2-3.

National coach Roelant Oltmans said: “There is always room for an upset, and if we don’t think we can do that, we might as well just stay at home and don’t travel to London.

“We will now plan for the battle,” said Oltmans.

The winners of the Spain v France, New Zealand v South Korea, Canada v Ireland, Netherlands v Pakistan, India v Russia and Germany v Austria will also qualify for the Olympics.

Japan, Argentina, South Africa, Belgium and Australia have qualified after winning their respective continental tournaments.

Others present to watch the draw ‘live’ in Lausanne on Facebook in Bukit Jalil were Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal, deputy president Datuk Dr S. Shamala, and team manager Stephen van Huizen.

Also in attendance were captain Shukri Mutalib, goalkeeper S. Kumar and penalty corner ace Razie Rahim.

“In the recent European Championship, England finished fifth, and when we played against them during our tour of Europe, we held them 3-3.

“That is what we will have in mind when playing them.

“We don’t have a choice... we must beat Britain to head to Tokyo.

Oltmans added: “I see only one or two changes when England become Britain in the Olympic qualifier.

“We will play both matches in London during winter. But we have our plans as we played them recently.

“I also have their statistics from the recent European Championship.

“Every team have a ‘grey area’, and we will have to find it to beat Britain not once, but twice to play in the Olympics.”

For the record, Malaysia’s last Olympic appearance was at the 2000 Sydney edition.

New Straits Times

Malaysia face uphill task to qualify for Tokyo Games

By T. AVINESHWARAN


(From left) Malaysia manager Stephan can Huizen, Malaysia coach Roelant Oltmans, Malaysia Hockey Confederation (MHC) president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal, Malaysia goalkeeping coach Nasihin Nubli, MHC deputy president Prof. Dato’ Dr Shamala Subramaniam, Malaysia assistant coach Mohd Amin Rahim, MHC independent member Datuk Ahmad Najmi Abdul Razak, Malaysia goalkeeper S. Kumar and Malaysia captain Mohd Sukri Mutalib pose for the cameras after the draw.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian hockey team will face a gargantuan task to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

According to the draw that was held last night, the side led by Roelant Oltmans will have to play seventh-ranked Britain in the two-legged playoff qualifiers, that will be held from Nov 1-3 at the Lee Valley Hockey Stadium in London, England.

“It’s the hardest draw you can get. It is what it is, and we can’t change that. We’ve got seven weeks now to prepare, ” said Oltmans.

“I do believe that we have a chance. England are a fantastic team but every great team have their weaknesses and we will look at it.

“We’ve got to do our homework and prepare. We’ve to beat them. No more, no less. We will fight 100% and make the dream come true.”

Oltmans hinted that the team will go to Europe two weeks before the qualifiers as he needs his players to adapt to the time difference and temperature.

“We will go two weeks before the two-legged match and play against European countries. That’s the plan, ” he said.

“On Sept 19, we will go to South Korea to play four matches against their national team.”

Malaysia Hockey Confederation (MHC) president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal and Oltmans, who watched the draw with some of the national players at the MHC headquarters in Bukit Jalil last night, said the team shouldn’t be rattled by Britain’s ranking and just see them as another team to beat to book a ticket to Tokyo.

“Just see it as another game. Turn the tables around, ” he said.

“If we want to qualify for the Olympics, we’ve to be prepared for anybody.”

During Malaysia’s three-week stint in Europe, the squad played nine matches.

Six were Test matches while the other three came in the Four Nations Invitational tournament, which Malaysia won.

The six Test matches in Europe saw Malaysia beat Germany 4-3 but lost the other five to Spain (0-1), Holland (4-6 and 2-4) and Belgium (0-8 and 1-5).

Malaysia won the Four Nations Invitational in Terrassa, Spain, after beating Spain 4-3, Ireland 2-1 and drawing 3-3 with England.

Malaysia last played in the Olympics in 2000 when the side captained by Mirnawan Nawawi finished 11th in Sydney, Australia.

THE DRAW

Germany vs Austria
India vs Russia
Holland vs Pakistan
Spain vs France
Canada vs Republic of Ireland
Britain vs Malaysia
New Zealand vs South Korea

The Star of Malaysia

Stratford to play host to the Vantage Black Sticks Men as they attempt to qualify for the Tokyo Games



International hockey will be returning to Stratford this October and November as the Vantage Black Sticks Men will be heading down to play Japan in a four-test series on October 10th, 12th, 14th and 15th. This will serve as a warmup for when the New Zealand side will return to Stratford on November 2nd and 3rd  when they take on the world number 16 ranked Korea. The Korean series is the final opportunity for both sides to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

The last time the Vantage Black Sticks Men played down in Stratford was all the way back in 2015 when Stratford played host to the Oceania Cup where New Zealand lost narrowly in the final 3-2 to Australia.

The Vantage Black Sticks Women booked their place at Tokyo with a one all draw with world number two Australia in the Oceania Cup from Rockhampton. The New Zealand Men were unable to match the feat of the women and now will need to beat a difficult Korea side to qualify for the games.

Hockey New Zealand CEO Ian Francis stated “It is exciting to bring international hockey back to the Taranaki. The local support that the Vantage Black Sticks receive in this area is huge and is going to be essential in helping our men qualify for the Olympic Games”.

The last time that the Vantage Black Sticks Met Korea in New Zealand was prior to the Rio Olympics in 2016. New Zealand would go on to win that series with two wins and two draws from the four test series.

Tickets for the matches against Japan are on sale now through Dash Tickets. Friday 13th September will see tickets for the important Olympic Qualifying event will go on sale

Hockey New Zealand Media release

Olympic hockey qualifiers: Spain against France has plenty riding on it

By The Hockey Paper


France captain Victor Charlet in action PIC: Worldsportpics

Of the 14 Olympic play-off ties drawn in Lausanne on Monday, Spain men v France is perhaps the stand out, two-legged encounter of the lot – with plenty riding on it.

Sure, there is Holland v Pakistan to whet the appetite – two mens’ nations with plenty of Olympic pedigree – China women hosting Belgium, Malaysia men travelling to Great Britain, and a phalanx of other subplots to savour, but it’s still hard not to focus on October 25-26 in Valencia.

Spain men reached the recent EuroHockey Championships final, well beaten by Belgium, and will start as favourites against the French next month.

The Spanish seem to be continually stilted by a lack of funding. Despite continually punching above their weight, given the success of the women’s side too, failure to reach the Olympics will be a further body blow for the nation and a cash injection in the arm which won’t be forthcoming on the road to Paris 2024.

And so to France, a team which has its roots from the Junior World Cup in 2013 when they reached the final and blossomed last December in Bhubaneswar courtesy of a thrilling journey to the quarter-finals.

France reaching Tokyo 2020 will be a significant boost to the sport. Not least with a beefed-up profile ahead of Paris, but also with a team which is increasingly coming up with performances on the global scene under their Dutch coach Jeroen Delmee.

“We are rather better against top teams than the other way around,” France manager Bertrand Reynaud admitted to L’Equipe on Monday.

Of the other men’s ties, Ireland men will travel to Vancouver to play part-timers Canada and will be thankful of missing potential clashes against either France or Great Britain.

Malaysia will aim to overturn a 23-year winless record against a Great Britain side in London in early November, while the Black Sticks face a tricky clash against Korea.

On the women’s side of qualifying, the Olympic champions Great Britain will aim to up their game and put their below par EuroHockey campaign to bed against Chile, one of the draws’ ‘minnows’.

It will be a first meeting between the two nations but GB will be favourites to progress to Tokyo. So too Ireland, the world silver medallists, who host a Canada side which has been based in Europe thanks to crowdfunding and will be no easy push overs.

Meanwhile India’s participation will mean that November 1-2 will be a lively affair in Bhubaneswar and ensure that the hockey play-offs over consecutive weekends will be eagerly anticipated.

MEN’S DRAW

25/26 October: Spain – France, Valencia
26/27 October: The Netherlands – Pakistan, Amsterdam
26/27 October: Canada – Ireland, West Vancouver
1/2 November: India – Russia, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: New Zealand – Korea, Stratford
2/3 November: Germany – Austria, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Malaysia, London

WOMEN’S DRAW

25/26 October: Australia – Russia, Perth
25/26 October: China – Belgium, Changzhou
25/26 October: Spain – Korea, Valencia
1/2 November: India – USA, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: Germany – Italy, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Chile, London
2/3 November: Ireland – Canada, Dublin

Get ahead of the new season! Subscribe to receive the next copy!

The Hockey Paper

Canadian national teams both draw Ireland for Olympic Qualifier Series

Different paths to the same spot: Canada’s women’s and men’s national teams on Olympic doorstep



The matchups are set. Canada vs Ireland on both men’s and women’s side. If there wasn’t a rivalry between these two hockey nations, there is now. The implications are clear: win the series and qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Games; lose and try again in four years.

Both the women’s and men’s national teams have advanced to the final stages of Olympic qualification set for this fall. They will play a two-game series against an opponent yet to be determined, with the aggregate winner advancing to the 2020 Olympic Games. Every path to the Olympic games is different. And although the two national team pathways have looked very different over the last 18-months, they both stand on the precipice of Olympic qualification.

Women’s National Team rising through the ranks

For the Canadian Women’s National Team, the story starts with their fifth-place finish at the Commonwealth Games in 2018, planting the seed of hope that they could be a top-12 team. Under the encouragement and support of newly appointed head coach Giles Bonnet, the team centralized in Belgium in September 2018. The goal was to get quality competition reps and have access to high level training environment. Bonnet has experience coaching with this centralization method with the South African National Team and aims for similar levels of success with the Canadian Wolfpack.

By all accounts, the opportunity has been amazing. The Canadian athletes were dispersed in the Belgium and Dutch elite leagues, getting new and exciting training and competition exposure, all while training weekly as a part of the Canadian national program. The Wolfpack’s international results speak volumes to the dedication and commitment to improvement. They had successful series results in Mexico, USA, Spain, Ireland and China as well as other positive results against top-15 nations.

They manoeuvred through the FIH Hockey Series finishing second place in June in Valencia, securing them a spot in the two-game Olympic playoff series this fall. Their silver medal finish at the Pan American Games in August was their best since 1991 and will thrust them higher up the world ranking as well.

According to Giles Bonnet, the team will be ready.

“These matches are new for every team. It’s about how one specifically prepares for these matches,” Bonnet said. “I think by the end of October; we will be ready to compete and able to withstand the enormous pressures that will be present.”

Bonnet said that riding the successful results from Pan Ams will set the team up nicely for this pressure-fuelled series with the Olympics on the line.

“Pan Am Games delivered a confidence boosting result in a semi-final match against the USA in a major tournament,” Bonnet said. “The second-place finish and silver medal gave the team enormous confidence.”

Field Hockey Canada media release

FIH Olympic Qualifier Draws. Ire v Canada



Speaking on the draws today, Hockey Ireland Performance Director, Adam Grainger said, “No draws are easy. In terms of the Women’s team, we are delighted to be at home 18 months on from our World Cup success and play a game of importance here in Dublin. We’re looking forward to having home support cheering the girls on towards their first appearance at an Olympics.

For the Men’s squad, travel away will be challenging and Canada are a similarly ranked team to us, but we are confident in the senior men’s players that have qualified for the Olympic Games before and know what it will take to get us to Tokyo.”

Irish Hockey Association media release

Canada stand between both Irish hockey teams and Olympic qualification

Irish men’s and women’s hockey teams to play Canada in two-legged qualifier

Mary Hannigan


The Irish women’s hockey team will play Canada with Olympic qualification on the line. Photograph: Inpho

Canada stand between both the Irish men’s and women’s hockey teams and qualification for the 2020 Olympic Games following Monday’s draw at the International Hockey Federation’s headquarters in Lausanne. Both qualifiers are to be played over two legs on dates between October 25 and November the third.

The women’s world ranking of eight ensured that they will have home advantage for both legs, but the men, who have dropped to 13 in the list following their relegation from the top division of the European Championships during the summer, must travel to Canada for their ties.

The Canadians were the lowest ranked nation that both Irish teams could have been drawn against, so they’ll be content enough with the pairings. The women’s potential opponents were Korea (11 in the rankings), Belgium (12), the United States USA (13), with Canada ranked at 15, while the men could have faced Britain (7), Spain (8) or New Zealand (9) - the Canadian men are at 10 in the world list.

The last meeting between the women’s team and Canada ended in a 1-1 draw at a three nations tournament in Dusseldorf in June 2018, but the men, currently without a coach following the resignation of Alexander Cox, were 4-1 victors when they met the Canadians at a tournament in Malaga in January of last year.

The women are aiming for their first ever Olympic qualification while the men are looking to reach their second Games in a row having made it to Rio. The dates and venues for the qualifiers, which will be decided by the aggregate score over the two legs, will be announced later this afternoon.

The Irish Times

Green Machine set for tough but doable away date in West Vancouver


David Harte in action against Canada’s Keegan Pereira in 2016. Pic: Adrian Boehm

Given the chance from the offers on the table, the Irish men would likely have plumped for a trip to West Vancouver to face Canada for a place at the Tokyo Olympics.

While there are no easy games at this stage in the qualification process, the head-to-head encounters – set for October 26 and 27 – with the red caribous was certainly preferable to a trip to Spain, Great Britain or New Zealand.

Asked for his initial reaction, David Harte said: “There was never going to be an easy draw especially between pot 2 and pot 3! However, it could be said that it is a more favourable draw then facing the likes of the European silver medallists in Spain.

“I’m sure Canada will have a similar feeling of getting Ireland in the draw so it will certainly make for a serious battle.

“Canada have been performing well and for any team to travel to Malaysia and win their FIH Hockey Series event, shows the ability that they have. They have vastly experienced players and many playing overseas in Europe too so they are pretty similar to ourselves.

Eugene Magee concurred: “We’ve faced them before know lot of their players. Definitely not going to be easy and we need to be the best we can be come the end of October.

“Spain are playing very well so good to have avoided them, GB close to home but they are higher ranked, NZ, with the heat over there and, also, they’re a strong team. They didn’t do especially well in Oceania but also good to have avoided them.

“So Canada is a decent draw but certainly can’t be over confident for.”

Ireland have won five of their last six meetings with Canada and lost just once in 17 meetings dating back to 2005. Their two countries current trajectories, though, are currently on different planes with the Canadians also landing silver at the Pan-American Games.

Ireland, meanwhile, finished second in their FIH Series but finished their summer on a low note with relegation from the top tier in Europe. It saw them end up 13th in the world rankings, confirming an away draw.

Alexander Cox stepped away from the panel in the wake of that tournament with his successor potentially named this week.



That had led to a disruption in preparations with the squad spreading back out across Ireland, England, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium with a new coaching regime bringing some potential changes in training plans in the short term.

“Obviously, we got a lot out of Alex but there was poor timing when he left. It left quite a short time, number one, to find a new coach and, two, to embed that new coach and play well in the qualifiers. But it’ll be a fresh new approach in terms of tactics so I’ll be looking forward to working under the new coach.

“We’ll be looking in the next week or so looking at appointing that new coach, just to get everything in line and look ahead to the challenge.

“Hopefully we will be reinvigorated with a new coach, with a new focus, and solidify the squad a bit more and those standards won’t slip. We need to be sharper in terms of speed and fitness and our basics let us down, especially in the 4-0 defeat by Wales.”

The side will play games in mid-October against France and Euro champions Belgium before the big games.

For Magee, it will be his fourth attempt at Olympic qualification, one successful campaign and two which fell short, and the desire is alive and well to make a mark again.


Eugene Magee in action against Canada in 2016. Pic: Adrian Boehm

“My first one was in New Zealand in 2008; we weren’t all that close in that one! Certainly, in 2012 [eight seconds away from extra time v Korea] … defeats like that give you a real hunger. The way the Europeans panned out, we’ll get that hunger back for success so that’s a positive if we can take one out of it.”

“The Rio experience was absolutely amazing from the get-go, from the preparation around it, to the way an Olympics perceived from outside and the inside – it is what all your dreams are built towards, The first time in the athlete’s village, seeing famous sports people was amazing. It was just nice to be part of it.”

Men’s full Olympic qualifier draw

25/26 October: Spain – France, Valencia
26/27 October: The Netherlands – Pakistan, Amsterdam
26/27 October: Canada – Ireland, West Vancouver
1/2 November: India – Russia, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: New Zealand – Korea, Stratford
2/3 November: Germany – Austria, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Malaysia, London

The Hook

McCay and Watkins’ full focus on finally reaching Olympic promised land with Canada date set in stone


Chloe Watkins at today’s Park Development’s event to coincide with the Olympic qualifiers draw in Belfield. Pic: Morgan Treacy/Inpho

When the glitchy live draw stream suddenly popped up with Ireland’s women facing Canada, it elicited staccato laughter and the odd cheer and hand-clap from the fully assembled Green Army squad.

It was a tacit admission this was one of the preferred options available from the draw. The north American side have very much been on the rise and caused Ireland no end of problems last summer in challenge matches in Dublin.

But facing the lowest ranked opponent and avoiding Korea and Belgium is probably a preferable outcome for the Irish women’s bid to qualify for a first-ever Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020.

The games will be played on November 2nd and 3rd with a Dublin-based venue the destination – whether it be UCD, Abbotstown or possibly on a roll-out pitch at Donnybrook Stadium.

“Mixed feelings, maybe it was nervous excitement but just glad to finally know,” was Shirley McCay’s assessment of the moment they finally found out their opponent. “It has been a long time coming so it is good to have that focus for the next eight weeks.

“I would have gone for Canada or USA. The others would have been a huge test but we are under no illusions. They are on the rise and have defied the odds in recent years.”

That includes a run to the final of both the Pan-American Games and the FIH Series in Valencia. Bizarrely, it follows a huge change in recent years which could have buried them.

With funding slashed, the squad relocated en masse to Europe to train together on a semi-pro basis without major backing and it has paid dividends.

Chloe Watkins added: “Canada have improved a lot over the last few years. They’ve got a good programme and been based more in Europe. We know they’re a good team and we’ve had a few mixed results, like before the World Cup last summer we lost to them and then we beat them a few times.”

Ireland’s programme, meanwhile, has gone the other way. The World Cup silver medal has seen the women’s team receive a big boost in government and corporate funding, changing their whole support structure.

“It’s had a massive impact but we won’t exactly know how much until those qualifiers about how important it has been,” McCay added.

“Softco and Park Developments have allowed us to go to a much more full-time programme. It allows much more contact time to train, push each other hard and have some flexibility with work.”

For training camps in Dublin, where the squad are based from Sunday mornings to Tuesday evenings, McCay can now avail of stays in the Sandymount Hotel.



“In the past, we have often had to home host. That puts pressure on the host but also you coming in, feeling like you are intruding, eating their food. The support has been invaluable. It is difficult to always be travelling away from home but having the hotel does allow us to be a little bit more relaxed before training.”

Her work with Ulster Hockey means she will be floating about at the interpros over the next few weeks but she added they are a workplace that can offer great support.

“They said ‘if we can’t support you as a hockey governing body, who can?’ In my role, hopefully, I can be seen as a role model and represent Ulster as much as I can.”

For Watkins, she works with Mazars on a part-time basis. The Park Developments fund is specifically ring-fenced for the likes of her who will have to take extra time off in October as extra contact hours come into play, helping to limit any shortfall in income.

“Park Developments coming on board has been a huge boost in combination with Softco. It has allowed us to train on a more full-time basis since July. We’re already seeing huge improvements as a team because it’s just that contact time we never had before.

“Now, we have the ability to do that and it’s all thanks to their support. That’s invaluable and certainly, over September/October, the programme we have in place will give us our best chance of qualifying.

“I’m going to take a month out from work completely and just have that in mind. The programme is pretty heavy, we’re training at a really high intensity and recovery is so important. That has to be our main focus.

“This will be my third attempt at an Olympics. Back in 2011, we were in a centralised programme but nothing to this level of professionalism. The training itself, we’ve had nothing of this kind of intensity.

“I know everyone’s bodies are in bits at the moment as we were just back yesterday. It’s certainly a new level that we’re playing to and that’s what we need as a group. Everything has been put in place and hopefully it’ll work.”

McCay’s Olympic pursuit goes back even further, back to Canada in 2008 when Ireland missed out on a final berth in the Olympic qualifiers at the hands of Italy.

And while it wasn’t Canada directly who blocked the path, there is still a little sense of “owing them one”.

“I didn’t realise the enormity of it. I was young and maybe a wee bit selfish. Now, I know just how much effort, commitment and sacrifice it takes to get glory in eight weeks time.

“I did wonder why there was such sheer disappointment, wondering why we hadn’t achieved our qualification for Beijing. I was young and naïve and didn’t realise the impact it would have. I am the only one surviving from then so it will only be me getting my own back!”

For Watkins, it is also about not resting on their laurels following last summer in London.

“We made history at the World Cup but the Olympics has been the one we’ve always chased. We’ve never qualified before so, first and foremost, it is our target and goal. It’s driving this group at the moment.

“I suppose every time we go out there we want to try and perform but we do know we have a special group of players and a great programme in place. The sky is the limit now and we’re really just got to go for this and get over the line.


Shirley McCay is hoping to qualify for the Olympics at the fourth attempt. Pic: Morgan Treacy/Inpho

“You do learn something different from each cycle. There have been some really big disappointments but we’ve grown as a group and I think we’ve got a really good mix of experience and youth at the moment.

“The energy and the ambition from some of the younger players, they’ve slotted in seamlessly. Some of us who have experience and have been disappointed before with Olympic qualifiers, know what to expect and what not to expect.

“The World Cup certainly has given the group a new sense of belief and confidence that we can get the result on the big stage. What we learned from our last experience was that you can push a team so far, and we trained so hard, but we didn’t get there.

“The reality is that you really have to push for it. You might think you’re in a good position but it’s a whole new level. It’s a really difficult process. We’ve turned that into motivation.

“People have been in the squad for 10 years. It’s something we’re all working towards and something we’ve always wanted to achieve. And this is our chance. When you’re with a group like this, you never know how many opportunities you’re going to get again so we have to make the most of them.”

Women’s full qualifiers draw

25/26 October: Australia – Russia, Perth
25/26 October: China – Belgium, Changzhou
25/26 October: Spain – Korea, Valencia
1/2 November: India – USA, Bhubaneswar
2/3 November: Germany – Italy, Mönchengladbach
2/3 November: Great Britain – Chile, London
2/3 November: Ireland – Canada, Dublin

Each qualifier consists of two back-to-back matches which will be played in the same venue. The match times will be confirmed at a later stage and updated on www.FIH.ch.

The winners of these FIH Hockey Olympic qualifiers will qualify for the 2020 Olympic hockey tournaments which will be staged in Japan’s capital city from 25 July to 7 August next year and involve 12 Men’s and 12 Women’s teams. The following teams are already qualified:

Argentina, Netherlands, Japan, South Africa, New Zealand.

The Hook

Shirley McKay cautious about Canadian challenge

Women’s and men’s sides face Canadians for place in Tokyo Olympics next year

Johnny Watterson


Irish hockey player Shirley McCay: ‘I would have gone for Canada or USA. The others would have been a huge test but we are under no illusions.’ Photograph: Morgan Treacy/Inpho

After missing out on Olympic qualification in recent years Irish hockey’s Shirley McCay remains cautious about Ireland’s prospects in their two-leg match against Canada in Dublin on November 2nd-3rd. But, she concedes, Canada is not a bad nation for Ireland to have drawn.

With the women’s and the men’s teams facing the Canadians in back-to-back matches for a place in the Tokyo Olympics next year, McCay is cautious about a team that has been improving in recent years.

“Mixed feelings, maybe it was nervous excitement but just glad to finally know,” said the Irish defender. “It has been a long time coming so it is good to have that focus for the next eight weeks.

“I would have gone for Canada or USA. The others would have been a huge test but we are under no illusions. They are on the rise and have defied the odds in recent years.”

The men will play both of their games in Vancouver, while the higher ranking of the women’s team earned them their home draw. The venue for the women’s games has been confirmed for Dublin and while the team have been holding recent international training sessions at UCD, no pitch has been announced.

The women’s team, who made it to an historical World Cup final in London last year, have never qualified a for an Olympic Games, while the men’s team qualified for Rio in 2016 for the first time in the sport’s history.
Home advantage

“Not sure yet [about the venue]. Abbotstown is just about to be laid,” added McCay. “UCD is a really nice turf but the pitch times are maybe not as flexible but, regardless where we play, having home advantage is going to be massive for us.

“It’s hard to put into words what it [Olympic qualification] would mean,” she added. “This is just the first part of the journey and then the hope is to be part of the team that actually goes which is a whole other effort. We are putting everything in so that, come next summer, we have the best 16 athletes in Tokyo.”

The new world rankings which came out on Monday place the Irish women’s team in eighth place with Canada ranked at 15.

The men have a more difficult challenge over two days on October 26th-27th.

To compound matters head coach Alexander Cox resigned from his position after just one year in the job following Ireland’s relegation to the second tier of the European Championships. A 4-0 defeat to Wales in their final match sealed Ireland’s fate and they have fallen from 11th to 13th in the FIH World Rankings. The Canadian men are ranked three places ahead of Ireland in 10th place.

“So Canada is a decent draw but certainly can’t be overconfident and looking too far past the end of October,” said Irish forward Eugene Magee. ” Big time ahead and hopefully we’ll be looking in the next week or so looking at appointing a new coach just to get everything in line and look ahead to the challenge. I am really looking forward to it now and it makes it all the more real.”

The Irish Times

Ireland men and women both face Canada for Tokyo spots


Shane O'Donoghue celebrates after scoring for Ireland's men in their 4-2 win over Canada at the Rio Olympics

Ireland's women will meet Canada in their Olympic play-off in Dublin later this year with the Irish men having been drawn away to Canada.

Both play-offs will take place over two legs with the winning teams earning spots at the Tokyo Games.

Ireland's men beat Canada 4-2 at the Rio Olympics but the 10th-ranked Canadians are now three places higher in the world rankings.

The Irish women have never qualified for an Olympic Games.

However after securing the silver medal at last year's World Cup, the Irish women should go into their home contest with the Canadians in a positive frame of mind.

The 15th-ranked Canadians were the lowest ranked nation that the eighth-ranked Irish women could have faced.

Great Britain's men, who include a number of Northern Ireland players, will host Malaysia in their play-off with the British women taking on Chile.

The Irish men must travel to Vancouver for their games on 26 and 27 October, while the women host Canada in Dublin on 2 and 3 November.

BBC Sport

Mental toughness is the key to qualifications says Chloe Watkins


Watkins was pat of Ireland's silver medal-winning side at last year's World Cup

Irish midfielder Chloe Watkins says keeping mentally strong in the build-up to her side's Olympic play-off against Canada could be the deciding factor.

Ireland's women have never qualified for an Olympics but will enter the play-off with real confidence having reached the World Cup final last year.

"It's the hardest thing to do, that hardest process is to get to the Olympics," said Watkins.

"We know all the boxes we have to tick."

Having narrowly missed out on the semi-finals at the European Championships in Antwerp last month, Ireland retained their top-flight status with a dramatic win over Belgium.

Home advantage is likely to see Ireland enter the two-legged contest against Canada in Dublin on 2 and 3 November as slight favourites, although Canada did win a meeting between the sides last year.

"They are by no means an easy draw," Watkins said.

"It was a really competitive pool in general so it was really going to be much of a muchness with those teams.

"We really have to keep our minds focussed, especially with the format of these games.

"If you have a bad result you have to level yourself and come back fresh into the next game."

BBC Sport

AirAsia Women's Junior AHF Cup 2019 - Day1
Singapore

Results

9 Sep 2019     HKG v UZB (RR)     0 - 5
9 Sep 2019     SRI v TPE (RR)     0 - 6
9 Sep 2019     SGP v BAN (RR)     3 - 0

Pool standings

FIH Match Centre

New Zealand Hockey overhauls national league and cuts regional teams for 2020


Capital team members celebrate after the shootout win over North Harbour at last year's NHL final. RAGHAVAN VENUGOPAL/PHOTOSPORT

Hockey New Zealand will undergo a massive overhaul of its National Hockey League in 2020.

The National Hockey League (NHL) will get rid of its regional teams and return to an association-based tournament.

Next year the NHL ,which is contested between the eight regions, will be replaced with the National Hockey Championship comprising of teams from the 32 associations.

A new high-performance series will also be held for the top 80 athletes per gender to compete in.

The current regional system is similar to super rugby regions in geography (except there are eight hockey regions), while associations are similar to rugby's Mitre 10 cup teams and divided up between provinces, such as Manawatu/North Harbour/ Counties Manukau).

Hockey NZ said the purpose of the national championship is to provide an opportunity for players to put their hands up for selection in the high performance series.

"This is an exciting time for hockey in New Zealand and the shift in these tournaments is going to allow for players to represent their home associations and further establish the importance and value of local development and pride," Hockey New Zealand said in a statement on Monday.

"The current model that has been in place has got hockey in New Zealand to a great place on the world stage and built depth in our sport, however these changes will build increased local pride and rivalries while putting our national teams in a stronger position to succeed in the future."


Capital goalkeeper Kyle Pontifex celebrates with the Challenge shield last year. RAGHAVAN VENUGOPAL/PHOTOSPORT

The competition changes are going to be delivered in conjunction with the development of a "performance network" to better prepare identify athletes to be world-class hockey players for the two national sides.

Hockey New Zealand CEO Ian Francis said the changes were important for the sport's future.

"We are excited about the changes and the opportunities that these will provide to our sport going forward. We want to use the final year of the Ford NHL as a celebration of the competition and what it has provided to hockey in New Zealand.

"These changes are important in the evolution of hockey and will help further enhance and develop our participants' experiences at all levels."

Tauranga will host the week-long NHL beginning Saturday for the start of its last season.

Next year the Under-18 tournament will also shift to an association-based tournament, while the Under-21 tournament will cease to exist in its present format.

The new championship will be played late each year in the September window.

Stuff

Unbeaten Warriors maintain top spot

By AYUMBA AYODI


Kenya Police captain Oliver Echenje (left) vies for the ball with Butali's Francis Kariuki during their Kenya Hockey Union Men's Premier League match at City Park, Nairobi on April 20, 2019. PHOTO | SILA KIPLAGAT |  NATON MEDIA GROUP

Defending champions Butali Sugar Warriors upheld their one point lead at top of the men’s hockey Premier League standings thanks to their 1-0 victory over old foes Kenya Police on Sunday at City Park Stadium.

Butali needed Francis Kariuki’s 44th minute field goal to humble Kenya Police for the second time this season, a victory that enabled them uphold their unbeaten run and improve their tally to 24 points.

Butali had in the first leg beaten Police 2-1 and the loss again saw Police, who are embracing a lukewarm season, stay fourth in the log with 18 points. Butali have seven wins and three draws, while Police have five wins, three draws and a similar number of losses.

Wazalendo, who had last Wednesday edged out United States International University-Africa (USIU-A) 2-1, faltered on Sunday, going down 2-1 to a rejuvenated Strathmore University Gladiators.

It’s a weekend that saw Nairobi Simbas' woes continue, sinking to relegation zone after they lost to USIU-A 1-0 at City Park, as Western Jaguars forced visiting Green Sharks to a 1-1 draw in Kakamega.

Wazalendo and Greensharks stay third and fourth in the log with 23 and 20 points respectively. Wazalendo have seven wins, two draws and three loses, while Greensharks, who have been successful in six outings, have two draws and three defeats.

Daily Nation

No. 11 field hockey stays perfect with wins against UMass-Lowell and No.14 Ohio State

Cavaliers improve to 4-0 with a dominant effort Friday and thrilling fourth quarter finish Sunday

By Muhammad Amjad


Sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Hausheer made several crucial saves this weekend to help Virginia remain undefeated.  Courtesy Virginia Athletics

The No. 11 Virginia field hockey team continued its hot play coming off of a weekend in which it beat Old Dominion and Penn State. The Cavaliers (4-0, 0-0 ACC) beat UMass-Lowell (1-2, 0-0 America East) and No. 14 Ohio State (3-1, 0-0 Big Ten) in back-to-back showdowns that highlight the depth and all-around strength of this year’s squad.

In a game that highlighted Virginia’s improved offense and stifling defense, the Cavaliers topped the River Hawks 4-1.

Virginia started off aggressively, looking to score through the team’s leading attackers. The Cavaliers netted a goal in each of the first two quarters, both coming from junior striker Makayla Gallen, who leads the team with four goals so far in 2019.

Gallen’s individual ball control and shot-creating ability was on full display as her first goal came after an impressive dribble move that gave her just the angle and space she needed to strike a goal past UMass-Lowell’s backline.

In the second quarter, freshman striker Olivia Marrus provided the assist as Gallen put the Cavaliers up 2-0 going into the second half.

Virginia’s quick counter-attacks and passing-centered offense were clearly too much for the River Hawks to handle early on, as UMass-Lowell never controlled the ball consistently enough to put pressure on the Cavaliers’ defense in the first half.

The third quarter proved to be much of the same, as Virginia scored two more goals to round out the scoring effort on the day.

Junior midfielder Rachel Robinson capitalized on a UMass-Lowell penalty corner and tapped in her second goal off the season off an assist by sophomore midfielder Annie McDonough. Four minutes later, senior midfielder Erin Shanahan broke away on an isolation attack and shot a rocket past the opposing goalkeeper for her second goal of the season.

Virginia sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Hausheer anchored the Cavaliers’ defense, as she registered five saves on the day and allowed just one goal. In the first three games of the season, Virginia has only conceded two goals.

Things were more dramatic, however, during Sunday’s 2-1 win against Ohio State. Virginia and Ohio State both started off the game slowly, with both sides conceding penalty corners and the Buckeyes dominating possession in the first quarter.

In what became a theme throughout the first half, Virginia outshot Ohio State but never found the goal, as the Buckeyes’ defensive front proved too difficult to crack. After the Buckeyes had several chances against Hausheer, the most defining play of the first half occurred with four seconds left on the clock.

A penalty stroke surrendered by Virginia put Hausheer toe-to-toe with Ohio State senior midfielder Esther Clotet Alsina. As Alsina fired a beaming shot from a few yards in front of the goal, Hausheer displayed her incredible athleticism with a jumping save from the upper left deck of the net that ended the first half and gave Virginia the momentum it would need for the second half.

Ohio State was aggressive in the third quarter, controlling most of the possession and forcing Virginia to surrender penalty corners to the tune of five to two in favor of the Buckeyes. Virginia allowed Ohio State’s only goal of the day off of a penalty corner — Hausheer saved two penalty corners but Ohio State scrambled to rebound and netted the goal with 10:51 left in the third quarter.

Virginia quickly began its own counterattack but could not get on the scoreboard until the last period of play. Freshman striker Laura Janssen proved to be the difference for the Cavaliers, becoming the fourth Virginia player to score multiple goals already in the young season.

Janssen’s first goal to tie the game came off an assist by sophomore midfielder Greer Gill early in the fourth period. Virginia took advantage of a counterattack opportunity and raced the ball past the Buckeye defense for a quick equalizer.

As both sides looked to grab hold of the game in the waning moments, Janssen again came through in the clutch to vault Virginia over the top to remain undefeated.

Virginia was granted a penalty corner with 3:02 remaining in the game and then the Cavaliers’ first shot on goal was deflected by Ohio State into the air in front of the net. Just 14 seconds later, Janssen extended her stick fully and nudged the ball into the right side of the goal in what was a remarkable display of instinct and awareness on her part to give Virginia the lead.

The Cavaliers’ 4-0 start is an improvement from 2018’s 3-1 record through the first four games. Next up, Virginia will travel to No. 2 Maryland Friday. The game is slated for 5 p.m. in College Park, Md.

The Cavalier Daily