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All the news for Tuesday 27 October 2020

FIH Pro League - 27 October 2020

2020 FIH Pro League (Men)
19:00 (GMT +1)     NED - GBR     RR     -     Wagener Hockey Stadium, Amstelveen

 2020 FIH Pro League (Women)
16:30 (GMT +1)    NED - GBR     RR     -     Wagener Hockey Stadium, Amstelveen

Keep up to date with all the latest news on the FIH Hockey Pro League via the Watch.Hockey app, event website and through FIH social media channels - Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Live streaming and full game replay on the Watch Hockey App (May be Geo blocked if there is TV coverage)

Pool Standings

Men's Pool standings

R	Team	GP	W	WD	D	LD	L	GD	P
1	Belgium	8	5	1	0	1	1	13	18
2	Australia	8	3	1	0	3	1	7	14
3	Netherlands	6	2	2	0	1	1	0	11
4	India	6	2	2	0	0	2	2	10
5	Argentina	8	2	1	0	2	3	-2	10
6	New Zealand	8	2	1	0	0	5	-10	8
7	Spain	8	2	0	0	1	5	-8	7
8	Germany	4	1	2	0	0	1	-1	7
9	Great Britain	4	1	0	0	2	1	-1	5

  Women's Pool standings

R	Team	GP	W	WD	LD	L	GD	P
1	Argentina	8	5	1	0	2	11	17
2	Netherlands	5	4	0	0	1	14	15
3	New Zealand	8	4	0	2	2	5	14
4	Australia	6	1	1	1	2	-3	9
5	Germany	2	2	0	0	0	4	6
6	Belgium	6	1	1	1	3	-6	6
7	Great Britain	4	1	1	0	1	2	5
8	China	2	0	0	0	2	-5	0
9	United States	5	0	0	0	5	-22	0
USA v NED (26.01.2020) worth double points because of the match cancelled on 24.01.2020 AUS v GBR (01.02.2020) worth double points because of the match cancelled on 02.02.2020

FIH Match Centre

Netherlands take on Great Britain as FIH Pro League resumes after a month’s break

s2h Team



FIH Pro League action resumes after a month’s gap when Netherlands take on Great Britain in Amstelveen on Tuesday. The second match will be played on Thursday. Both encounters start at 11.30pm IST/15:30 GMT

The Dutch and British women’s teams play on the same days 9 PM (IST).

The league re-started after a six-month hiatus in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic when Germany and Belgium met in Dusseldorf on September 22. The women’s teams of those two nations faced off on the same day.

Australia and Argentina played each other in Perth on March 7 before the league was halted. Their women’s teams played each other on the same day.

The league, in its second year, involves nine teams in either section. A significant change in the second edition concerns playing hosts. Instead of teams flying across to play their away match, they will remain at home for the second match.

The roles between the two nations concerned will be reversed in next year’s league, the idea behind the format is cutting costs, travel time and fatigue and an attempt to make the league more environmental friendly.

Wins fetch three points, draws a point each plus a bonus point for the winners of a shootout following stalemates. This year’s league also does away with the Grand Final playoffs involving the top four finishers.

Belgium, World champions and last year’s runners-up, lead the table with 18 points from eight matches. They are followed by defending champions Australia (14,8), Netherlands (11,6), India (10,6), Olympic champions Argentina (10,8), NZ (8,8), Spain (7,8), Germany (7,4) and Great Britain (5,4).

Argentina lead the women’s table with 17 points from eight matches. Following them are World Cup champions and holders Netherlands (15, 5), New Zealand (14,8), Australia (9,6), Germany (6,2), Belgium (6,6), Olympic champions Great Britain (5,4), China (0,2) and USA (0,5).

Stick2Hockey.com

Teams will love playing again, says Netherlands great Robert van der Horst



Former Netherlands captain Robert van der Horst has spoken about the upcoming FIH Hockey Pro League men’s matches between the Oranje and Great Britain.

In an interview with FIH, van der Horst – who between 2004 and 2016 made over 270 appearances for the Netherlands, winning two European titles, Olympic and World Cup silver medals as well as being named FIH Player of the Year for 2015 – discussed what it will mean for the players of both teams to return to action after a lengthy and entirely unavoidable lay-off, whilst also giving his thoughts about the strengths of the respective teams.

The 36-year-old retired from international hockey after the Olympic Games of Rio 2016, and currently holds the position of head coach at Eindhoven’s Oranje Rood (formerly Oranje Zwart), the club at which he spent the vast majority of his playing career and where he began playing the sport as a boy.

Hi Robert, thanks for talking to us! After a long break, do you think the players will be feeling excited about the chance to play international hockey again?

Robert van der Horst: “Thanks for having me, first of all! It’s always nice to talk about hockey and Pro League, especially right now. Yes, I think the players are really keen to start playing again. Obviously, it’s been a long period of not really competing with the international program and with the national team. They’ve had some competition played in the past few weeks and months (domestically), but I think it is always nice to play for your country, and compete with your country, against the top teams in the world, so they will love starting to play again.”  

With players recovering from injury and re-setting mentally, has the enforced period away resulted in an added appreciation for playing the game?

Robert van der Horst: “In the end, when you have the experience of not being able to play games and want to play games, it is hard, especially with these covid situations over the past few months. Now they are ready to play, I believe, ready to go for it. They have training a lot, played a lot of practice matches also, which is internal so always different. Playing special games, playing games against the best teams in the world, that is what you do it for, right? They will probably love it!”

What are your thoughts about the Great Britain men’s team, and where do you expect the main dangers to come from?

Robert van der Horst: “Well, I haven’t seen them for a long period, because of no hockey! But I looked at the [league] table and they are not so high, but they haven’t played as many matches as some of the other teams. When I look at them, I see a young and talented group with lots of speed in their game, with Phil Roper and Zach Wallace in the team, who are really special players, I think. There is a lot of a talent and future, so hopefully they can bring it and keep it together and start growing as a team and individuals to compete for the highest [level] they can get [to]. Last year they made the last four [FIH Hockey Pro League Grand Final], so they were close to the top teams. It is good for them to play these kinds of matches, to compete again after a long period of not being able to play against the top [teams] in the world. If they can keep it together, with their speed and strength as a team, they will start competing pretty soon, I believe.”

What are your thoughts about your beloved Netherlands team?

Robert van der Horst: “The Netherlands, they have a solid team. They have a lot of experience in the team, but also a lot of young guys that are coming in now, so it could be interesting [to see] what will happen with the team. There are seven to ten players that are over 30, and the goal was always playing in Tokyo [2020 Olympic Games], which has been postponed for a year. On the other hand, the young guys who are coming in are really knocking on the door, so we will see what will happen in terms of the quality and improvement of players. You always think that the selection is settled around half a year before the Olympics, but maybe because of the postponing of the Olympics it will be a bit harder and different for the team. Hopefully it won’t bring too much stress for them. I think it is important that they look as a team to be successful at the Olympics, but it will be interesting.”  

An extended interview with Robert van der Horst will feature on FIH channels in the coming months.

#FIHProLeague
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Official FIH Pro League Site

GB Hockey return after 'eternity' away

By Tom Brown


Sarah Jones made her GB debut during the 2018 Champions Trophy

Wales forward Sarah Jones says she is excited to play hockey for Great Britain again after what has felt like an "eternity" away from competition.

Great Britain's men's and women's sides last played in the Pro League in February.

Almost nine months later they will resume that competition with four games split across the Netherlands and Belgium this week.

"I'm pretty excited really and quite lucky," Jones told BBC Sport Wales.

"I think being able to get back onto a pitch and play with teammates in the game that you love and also what is your job allows you to go back to normality. It's great to come away and play four games in six days."

But the competitive experience is certainly different these days. It was a long coach journey to the Netherlands, with masks worn throughout, and social distancing is followed off the pitch at all times.

Everyone has their own hotel room and even meals are eaten on individual tables.

On the pitch there are restrictions too, with players encouraged not to celebrate too closely or get into a tight huddle before a penalty corner.

"There's a lot of stick taps," continued Jones, 30. "As quite a tactile person it is a bit odd.

"You could potentially lose that sense of togetherness and we've had conversations about how we can kind of try and retain that.

"It's a challenge but the great thing about this trip is things might not look that different in the Olympics, so we might have to get used to this and therefore why not start now?

"Having these games against Holland and Belgium will certainly give us a good idea of where we're at.

"It feels like we're playing some really good hockey and it'll be a really good test for us to get some proper matchplay in."

Games against the Netherlands on Tuesday and Thursday are followed by a double-header in Belgium over the weekend.

Two home fixtures against Germany are scheduled for November.

After that "eternity" away, the build-up to the postponed Olympics can finally begin once again.

BBC Sport

Glynn can give GB women firepower, says Hager



Women’s coach Mark Hager believes Great Britain can add the finishing touch now that fellow Kiwi Katie Glynn has joined as his assistant.

Renowned as a hard-nosed player before a back injury cut short her fine career in 2014, Glynn, 31 (above left) joined the set up a few months ago to work with GB’s cohort of forwards, who will get their first taste of action for eight months with Pro League games in Holland and Belgium.

In the 2019 Pro League, GB finished sixth of nine teams in goals scored, with 22 from 16 matches, although plenty of chances were being created.

Glynn’s remit – she was the Black Sticks’s second-highest female scorer – has been in the attacking third since she joined the GB programme. “We tend to create a few opportunities but haven’t been able to finish them off,” said Hager of GB’s recent fortunes before the pandemic. “All the players have really welcomed Katie into the squad and how she operates.”

Meanwhile Hager says the opportunity to blood new talent against the world’s best will only strengthen the squad up until Tokyo 2020.

GB are nursing several injuries while Giselle Ansley (late last year on her Achilles) and captain Hollie Pearne-Webb (on her big toe shortly after lockdown) have had surgery.

“We seemed to have had a few niggles over the last seven to eight weeks which is interesting when you look at other sports where there seem to be injuries happening,” added Hager, “perhaps because everyone has been on such a long break and the bodies aren’t used to the workloads again.”

As such, Elite Development Programme players Fiona Crackles, Emily Dark, Sophie Hamilton and Holly Hunt – who has one GB cap from 2019 – were ushered in three weeks ago. “They have done well and deserved their opportunity,” said Hager.

The injuries, Hager said, have helped selection but he hopes to get four or five of the senior players back in the squad before the home Germany games next month. “We are playing the No.1 in the world so you couldn’t ask for any more of an opportunity to stand up against that sort of competititon and it will strengthen our squad over the next 10 months.”

Sophie Hamilton

Midfielder Hamilton returned to the UK after the collegiate programme was cut short in the US where she was a UConn Huskies player. “She’s very mobile and naturally fit and quite quick. She has the ability to throw some good passes and can link up going forward,” said Hager.

Fiona Crackles

The Durham captain is a “tough defender”, according to Hager, with good passing ability. “She’s slotted in really well and will play in a screen role in the back half,” added Hager. “She’s got a very good hockey brain and can hold the ball well.” She has spent time in Queensland where she made the state’s highly competitive under-21 team, which Hager says has only helped her hockey knowledge.

Emily Dark

A GDP graduate from 2018, Dark is a natural defender but versatile in any position. Scotland coach Jen Wilson said of Dark: “For such a young player, she plays with an incredible amount of maturity and a vast repertoire of skills which continue to develop rapidly.”

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The Hockey Paper

GB hockey teams return to action in Pro League

Starting on Tuesday, both of Great Britain's men's and women's teams will resume their campaigns for the first time since February

By Pippa Field

When it came to packing for her first international hockey matches in eight months, there were a few more unusual items among Laura Unsworth's baggage for Great Britain's Hockey Pro League matches in Holland and Belgium.

"I’ve actually got a 1,000 piece puzzle of New York and a painting by numbers set," said the 32-year-old, named women's captain with Hollie Pearne-Webb absent this week due to surgery. "Although we're moving countries so I could have a few problems with transporting it..."

Such a choice of downtime activities is not a novel new approach to captaincy, rather another example of elite athletes learning to pass time inside a bio-secure bubble, with hockey the latest British sport to return to the international arena following its coronavirus-enforced hiatus.

Starting on Tuesday, both of Great Britain's men's and women's teams will resume their Pro League campaigns for the first time since February, with two games in two days against Holland in Amstelveen before switching to Brussels for a double-header in Belgium.

They will be playing at the same venues but there will be no mixing of squads, activities will be confined to the pitch and hotel, with staggered meal times, separate bedrooms and another round of coronavirus testing pre-Belgium (the puzzle, as Unsworth points out, will especially come in handy if she tests positive and has to self-isolate abroad).

While Holland has a third of the confirmed coronavirus cases compared to Britain, numbers are on the rise with the Dutch government halting the Hoofdklasse, the country's top domestic hockey league, earlier this month as part of tighter restrictions, deeming it an amateur sport. GB players were all given the option to opt out of travelling.

"We have had a lot of meetings as a team and been pretty open with how we’re feeling," explained Unsworth, speaking before the women's squad, split across two team coaches, travelled via the Eurotunnel rather than mixing on a plane.

"For example being in your own room is different as we usually share and we don’t know how we’ll react to that. But everyone is raring to go, we realise we are unbelievably lucky to get to have this opportunity to play international hockey because it seems like a lifetime ago that we had a match."

First up for Unsworth's side will be the world's best team. Britain dispatched the Dutch in a penalty shootout to claim Olympic gold at Rio 2016 but playing and coaching personnel have changed greatly since. Unsworth - or 'Granny' as she is often called - brings invaluable experience having made her debut in 2008. She is, however, one of only three members, alongside Lily Owsley and Susannah Townsend, playing this week from that Rio squad and Holland are on back on top form, winning both Pro League meetings last year.

"These are the ones where you get to play against the world number ones and you’ve got to relish that opportunity, especially the new girls winning their first caps," she said. "It’s such a good opportunity as you can really test yourself against them."

The Telegraph

Statement From GB Women's And Men's Squads: Stick It To Racism



This statement is written by the Great Britain Women’s and Men’s hockey squads ahead of our FIH Hockey Pro League matches on 27 and 29 October versus Holland and 31 October and 1 November against Belgium.

Both Great Britain hockey squads do not condone any form of discrimination, inside and outside of our sport. We feel strongly that nobody should be discriminated against because of race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, age or for any other reason.

For our upcoming Pro League games, we will be outwardly showing our support to ‘Stick It To Racism’. There is no place for racism in our sport or in society. Moving forwards we commit to continuing and furthering our learning, both individually and collectively, and supporting the governing bodies with their ongoing inclusion and diversity work. Hockey is a sport where everyone should feel like they are valued and belong.

One of the women’s squad's values is ‘We Are One,’ and the men's squad's values are underpinned by the concept of ‘Uniting.’ We therefore stand together, and alongside our national governing bodies, the ‘Hockey Family’ and wider society to fight against all forms of discrimination.

Be The Difference. Create History. Inspire The Future.

All four governing bodies across Great Britain have added their support to Stick It To Racism – Great Britain Hockey; England Hockey, Scottish Hockey and Hockey Wales.

The Stick It To Racism logo was created by the Dutch designer Gyor Moore [@gyormoore on Instagram]  [gyormoore.com], whose studio is focused on creating equality for all races, genders and sexualities on the playing field and everywhere else.

Great Britain Hockey media release

GB men's and women's hockey teams to back 'Stick It To Racism' campaign

The Great Britain men's and women's hockey teams say they will be supporting the 'Stick It To Racism' campaign in their games this week.

Both sides face the Netherlands and Belgium in the Pro League.

"There is no place for racism in our sport or in society," they said a statement.

"We feel strongly that nobody should be discriminated against because of race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, age or any other reason."

The squads said they were committing to continuing and furthering their learning, both individually and collectively, and supporting the governing bodies with their inclusion and diversity work.

They added: "Hockey is a sport where everyone should feel like they are valued and belong."

Great Britain Hockey and the England, Wales and Scotland governing bodies are also supporting the initiative.

In August, a number of hockey clubs said there was "endemic racism" within the sport in England and that the national governing body was not doing enough to tackle the problem.

Eight clubs signed a letter accusing England Hockey of presiding over a system that was "biased" against ethnic minority players.

At the time England Hockey responded that it wanted the sport to be a "force for good in diversity".

BBC Sport

Suman Devi Thoudam: ‘Objective is Senior colours, present focus is success in the junior ranks



Bengaluru: Indian junior team captain aims to get senior India colours even as she understands how difficult it is considering the fact that the current senior team is so strong.

“It is always a dream for any player to represent India at senior level. That is my ultimate dream too. But to get there one really has to prove herself. The current senior outfit is very strong, experienced and built on grit. They have made great progress in this Olympic cycle.”

However this has not deterred her from her focus. Thoudam feels she can graduate to the next level with a good show in the present team. She actually led Indian colts for a 3-Nation Cup in Australia early this year.

“The current Junior Women’s Core Group too has talented players who have shown potential and there is healthy competition amongst us to make the Senior cut. However, I am just focused on improving my own individual game at the moment and I am also focused on contributing to the Junior India Team. This is a very crucial year for us as we prepare for the Junior Women Asia Cup.”  

“We got good international exposure with regular events abroad, this has really helped in gaining confidence. Playing in countries like Australia against home team is never easy but we have done well in the past and that confidence from victorious outing will surely help us do well in our future campaigns.”

Suman is presently training along with other juniors in the ongoing national camp in the SAI, Bengaluru. She is happy the practice session has started after all.

“We have not trained in over 6 months and now after two weeks quarantine, we have begun regular activities with sessions on the field, in the gym and our focus is now on strength training and conditioning before we take-up the high intensity work load. We are lucky to be in an ongoing National Program despite the challenges due to the pandemic and we want to make full use of this opportunity.”

Stick2Hockey.com

Coaching Ambitions


David Hacker and Martin Schouten

Following the appointment of Danny Newcombe as Wales Men’s Head Coach in early August, activity has been taking place in the background to ensure the future ambitions of the squad are achieved.

Hockey Wales is delighted to announce that the coaching set-up is now complete with Martin Schouten appointed in the role of Senior Men’s Assistant Coach / U21s Head Coach and David Hacker as Senior Men’s Assistant Coach.

South African born Schouten got into coaching very early working with junior squads from the age of 17. From there it progressed quickly and soon coaching became a priority in his life.

He has undertaken most of his recent coaching roles in his home country with notable positions including Assistant Coach of the Maties Men's 1st Team (Stellenbosch Uni) and Head of Boys Hockey at Parel Vallei High School.  

2019/20 saw his first-year coaching in the UK where he was involved with the Teddington Men's Team as well as running the St Mary's University Men's hockey program.

Having recently moved to Reading, he has now taken on a role as one of the Men's performance Coaches at the town’s hockey club, and the Head Performance Coach at Reading University (Men & Women).

Talking about his recent appointment with Hockey Wales Martin explained,

“I am very excited about the prospect of helping shape some of Hockey Wales' future stars in the capacity as u21 Head Coach. It is my ambition is to give the u21 program a lot of love and care in the years to come.

“I also look forward to adding as much value as possible to the Senior Men's program and personally learning and improving along the way.”

The other new member of the coaching set up is Olympian and previous captain of Wales, David Hacker.

Having already coached within the Welsh structure back in 2002 for the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, Hacker joins in the role of Senior Mens Assistant Coach with a good understanding of the position and the opportunity it presents,

“Having the opportunity to support Danny Newcombe and use my experiences to help develop the talented crop of players that Wales has is something that is extremely exciting and motivating.

“The team have all the credentials to move to the next level both on the European and World stage.”

His experience on the pitch, combined with the years spent coaching as a Physical Education Teacher, followed by his current role as Director of Sport at King Edward’s school, Bath, provides great experience that has allowed his career to go full circle to take up the reins with Wales once again.

Recently appointed Head Coach, Danny Newcombe, is looking forward to working with the new set up and views the appointments in line with the groups ambition,

"We are very pleased to confirm our assistant coach appointments. Both David and Martin are fantastic coaches and people who will add huge value to the group.

“I am confident we have the knowledge, skill, and balance within the coaching and management team to build on our recent success and take the group to the next level.

“I would like to congratulate both David and Martin on their appointments and we look forward to welcoming them into our group."

Hockey Wales media release

Racing move nine points clear in France’s men’s top tier



Racing Club de France moved nine points clear in the French men’s top tier with a 4-2 derby win over Stade Français in the battle between two of the country’s most decorated clubs.

Between them, they have shared 46 titles with Stade just ahead on 24 but they succumbed to second half goals from Celestin Duchesne and Benjamin Lahaut.

Half-time ended 2-2 with Elliott Krymer striking twice for Stade, either side of goals from Niko Martin-Brisac and Adrien Coffigniez. But Racing took the second half initiative and, 15 minutes from the end, Duchesne fired home a magnificent backhand shot before Lahaut clinched the ponts, latching onto a long pass.

That made it seven wins from seven and well clear of the chasers. Saint Germain are next best on 12 points from six games following a 3-1 win in Antibes with Pol Parilla scoring on the double with William-Ike Jeammot getting the other.

Lille are in third, a point back, courtesy of a 3-0 success over Paris Jean-Bouin. Three other fixtures scheduled for this weekend were postponed.

Euro Hockey League media release

Surbiton’s men held scoreless for first time in six seasons



Surbiton suffered their first defeat of the season, losing out 1-0 to hosts Oxted in the English men’s Hockey League Premier Division on Saturday, the first time they had been held scoreless in six seasons.

Tim Guise-Brown’s 49th minute goal from a penalty corner proved the only goal of a tense game, the result of which gives Oxted their second win of the season.

Elsewherel, Holcombe got the better of visitors Hampstead & Westminster, winning 3-2. Nick Bandurak (pictured) scored the first goal to put Holcombe ahead on 12 minutes, and his second goal on 46 minutes put the home side two-nil ahead.

Joe Sharp pulled one back for Hampstead & Westminster, but Tom O’Keeffe restored their two-goal advantage a minute later. Sam French scored for Hampstead on 58 minutes, but Holcombe held out for the victory.

A last minute strike from Louis Gittens helped East Grinstead salvage a point from a thrilling 3-3 draw with visitors Beeston.

Beeston led three-nil after 22 minutes with Chris Proctor scoring twice from open play in the first eight minutes, and Henry Croft’s goal put them in the driving seat.

Joe Naughalty pulled one back on the stroke of half time from a penalty corner, and after he had done the same again on 61 minutes, Gittens’ goal ensured the spoils were shared.

Wimbledon got the better of visitors the University of Durham, eventually running out 6-4 winners after an entertaining match.

In the women’s league, Nicola White snatched victory for Hampstead & Westminster as they took a 1-0 win at rivals Holcombe.

With the clock running down, it looked like time had run out for the visitors to claim their third win of the campaign. But White latched on to a penalty corner in the 67th minute, driving her shot into the net to snatch the win.

The result keeps Hampstead in the top four and adversely, the defeat leaves Holcombe fourth from bottom.

Two goals from Sophie Bray helped East Grinstead take a 3-2 win as they hosted the University of Birmingham.

Undefeated East Grinstead top the table with the University of Birmingham still searching for their first win.

A Phoebe Nixon strike just after the half hour mark was the difference as second-placed Wimbledon secured a 1-0 win on the road at Beeston.

Euro Hockey League media release

Field hockey loses a pair of games to Louisville

In two games full of missed opportunities, the Cavaliers had a disheartening weekend against the Cardinals

By Sarah Pettycord


The Cavaliers lost the first game 5-2 against the Cardinals and fell in the final seconds of the second game, losing 2-1. Courtesy Virginia Athletics

In the last set of home games on Virginia field hockey’s schedule, the Cavaliers stretched out their losing streak to four after falling twice to Louisville this weekend. The Cavaliers (3-5, 2-2 ACC) lost the first game Friday 5-2 against the Cardinals (7-0, 5-0 ACC) and fell in the final seconds of the second game Saturday, losing 2-1.

Game 1 — Louisville 5, Virginia 2

The Cavaliers came into the game and seemed to be holding their own against the Cardinals. The team made impressive plays deep in Louisville territory during the early minutes of the game — though none of them resulted in a goal — and the defense was really putting on the pressure.

This momentum abruptly shifted after Louisville capitalized on a penalty stroke attempt and scored its first goal with 2:43 remaining in the first period. Just minutes later, at the beginning of the second period, the Cardinals scored their second goal off a penalty corner.

Looking to narrow the deficit, sophomore midfielder Adele Iacobucci fired a phenomenal shot into the top right corner of the goal, putting the Cavaliers on the board for the first time all game.

Heading into the second half down by one goal, the Cavaliers attempted to shut down the Cardinals with an aggressive defense — but with this aggression came penalties. Louisville was awarded three penalty corners within a span of 15 seconds, and only 1:22 into the half, the Cardinals scored on the third penalty corner.

Sophomore striker Laura Janssen answered a few minutes later, scoring a goal off a deep hit with 10:19 remaining in the third period.

As the clock ran down, Virginia made a few solid attempts to score, but Louisville’s defense stifled the effort. By this point, both teams had already scored more goals than usual, but Louisville was not planning on stopping.

With less than a minute to go in the third period, the Cardinals scored their fourth goal — giving them a 4-2 lead. Though Virginia tried to recover from the two-score deficit, the Cavaliers were unable to. The Cardinals went on to score their fifth goal with less than five minutes left in the game to seal the win.

“Louisville brought a really physical game,” Coach Michele Madison said. “It looked like they were playing for a championship, and they certainly got the job done.”

Although the Cavaliers did not come out on top, they had a strong offensive game against the best field hockey team in the ACC. Janssen scored her fourth goal of the season, Iacobucci scored her third and the team finished with an impressive 13 shots on the goal.

Game 2 — Louisville 2, Virginia 1

The next day, Virginia faced Louisville again with hopes of avenging its Friday loss. However, the Cavaliers’ performance was defined by missed opportunities.

The Cavaliers had their first chance to score around four minutes into the first period. Junior back Amber Ezechiels forced a turnover that gave senior striker Makayla Gallen the chance to take multiple shots — all of them being deflected or blocked by Louisville’s defense.

Again in the second period, Virginia nearly scored off a deflection. The ball appeared to make its way into the net, but it was ruled not a goal and the score remained 0-0 with 10:50 left in the half.

The Cardinals also had opportunities to score multiple times, but they missed some crucial shots and had others deflected by the Cavaliers.

The first penalty corner of the game was awarded to Louisville 28 minutes in — a huge difference from Friday’s game, which saw seven penalty corners in the first 30 minutes. Virginia’s defense really stepped up here with junior goalkeeper Lauren Hausheer saving the shot from entering the net. Hausheer had a strong first half, recording four saves and allowing zero points.

Moments into the second half, Virginia made a remarkable play that — yet again — did not result in any points. The Cavalier defense was strong for a little while and forced the ball to stay on Louisville’s side of the middle line for a few minutes.

After some offensive retaliation by Louisville, the Cardinals were able to make it into Virginia territory and nearly put themselves on the board. Hausheer produced an incredible save, fully extending her leg in front of the goal, which resulted in a Louisville penalty corner that the away team converted.

With Louisville up 1-0 with one period in regulation remaining, the Cavaliers were fighting for an equalizer. After freshman midfielder Meghen Hengerer recorded a steal, Janssen scored on a pass from freshman midfielder Anneloes Knol — tying the game up with 9:04 remaining.

As the clock ran down and overtime seemed imminent, Louisville was awarded three penalty corners in a row, but all of its shot attempts from these were stifled by Virginia’s defense.

It wasn’t until the Cavaliers regained possession that things went south for them. The Cardinals were able to force a turnover, break away from the defense and fire off a shot that made it into the net with just nine seconds left on the clock.

“We definitely raised our level today over yesterday,” Madison said. “The only thing our team should be disappointed about is that we didn’t bring that game yesterday, and that we didn’t stick at the very end with what had worked in the whole game.”

Going into this past weekend, no team has been able to beat Louisville in 2020, and the Cavaliers did not change that narrative. That being said, they were able to compete in the second match and play a solid game of field hockey.

“We’ve just [got to] remember that every second counts and that we have to work really hard the whole entire 60 minutes,” sophomore back Abbigail Starnes said.

The Cavaliers are hoping to bounce back and finish the regular season strong next weekend in Durham, N.C. against Duke. This will be Virginia’s last game before the ACC Championship.

The Cavalier Daily

By the Numbers: DeBerdine Sisters



Brooke and Emma DeBerdine are both fierce competitors, stellar students and accomplished athletes. But the Millersville, Pa. natives get to share something special in their time as Terps - a sisterly bond.

3 Big Ten Titles - Both DeBerdine sisters started in all 21 games for the Terrapins last year in their Big Ten championship season. Brooke helped the Terps to the 2018 Big Ten regular season and tournament titles. This past season, both Brooke and Emma earned NFHCA All-Mid Atlantic Region honors. Emma was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and earned NFHCA All-America honors as well.

6 Academic Honors - Brooke, a senior, is a supply chain management major and Emma, a sophomore, is undecided. Both were named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association’s National Academic Squad.

“Academics are very important to our family. We were raised that school comes before everything else, and both of us have continued that into college.” - Emma

10 years - Brooke and Emma have competed in the U.S. National Team system for a combined 10 years and are both currently on the U.S. Under-21 Women's National Team. They started on the U.S. Under-17 Team at age 16.

“We are extremely competitive so we pushed each other a lot especially with the conditioning going into the season. I was definitely in my best shape when having Emma training with me everyday! But overall the first year was awesome - I remember after the first scrimmage when we got to wear our jerseys and seeing our family after and getting a picture all together. It is just so cool to be able to do it together and I am so thankful for my family supporting getting us to that day.” - Brooke

108 miles - Driven by their parents, Mike and Debra, who make the drive to College Park from Millersville, Pa. for every game.

Content courtesy of ONE MARYLAND Magazine

USFHA media release

Inspirational youngster finally able to play hockey again after heart transplant


Anna Hadley. Photo credit: Andy Hadley

They say good things come to those who wait. This could not be more true for Anna Hadley, who has finally been able to pick up a stick again for the first time since a life changing moment in 2017.

Back in April 2019 England Hockey wrote a piece on how Anna was planning on taking part in the Worcester Hearty Walk to raise money for the British Heart Foundation. This was because two years previously she had collapsed at school and subsequently been diagnosed with with the rare heart disease Restrictive Cardiomyopathy, which can only be cured by a having a transplant.

Back in February 2020, Anna finally received the gift of her life – a donated heart. Determined to resume a normal life as quickly as possible, within just two weeks of the surgery she was back at home and before too long was able to pick up a stick for the first time in three years.

Inspired by some of her Great Britain heroes such as Alex Danson, Shona McCallin and Sam Ward to keep on going despite the tough times, Anna admitted after her first training session that she ‘had completely forgotten just how nice it was to take off sweaty shinpads.’

An incredible young woman with amazing spirit, England Hockey cannot wait to see how Anna continues to progress on her hockey journey.

England Hockey Board Media release