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News 02 September 2014

All the news for Tuesday 2 September 2014


HWL R1 Preview: Canada women target glory in Guadalajara

Road to Rio: Hockey World League R1 - Women - Guadalajara (MEX)


Photo: Official Facebook Page - Peru Women's Hockey.

The Hockey World League, the tournament that makes the dream of reaching the Rio 2016 Olympic Games a possibility for every hockey playing nation, returns to action in the coming days.

In this preview we head to the Mexican city of Guadalajara, a location that will play host to both men’s and women’s Hockey World League events in the coming weeks. Today we focus on the women’s tournament, which sees Canada (FIH World Ranking: 23), Mexico (WR: 28), Guatemala and Peru (both unranked) fight it out for a place in Round 2 between 11-14 September. The tournament winner will be guaranteed a place in the second phase of the competition and keep hopes of competing at the Rio Games very much alive.

Top ranked Canada will be the team to beat in Guadalajara, having achieved numerous notable results in the last 18 months. The North Americans claimed a superb third place finish in the 2013 Pan American Cup and earlier this year produced an outstanding performance to hold England, one of the top teams in the world, to a draw. This young and talented group is making solid progress under Head Coach Ian Rutledge, and a place in Round 2 is certainly well within their capabilities. 

Host nation Mexico are likely to be Canada’s strongest rivals and know that the advantage of playing in front of their home fans could prove to be significant. Their fifth place finish at the 2013 Pan American Cup was their highest ever placing in the event, suggesting that they are very much on the up. 

The participation of Guatemala’s women in the Hockey World League comes just two years after the country’s first ever international appearance when the newly formed U-21 men’s team competed in the 2012 Pan American Junior Championships, an event which also took place in Guadalajara. Their HWL debut will be a very special occasion for everyone who has worked hard to develop the sport since the Olympic Committee of Guatemala embraced hockey just seven years ago.

Like Guatemala, Peru are very much an emerging hockey nation and will be looking to gain valuable world level experience in Guadalajara. 2013 was a massively important year for the development of the sport in Peru thanks to the opening of the country’s first synthetic surface in Chiclayo. The venue played host to the hockey competition of the 2013 Bolivarian Games, a competition in which Peru claimed the Silver medal. Peru’s involvement in the Hockey World League is certain to add even more momentum to the rapid rise of the sport within the country.

You can keep track of the results from Guadalajara on the official tournament microsite, with FIH.CH bringing a full summary of the action upon the completion of the event.

The second edition of the Hockey World League got underway earlier this year, with the women’s teams of Malaysia and Belarus emerging triumphant at respective Round 1 events in Singapore and Lithuania before Russia men stormed to victory in Croatia in July.

The September return will see no fewer than nine different Round 1 tournaments will take place over 13 action-packed days, with Czech Republic, Kenya, Bangladesh, Oman and Mexico playing host to the various men’s and women’s events. The remaining Round 1 competitions will be played in Jamaica (30 September - 5 October 2014) and Fiji (6-13 December 2014), both of which will feature men’s and women’s tournaments.

The winning team at each event is guaranteed a place in Round 2 of the Hockey World League, where they will be joined by a number of the highest-placed finishers from the Round 1 tournaments. Round 2 will also see the introduction of the teams placed from 12 to 19 in the FIH World Rankings with the sides ranked 1 to 11 starting their journey in Round 3, where tickets for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games as well as qualification for the Finals tournament are up for grabs. 

FIH site



HWL R1 Preview: Iran men to make World League debut in Muscat

Road to Rio: Hockey World League R1 - Men - Muscat (OMA)


Magical Muscat. (Photo: Oman Tourism)

The Hockey World League, the tournament that makes the dream of reaching the Rio 2016 Olympic Games a possibility for every hockey playing nation, returns to action in the coming days.

In the sixth of our Round 1 event previews, we focus our attention on the men’s competition in the historic city of Muscat where host nation Oman (FIH World Ranking: 23), Azerbaijan (WR: 34), Thailand (WR: 58) and the currently unranked Iran all take their first steps on the Road to Rio. The event will be played between 5-7 September, with the winner guaranteed a place in the second phase of the competition.

Azerbaijan and Oman are both expected to lead the charge for the top spot in Muscat. Both were participants in the inaugural Hockey World League, and actually faced each other in the Round 1 event in Doha, Qatar (November 2012). Azerbaijan came away as tournament winners but had to withdraw from the second phase, with Oman taking their place in the Round 2 event in New Delhi. Although Oman could only manage a fifth place finish, the event gave them valuable experience against higher-ranked opponents such as China, Ireland and eight times Olympic Gold medallists India.

Thailand were also involved in the first edition of the Hockey World League but failed to get past Round 1 thanks to a fourth place finish at the tournament in Singapore in 2012. 2013 proved to be far more fruitful, claiming the Bronze medal at the inaugural Asian Challenge in 2013 in Bangkok.

Iran will make their HWL debut in Muscat and will be keen to leave a lasting impression. A recent second place finish in the inaugural West Asia Cup, held in Doha, shows that they cannot be underestimated. The Iranians - who became Asian indoor champions for the fifth time in succession earlier this year - were beaten only by a shoot-out, with HWL rivals Oman emerging as the tournament’s first ever winners.

You can keep track of the results from Muscat on the official tournament microsite, with FIH.CH bringing a full summary of the action upon the completion of the event.

The second edition of the Hockey World League got underway earlier this year, with the women’s teams of Malaysia and Belarus emerging triumphant at respective Round 1 events in Singapore and Lithuania before Russia men stormed to victory in Croatia in July.

The September return will see no fewer than nine different Round 1 tournaments will take place over 13 action-packed days, with Czech Republic, Kenya, Bangladesh, Oman and Mexico playing host to the various men’s and women’s events. The remaining Round 1 competitions will be played in Jamaica (30 September - 5 October 2014) and Fiji (6-13 December 2014), both of which will feature men’s and women’s tournaments.

The winning team at each event is guaranteed a place in Round 2 of the Hockey World League, where they will be joined by a number of the highest-placed finishers from the Round 1 tournaments. Round 2 will also see the introduction of the teams placed from 12 to 19 in the FIH World Rankings with the sides ranked 1 to 11 starting their journey in Round 3, where tickets for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games as well as qualification for the Finals tournament are up for grabs. 

FIH site



Pakistan chances bleak in Asian Games

ISLAMABAD - Current political situation of the capital city is all set to cost Pakistan dearly in the Asian Games commencing in South Korea this month. Pakistan is defending champions of Asian Games hockey but their preparations are in complete turmoil. All the hard work done by head coach Shahnaz Sheikh is almost spoiled because their camp in Islamabad could not get started due to players’ absence. Though Shahnaz remained present at the Pakistan Sports Complex, yet not a single player or coaching staff reported. Pakistan squash team is also Asian Games team event defending champions but their preparations also not satisfactory to defend their title. Practice makes a man perfect, so if Pakistani players don’t practice well for the mega event, it’s too tough for them to defend their titles

The Nation



Hayde hat-trick a highlight for Cavaliers

by Matt Richens



Cam Hayde very nearly wasn't a Canterbury Cavalier this year.

Then in the space of 35 seconds on Saturday he scored more goals than he did in last year's entire National Hockey League.

Hayde, 23, scored his first NHL hat-trick in Canterbury's 5-1 thumping of Capital on Saturday as the Cavaliers started the national competition with a pair of wins.

After beating Capital on Saturday, Canterbury won a tight arm-wrestle 1-0 over Southern yesterday in Timaru, thanks to a late Nick Haig winner with six minutes remaining.

Hayde is the middle of Canterbury's three Hayde brothers and after what he calls a mediocre 2013 - and the fact he's now based on Auckland's North Shore - he nearly didn't make the side.

Hayde contemplated taking the easier option and playing for North Harbour while the selectors also looked at other players.

Canterbury's spies told them Hayde was in the form of his life so he was included in the Cavs squad to immediate effect.

"I had a good think about it," Hayde said over staying up north.

"But I really wanted to come back here and play for Canterbury with my brothers and my mates."

There was the added incentive of improving on a 2013 season where he scored just one goal and putting all the off-season work he'd done into play for his home province.

After scoring in the opening minute on Saturday, he scored two more goals within 35 seconds of each other to complete the hat-trick.

Canterbury scored their fourth goal just 28 seconds later to take Saturday's scoreline from 1-1 to 4-1 in a little over a minute.

"It was great to get away to a start like that and pick up eight points," Hayde said.

Yesterday's match was close throughout, though Canterbury had the better chances.

Deep in the last quarter the match looked set for a shootout before Haig slammed home a winner in the 54th minute.

Captain Brad Shaw was obviously pleased with the weekend's work, but said there was room for more.

"I'm pretty happy because we've got two wins, there's still lots we can improve on and I think we're playing good, tactical, professional-type hockey.

"The challenge now will be to keep that going and to improve and to not get ahead of ourselves. We've got a very good Auckland side up next and we need to ignore the fact that Southern beat Auckland and we beat Southern. It won't count for anything when we play them."

CLICK HERE for more on the 2014 Ford NHL

Hockey New Zealand Media release



Northland Women on high after double victory

by Cameron Leslie


Photo courtesy Ned Dawson, Inside Hockey

Back-to-back wins have given the Northland Women a dream start to their Ford National Hockey League campaign, much to the delight of their coach.

Northland kicked off their weekend with a 2-1 win over North Harbour in Whangarei before travelling to Auckland and upsetting them 3-1.

New coach Angeline Waetford was still pinching herself after Sunday's win over Auckland, saying she was amazed.

"It's a perfect start to the league. I'm sort of going around and saying 'um, yeah, that did happen'," she laughed.

"It's very pleasing, I won't mind waking up for work tomorrow. I would have been pretty upset if we hadn't won against Harbour [but against Auckland] I would have been happy to have just taken a point off them."

For Waetford what has helped transform the team, which finished seventh last year, is the inclusion of current and former Black Sticks players.

"They're pretty much a self-coaching team, they keep communicating what they need to do better out there, it's very fun to work with.

"Having players the calibre of Stacey [Michelsen], Ella [Gunson], Jasmin McQuinn, and Laura Douglas coming in makes a big difference.

"Having Stacey in the team helps too, it's obvious because of her skills and pace, but, it's what she brings off the field and in team talks. She's just so motivating, helpful, and smart about the games - she's so helpful with the girls in terms of getting that culture and teaching these girls the next step up in hockey."

In Saturday's game against North Harbour, which was played in heavy rain, an early goal to Douglas put Northland in front before Harbour equalized in the second quarter.

However, Northland were straight on the attack after the break, with Carli Michelsen putting away an opportunity straight away.

While the win was pleasing, conditions meant the ball was hardly travelling when it was struck with full force - something Waetford believed played in Harbour's favour.

"I kind of think had it been dry I felt we might have run away with that game," she said of Saturday's game, in which Northland spent most of their time parked in Harbour's half. "We've got a lot pace in our team so the weather did slow us up - it was a relief to get that win though."

In terms of Sunday's game against Auckland, Waetford said goalie Nicky Howes saved everything they wanted to put at her and absorbed plenty of pressure in the first quarter as Auckland enjoyed several attacking moments.

Hockey New Zealand Media release



Confident Central looking to make an impression



Central striker Michaela Curtis is confident her side will do well in this year’s Ford National Hockey League.

The Mysticks are currently sitting fourth on the table with one win and one loss after games against both last year’s finalists during the tournament’s opening weekend.

On Saturday the Mysticks were edged 3-2 by defending champions Midlands in Stratford before hitting the road to Paraparaumu the following day where they downed Capital 3-2.

Despite being just 20 years old, Curtis will lead the charge for Central who are coached by former National Assistant Greg Nicol.

She said her side is looking to carry momentum from their win over Capital into tournament week, which runs from 6-14 September at North Harbour Hockey Stadium.

“I’m happy with how we have gone so far. We were unlucky to lose on Saturday against Midlands - we gave it our best effort but unfortunately a few lapses in concentration led to them taking the game from us.

“The weekend was our first run together with our full team and we have taken quite a lot of confidence out of our performances. It was good to get combinations going and learning how we all play. Everyone enjoyed it, especially snatching a win from Capital on Sunday.

Central are without the services of veterans Kayla Whitelock and Emily Naylor this year, but that hasn’t dampened their ambitions.

Curtis, who played for the Black Sticks at this year’s Hockey World Cup in The Hague, is enjoying being back in regional colours.

“I was happy with how I went this weekend, and I’m really enjoying being a part of this Central team this year and also enjoying my hockey personally too.

“I’ve been working hard to keep my fitness levels up leading into the tournament so that I can play the best hockey I can and I’m looking forward to getting to North Harbour.”

This year’s NHL features the introduction of four 15 minute quarters, rather than the traditional two 35 minute halves to align with the new International Hockey Federation (FIH) format.

2014 CENTRAL MYSTICKS

Jenna Anderson, Kristy Anderson, Georgia Barnett, Kayla Bradey, Michaela Curtis, Rebecca Herbert, Kelsey MacDonald, Claudia Hanham, Pippa Norman, Cathryn Pollock, Katherine van Woerkom, Rhianne Woolf, Brooke Karam, Stephanie Mackie, Ashleigh Marfell, Hannah Naftel, Deanna Ritchie, Amy Barrett

CLICK HERE for more on the 2014 Ford NHL

Hockey New Zealand Media release



Jo Cumming promoted to FIH umpires list



Jo Cumming picked up a whistle to help her mum out 20 years ago and has enjoyed it and improved so much since then that last week the International Hockey Federation (FIH) named her on their official umpires list.

The promotion follows her performance at the Four Nations Tournament in Ireland in July and it means Cumming, aged 33 from Gisborne, can now be appointed to various FIH tournaments around the world.

“I started back in my teenage years just helping out my Mum who used to coach my sisters hockey team, and I really enjoyed it. I was still playing, but umpiring was another aspect of the game that I quite enjoyed. From there it was just a matter of learning the rules and progressing though the age group tournaments,” she said.

Cumming said her focus is on keeping her fitness up and ensuring she is completely up to date with any changes in the game.

“The FIH has measurements and monitoring around staying fit, you don’t know when you are going to be appointed to a tournament so it’s really important to constantly stay in good shape.”

Over the weekend, the Ford National Hockey League started around the country and Cumming was umpiring the Capital vs Central game in Paraparaumu under the new format of quarters rather than halves.

“It’s interesting actually, being able to touch base with the other umpires more regularly, rather than just talking at the 35 minute mark. It allows umpires to discuss issues more regularly and keep an eye on things. It definitely adds a new dimension.”

Recently named New Zealand’s 2013 Most Promising Umpire of the Year, Cumming grew up in Tauranga and played representative through till an Under-21 level. An ACC case manager and a mother of two young boys (aged three and one), Cumming says the best advice she can give to new umpires is to keep persevering.

“A lot of people are put off umpiring by the feedback they get from those on the turf and the side line. You need to take advice from people you respect and learn to block out the other feedback – especially if a team has just lost and emotions are high.”

Hockey New Zealand Media release



Rising stars to learn from the best

Under 13 Australian Championships to run alongside Australian Hockey League


Photo credit: sportonline.net.au

More than 400 talented young hockey players will get the chance to learn from the best athletes in the country early next month when the sport’s Under 13 Australian Championships are run in combination with the Australian Hockey League (AHL) between 4-11 October. 

As well as the opportunity to watch the men’s and women’s AHL competitions in Adelaide and Brisbane respectively, the combined events will provide the youngsters with the chance to receive training directly from their state and national team heroes during a series of ‘super clinics’.

Building on a successful pilot year in 2013, the enhanced Under 13 Australian Championships will see the eight states and territories represented by 12 teams in each of the boys’ and girls’ competitions, providing more young people with the opportunity to experience a national event. The schedules of both tournaments have been devised so that states’ and territories’ Under 13 teams can watch their senior counterparts in action, gaining inspiration and a better understanding of hockey at elite level.

The coaches of Australia’s Kookaburras and Hockeyroos – both of which won gold at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow last month – will be at each venue and will present the best performing teams with their medals, as well as souvenir mementos for every player, umpire and official.

With a strong focus on ensuring the tournaments are played in the right spirit, each team will also be asked to select the two young athletes that best demonstrate Hockey Australia’s values of leadership, integrity, excellence and inclusion. Those individuals will receive a medal.

Ben Hartung, Hockey Australia’s General Manager – Hockey, says, “The Under 13 Australian Championships are designed to give young hockey players the best possible opportunity to develop their skills and gain a positive competitive experience of the game in a national event environment. Partnering the Under 13s with the Australian Hockey League gives our young players outstanding access to excellent role models, which we hope will provide inspiration for many years to come.”

In addition to the sport-focus of the competition, the event will see a series of themed education sessions delivered to participants, coaches and the parents of young athletes. For those parents, it’s a chance to gain an insight into the development pathway their child is undertaking and better understand the possible progression from Under 13s level right through to Olympic Games selection.

On the back of feedback from previous years, this year’s Under 13 Australian Championships format has been revised with teams playing 11 matches each in a round-robin competition with fixtures played as two periods of 20 minutes. In all, it means 440 minutes of playing time per team, an increase of 20 minutes on 2013 when teams played six matches comprising two periods of 35 minutes.

Under 13 Australian Championships
4-11 October 2014
Boys: Adelaide, SA
Girls: Brisbane, QLD

List of competing teams:
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
New South Wales (NSW)
New South Wales 2 (NSW2)
Northern Territory (NT)
Queensland (QLD)
Queensland 2 (QLD2)
South Australia (SA)
Tasmania (TAS)
Victoria (VIC)
Victoria 2 (VIC2)
Western Australia (WA)
Western Australia 2 (WA2)

Venues:
Boys’ Under 13 Australian Championships
South Australian State Hockey Centre
State Sports Park
Main North Road
Gepps Cross SA 5094

Girls’ Under 13 Australian Championships
Queensland State Hockey Centre
400/420 Lytton Rd
Colmslie QLD 4170

Hockey Australia media release



French newcomers Racing relishing underdog title



Simon Martin-Brisac says underdog status will suit Racing Club de France in the EHL’s debutants group as they seek to upset Daring and get one over on Ireland’s Monkstown when they make their tournament bow next month.

The French side have been on the up and up in recent years, getting closer and closer to winning back the national title they last won in 1996. Two years ago, Racing were semi-finalists; last season they made it to the final against St Germain and they are hoping to go one better this season and win their “vingtieme” title.

They are ambitious for their first year and Martin-Brisac is content with their draw for round one in Barcelona.

“First off, we were quite relieved to avoid Rot Weiss Köln and Kampong, which are big clubs used to European top level,” he told EHLhockey.tv. “It would have been ‘Mission Impossible’. Facing Daring and Monkstown, we have a chance to go through to the next round. It would be a great performance for the club as we know it will be very tough, above all against Daring who have had an impressive pre-season.”

With all three sides in their group new to the competition, there is no prior knowledge of what strengths Monkstown bring to the table but there is a little bit of inside knowledge of their Belgian foe.

“To be honest I don't know so much about Monkstown. I guess they play as a typical Irish team: fighting spirit and self-sacrifice for the entire 70 minutes. It is always difficult to play that kind of opponent.

“We have a little more information about Daring thanks to Olivier Sanchez who played for Le Dar' for two years. We know they have some good prospects and great players like Manu Brunet or Tanguy Cosyns who flicks very well too. I'll ask to my friend Theophile Ponthieu who recently moved to Daring some updates!”

For Racing’s current panel, half of their panel have been with the side since their youth days while others have added to the panel progressively over the past four years. Like Daring, they have a strong family ethic with French international Simon joined in the team by his brother Nicolas while his father is the team manager.  Gabriel Desmasures and Jules Francotte are cousins and their fathers played together in the 80s.

Racing topped the Top Six preliminary table last season before becoming undone by reigning champions St Germain in the final in Lille. It was enough to earn their EHL place and Martin-Brisac says it is the culmination of four years development.

“We had a good base of players from the club but it wasn't enough to reach the French top level. Thanks to massive work from the club’s staff, very good French players came to strengthen the team. Last summer, Gaël Foulard, aka "Coco”, took the lead of the club which was a great step.

“We built our victories on a strong defense, some skillful forwards and an efficient short corner with Jean-David Koch - the French top scorer in the last two seasons. Goalkeeper Corentin Saunier helped us to perform well and keep the sheet clean.”

In the summer, another five new arrivals came with Chris Peters-Deutz and Antoine Ferec in defense, Celestin Duchesne and David Bernstein in midfield and Canadian international James Kirkpatrick in attack.

“We are all happy about that. Chris, Antoine and Celestin are members of the French Team U-21. Chris has already few caps at senior level. David is an experienced midfielder and James will give us more options in attack.

“It's always good to have players from different hockey-culture. What's more, competition between players is stronger than last season as every place in the squad is now a battle. Trainings have more intensity.

“Rotations during games don't influence the level of the team anymore. In my opinion, there is only benefits to those arrivals and they are great guys with good spirit!

“We are doing very good work at training. All the players have the same goal; efforts are made by everyone and the atmosphere is perfect; cool and serious at the same time. Obviously, we know that we are ‘the little thumb’ of the group and that all the predictions have Daring as winners. But that's great. We like to be in this position.”

Euro Hockey League media release



De Paeuw back in Belgian squad

New Egara recruit Alexandre de Paeuw is one of the surprise returnees to the extended Belgian squad of 27 players, the first named by Jeroen Delmee since taking over by Marc Lammers.

The former Waterloo Ducks’ man has been outside the national panel since January 2013 but he told Hockey Belgium today that being left out of the panel has given him a hunger to get back involved.

“I have no grudge against Lammers. Having been sidelined for a while gave me the desire to work even harder to return,” de Paeuw said.

Of the extended panel of 27, 18 are likely to be involved in the EuroHockey League this season. From the Waterloo Ducks, Gauthier Boccard, Alexandre de Saedeleer, John-John Dohmen and goalkeeper Arnaud Flamand are all named while there are six Dragons - Felix Denayer, Emmanuel Stockbroekx, Florent van Aubel, Arthur van Doren, Matthew Cobbaert and Robbert Rubens.

Dutch-based Tom Boon, Simon Gougnard (both Bloemendaal), Thomas Briels, Vincent Vanasch, Elliott van Strydonck (all Oranje Zwart) and Loick Luypaert (Kampong) are joined by Daring’s Tanguy Cosyns.

Cosyns scored on day one of the Belgian Honour Division on Sunday in his side’s 2-2 draw with Racing Club de Bruxelles. Herakles stunned the WatDucks 6-3 while Dragons fell 3-1 to Royal Leopold.

Euro Hockey League media release



Manpreet best junior in Asia

Indervir Grewal


Manpreet was named the 'Junior Player of the Year' by the Asian Hockey Federation on Sunday.

Chandigarh - For a young athlete, who is at a transitional phase in his career, any form of validation is invaluable. And for 22-year-old Manpreet Singh - seen as Sardar Singh's successor in the Indian hockey team - to be adjudged Asia's best junior hockey player is huge morale booster.

“It's a big achievement for me. This award has given me a lot of confidence. I want to excel at the senior level. I want to become the best player in the world,” said Manpreet, who was named the 'Junior Player of the Year' by the Asian Hockey Federation on Sunday.

Manpreet, who belongs to Mithapur, Jalandhar, said the news came as a big surprise. “I had no idea that I was nominated for the award. I found out from Hockey India,” said Manpreet, who is currently in New Delhi, attending the national camp for the Asian Games.

In the last few months, Manpreet, who captained India in the Junior World Cup last year, has become a key player in the senior team.

At the Glasgow CWG, when Sardar was suspended for the semifinal against New Zealand, Manpreet rose to the occasion and led India to a memorable win. “The CWG silver was a big deal for me. It was my first big medal. The match against New Zealand was very important for me, and the support and praise I got from the coach, teammates and even the media was overwhelming.”

Manpreet, one of India's most versatile players, is aware of his changing role in the team and his coach Terry Walsh's growing confidence in him. “Our hard work is starting to pay off. The team is becoming a unit and our understanding with the new coach has improved,” said Manpreet.

Manpreet added that the team was working hard towards winning the Asian Games gold. Manpreet is being touted as the next star player for India and the award is just another evidence of his great potential. But 'Korean', as he is known amongst friends, is not letting the award go to his head. He is enjoying his moment, humbly accepting all the praise.

“Many of my seniors from Mithapur and Jalandhar have been messaging me, congratulating me. My coach and senior teammates told me they have high hopes for me.”

What about his Punjab mates?

“They have been teasing me, telling me I've become a big shot now. They want a party, but only after the Asian Games.”

The Tribune



Manpreet named Asia’s Junior Player of the Year


Manpreet Singh. File photo   

Rising Indian midfielder Manpreet Singh was named the ‘Junior Player of the Year’ by the Asian Hockey Federation in its Congress held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The 22-year-old has played 103 international matches and captained the junior men’s team in the Hero FIH Hockey Junior Men’s World Cup in New Delhi, and the third Sultan of Johor Cup in Johor Bahru last year.

Manpreet’s best moment was to win the Sultan of Johor Cup under his leadership. In this prestigious tournament, India’s junior team displayed their high-level hockey skills and defeated England, Argentina, Pakistan and South Korea. In the final match, India thrashed host Malaysia 3-0 and clinched the Gold Medal.

Manpreet made his international debut in 2011 and since then, he has been a regular member of the Indian team.

The Jalandhar-lad was also a part of the silver medal winning Indian team at the Commonwealth Games in Scotland and represented India at the FIH Men’s World Cup (Netherlands), Hero FIH Hockey World League Final.

At present, Manpreet is a part of senior men’s core probable team for the 2014 Asian Games.

On his special achievement, Hockey India, Secretary General Narinder Batra said, “I congratulate Manpreet for this special achievement, and this also shows the potential of young Indian hockey players. Manpreet works very hard and has proved himself at all age-groups and competitions.

“Apart from a skillful midfielder, he also has the leadership qualities to motivate other players to fight till the final whistle. This announcement is a great achievement for Indian hockey.”

The Hindu



Buttinger's Two Goals Help Field Hockey Down No. 6 Virginia

Nittany Lions start the season 2-0

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - In dominating fashion, the No. 8 Penn State field hockey team defeated No. 6 Virginia, 3-0, at the Field Hockey Complex Sunday. It marked the second opening-weekend win over a ranked opponent for the Nittany Lions.

"I'm just so proud of them to get two huge wins here at home this weekend," said head coach Charlene Morett-Curtiss. "We showed a lot of mental toughness, I thought."

Penn State improved to 2-0, while Virginia moved to 1-1. Redshirt senior goalkeeper Kylie Licata (Mountain Top, Pa.) recorded a shutout, marking the first time the Cavaliers were held scoreless in a game since 2011.

The Nittany Lions got on the board first with an early goal. Redshirt senior Natalie Buttinger (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada) collected a rebound off a penalty corner shot from senior Taylor Herold (Fredericksburg, Va.) and struck it into the back of the cage just 4:27 into the game. It marked the fifth-year student-athlete's first career goal.

Buttinger made her presence felt again with 24:54 to go in the opening half. Senior Jenna Chrismer (Mountain Top, Pa.) charged toward the cage and dished to Buttinger, who finished the play and put Penn State up 2-0. The score remained unchanged through the first period.

Less than five minutes into the second half, the Nittany Lions capitalized again. On another penalty corner, Herold ripped one towards the net. Senior Amanda Dinunzio (State College, Pa.) deflected the shot past Cavalier goalkeeper Rebecca Holden to give Penn State a 3-0 lead with 30:36 remaining.

The Nittany Lion defense held on to secure the victory.

Penn State continues on the road on Saturday, Sept. 6, taking on Connecticut at noon. The squad also visits Quinnipiac on Sunday, Sept. 7 at noon.

Penn State Athletics



Goalie switch not holding field hockey team back

By Andrew Tie


Former starting goalie Sassi Ammer (00) recently lost her starting position to sophomore Shannon Johnson. Photo by Spencer Herlong

For three years, Sassi Ammer was a fixture in goal for North Carolina field hockey.

But now, the senior has been relegated to the bench in favor of sophomore Shannon Johnson.

Despite Ammer’s 62 career starts, Coach Karen Shelton gave the starting nod to Johnson to open the season in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge during the weekend. No. 2 UNC (2-0) easily defeated No. 17 Michigan 5-1 on Saturday with Johnson in goal and No. 20 Iowa 4-1 on Sunday with the goalies each taking a half.

“I think we’re pretty close, but you have to compete with each other, so it’s a little bit tense at times, but we’re pretty good friends,” said Johnson of her relationship with Ammer.

Though Johnson only faced 10 shots in two games, and Ammer only saw five in her half of work, each made some timely saves, especially against Iowa’s Natalie Cafone, who led the NCAA in points per game last season.

With UNC leading 4-0, Ammer allowed the lone goal to Cafone, but Ammer also made several key saves to preserve the win.

“It’s different for me,” Ammer said. “I’ve been starting for three years, but you’ve got to adjust, play with the flow and do the best with the playing time you get.”

Senior captain and defender Sam Travers said there’s not a big difference between the two, but the internal competition has become a source of motivation for both of them.

“We’re all athletes,” Travers said. “We all want to play. (Sassi’s) been a three-year starter, and now things are changing, so I’m sure it’s pretty hard.”

Offensively, the Tar Heels lived up to their No. 2 ranking. The offensive machine hummed, surgically knifing through the Wolverine (0-2) and Hawkeye (1-1) defenses and launching 47 shots. Against Iowa, Loren Shealy needed just 21 seconds to put UNC on the board.

Even without the help of the goalie, UNC showed an active defense with position players reading passing lanes well. On numerous occasions, a forward or midfielder intercepted the ball to help UNC control the game flow.

With the result and play from the weekend, Shelton said she’s pleasantly surprised with where her team is.

“I think we’re a bit stronger than we were last year,” Shelton said. “I’ve been impressed in our development in the last two weeks. We have the talent. It’s a matter of continuing to develop the chemistry. Our defense is proving to be pretty darn good.”

The Daily Tar Heel



Asian hockey a challenge too great for Tengku Abdullah?

By Jugjet Singh

TENGKU Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah’s opening address as the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) president was frank, and as close to the truth as one can get.

Tengku Abdullah, who is also the FA of Malaysia and Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) president, acknowledged that helming AHF would be a challenge.

AHF has 30 affiliates, with 27 attending the congress in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday. Vietnam will be the 31st affiliate that Tengku Abdullah will have to worry about soon.

Frankly speaking, only six affiliates play good hockey but they too are being hammered into oblivion by second rung teams from Europe, Oceania and South America.

South Korea are the highest ranked Asian men’s team at eighth followed by India (ninth), Pakistan (11th), Malaysia (13th), Japan (14th) and Oman (22nd).

As for the Asian women, China (fifth), South Korea (ninth), Japan (10th), India (13th) and Malaysia (21st) are the only ones who can claim to play the game regularly.

The first question that came to mind was how are Tengku Abdullah and his council members going to achieve what former AHF president the late Sultan Azlan Shah and his trusted secretary general Tan Sri Alagendra valiantly tried but couldn’t address in two decades of helming AHF?

No less than FIH president Leandro Negre and CEO Kelly Fairweather were present on Sunday, and Negre said this was the first time he was given a chance to address a continental affiliate.

Negre acknowledged that hockey has big following in India, and Fairweather said the next target for fan base is China.

It is obvious that FIH is looking at television money but that is not what Tengku Abdullah should be concerned about.

To his credit, Tengku Abdullah knows the score and he said his immediate task would be to see Asian teams in the top five of the world rankings, and not pummeled at the World Cup and Olympics by second rung European teams.

That will be a massive challenge as it can be safely said that out of AHF’s 30 affiliates, 24 are non-functioning.

Macau, Brunei, Kazakhstan, Iran, Afghanistan, Taiwan, Nepal, Mongolia, North Korea, Philippines, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates have to be ‘woken’ up, a task which will not be easy for Tengku Abdullah.

If the task of reviving the big six is daunting enough, imagine how difficult it is going to be to revive, shake or awaken hockey in the second tier AHF countries.

As a clear example, the AHF CEO is Tayyab Ikram from Macau, a country which does not play hockey and will remain a sleeper for a long time to come.

This is the scenario Tengku Abdullah is faced with in his latest sporting challenge.

New Straits Times



Three Pakistanis elected to AHF positions

LAHORE: Three Pakistanis — president of the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) Akhtar Rasool, secretary Rana Mujahid and a high-profile coach of Pakistani origin Tayyab Ikram — were elected to important posts during the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) elections held in Kuala Lumpur the other day.

The AHF Congress members elected the officials.

Akhtar, also a former Olympian, was elected as an Executive Board member, Mujahid was elected as one of the five AHF vice-presidents while Tayyab was elected as the AHF chief executive officer.

Akhtar will also act as adviser to newly-elected president of the AHF, Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, who was elected unopposed in place of late Azlan Shah.

FIH president Leandro Negre also attended the Congress. AHF Congress comprising 60 members took part in the elections.

Meanwhile, in a telephonic talk, Mujahid reckoned it was a great success for the PHF to get three positions at the AHF.

He said Pakistan now had four officials at the AHF, underlining former PHF secretary Asif Bajwa had already been working in one of the committees of the Asian hockey governing body.

Top priority of all PHF officials at AHF, Mujahid stressed, would be to promote hockey across Asia, needless to say in Pakistan too, where no team in recent years had been willing to come due to security concerns.

“I hope in coming years [the officials’] main focus will be on bringing international hockey back to Pakistan,” the PHF secretary stated.

Dawn



Five-a-side hockey to help develop sport further

By S. Ramaguru


Five-a-side hockey or hockey 5s was played at the Nanjing Youth Olympics this year with China emerging as the women's champion. - EPA

KUALA LUMPUR: Hockey 5s (five-a-side) is likely to take on a more prominent role in the International Hockey Federation’s (FIH) development plans in the future.

FIH chief executive officer Kelly Fairweather said the game was a success when it was introduced at the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in Nanjing, China, last month.

“It was a huge success. We saw more than 2,000 people jamming the stadium on match days and most of them were watching hockey for the first time. This is a format that we can look towards as part of the development for the sport. I am sure that we can use it for other age-group tournaments to further popularise the sport,” said Fairweather, who briefed the members of the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) during their Congress here on Sunday.

He added that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) would like to see hockey being played globally.

“We launched the World Hockey League last year to allow the lower ranked countries to get a chance to play against top-class opposition. For hockey to remain in the Olympics, we need to ensure that there is a wider participation at grass roots level,” he said.

“It is interesting to note that over 20 countries are playing hosts to the second edition of the World Hockey League this year.

“At the YOG, we even had teams like Uruguay, Zambia and Fiji competing in the women’s category. In the men’s category, there were teams from Mexico, Zambia and Bangladesh,” said Fairweather.

China won the women’s gold in Nanjing while Australia emerged champions in the men’s category.

Fairweather also called on the AHF members to attend the FIH Congress in Marrakesh, Morocco, in November.

“We will be talking about FIH’s exciting new vision and strategy for the sport. The World Cup in The Hague, Holland, in June was a huge success with more than 100 countries getting live feed of the matches.

“We need to be innovative for the game to develop at a faster rate,” added Fairweather.

FIH president Leandro Negre was also present at the AHF Congress where Malaysia’s Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah was elected as the new president.

The Star of Malaysia

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