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All the news for Thursday 12 November 2015

Black Sticks named for World League Final


Photo: www.photosport.co.nz

Black Sticks head coach Mark Hager has announced a strong side ahead of the FIH World League Final and believes the depth of players to select from is better than it’s ever been.

Gemma Flynn, Emily Naylor and Georgia Barnett will join the Black Sticks line-up taking on the world’s best teams in Rosario in early December.

Flynn brings speed up front and the ability to score goals, while New Zealand’s most capped player Emily Naylor brings a hard-nosed approach to the defensive line.

Goalkeeper Georgia Barnett has also received the call-up and will be looking to stamp her mark ahead of Rio Olympic selection at the end of this year. 

“We are very pleased with the team named, you only have to look at those unlucky players that have missed out to get a sense of the depth and high calibre of players in our wider group at the moment,” said Hager.

Hager says the team are targeting to play in the final in Rosario but it’s anyone’s guess as to who they will face following pool play.

The Black Sticks take on Korea, Netherlands and then Germany while on the other side of the draw Argentina, Great Britain, Australia and China face each other before a must-win quarter-final clash.

Hager says it’s fantastic to have close to the full team based in Auckland and training together between now and when the team depart for Rosario on the 27th November.

“Having the team here has allowed us to work on our set pieces and structures, rather than having to work on those critical aspects of the game when we are away. Goal scoring is the key focus for us at the moment, we know we get the chances throughout a game and it’s just practicing how we convert those.”

With the Olympics only nine months away, the national selectors will use both the World League and intra-squad games as a chance to determine which 25 players will be announced in the 2016 Olympic Squad being named at the end of this year.

“There is real competition between players – not just in our National Squad, but across the Development Squad also. The results from our Junior and Future Black Sticks Programme which started back in 2011 is starting to show and that’s really pleasing,” said Hager.

Goalkeeper Amelia Gibson has been ruled out with injury while former captain Kayla Whitelock and striker Katie Glynn are building up their fitness and are on track to return to the turf next year.

BLACK STICKS WOMEN
World League Final, Argentina

FACTS

Gemma Flynn is the fourth highest goal scorer of all time (62 goals), and the second highest goal scorer in the team. Anita Punt is the highest goal scorer on 86 goals.

Naylor has only played eight minutes of hockey since the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, incurring a hamstring injury in the first game against Argentina in October.

The World League Final is being held in Rosario from 5-13 December.

It is the second time the FIH have held a World League Final. The first one was held in Tucuman, Argentina, and New Zealand placed fifth.

There are eight countries that compete in the FIH World League Final.

The Black Sticks Women have already qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics. They qualified due to their performance at the World League Semi-Final which was held in June/July in Belgium.

The Black Sticks Women will play 34 international tests in 2015

Goalkeeper Sally Rutherford is likely to play her 100th test

Sam Charlton is likely to play her 150th test

Rose Keddell is likely to play her 100th test

Hockey New Zealand Media release

Black Sticks women's squad named


Gemma Flynn returns to the Black Sticks after missing the Oceania Cup. Photo / Doug Sherring

The New Zealand women's hockey side have been working with a psychologist in an effort to improve their chances at next year's Rio Olympics.

The Black Sticks were beaten in heartbreaking penalty shootouts by the Netherlands in their semifinal at the 2012 Olympics, Australia in the final of the Oceania Cup and England in the semifinals at the Commonwealth Games. In recent years they have a good track record of getting to semfinals but not progressing further and coach Mark Hager said the mental side of the game was something they needed to improve.

"I think all the heartache we've had is going to help us learn more and I think that drives you even more to be successful - but if we'd had the success we might have been a bit complacent.

"I think it's really growing with our group and the belief's starting to come back again. We really believe we're not far off."

Hager today named his squad for next month's FIH World League Final in Argentina, with a key focus on goal-scoring and semifinal wins.

The Black Sticks take on Korea, Netherlands and then Germany while on the other side of the draw Argentina, Great Britain, Australia and China face each other before a must-win quarter-final clash.

Gemma Flynn and Emily Naylor will make their return after missing the recent Oceania championships but former captain Kayla Whitelock is still absent, having given birth to a baby girl six months ago. Striker Katie Glynn was still out with a long-term back problem but had been training four times a week and goalkeeper Amelia Gibson was also ruled out due to injury.

Hager said Whitelock and Glynn would both be training over the Christmas period, with a goal of returning to play in 2016.

"We're very keen to start to step up and win games that are close games," he said. "We're not hiding behind the fact that at the moment we're not doing that and we're working very hard technically and also on our mindset to try and change that."

Having Flynn back on the squad was "hugely important", midfielder Anita Punt said, as well as having Whitelock and Glenn in the background.

"It just helps out so much - their depth, their experience - it's just going to help the younger girls to come through," she said. "It's always handy having someone with Gemma's experience and she's in fine form at the moment with her hockey."

Flynn is the New Zealand women's side's fourth-highest goalscorer of all time with 62 but missed the Oceania championships when she had a break from hockey.

She knows the Black Sticks need to improve their record in close games.

"Those semifinals are the crunch games and we need to score goals and defend well," she said. "I'm excited and it'll be fun going over to Argentina and challenging ourselves against the worlds' best."

Despite the Rio Olympics looming large on the horizon, Punt said the team was not treating the upcoming tournament merely as practice for the big event. The Black Sticks will have played 34 internationals by the end of the year.

"We have to use this as a learning curve for Rio, but we're not going to go out there just to practice," Punt said. "We want to go out and win."

Intra-squad competition had helped the team prepare immensely, Hager said, with younger players from the junior programmes joining in on the games. Hager will announce a 25-strong Olympic squad at the end of the year.

"Some of those kids show some really good signs and that puts pressure on our current players," he said. "That's what we want - we want to be healthy, we want to be moving forward and I think that's one of the things that can help us win those close games, the competition against each other."

Black sticks women's squad: Emily Naylor, Olivia Merry, Petrea Webster, Sally Rutherford, Brooke Neal, Ella Gunson, Sam Charlton, Liz Thompson, Sophie Cocks, Kirsten Pearce, Georgia Barnett, Gemma Flynn, Charlotte Harrison, Rose Keddell, Pippa Hayward, Kat Henry, Stacey Michelsen, Anita Punt.

The New Zealand Herald

Black Sticks coach Mark Hager determined women's team will overcome mental barrier

Clay Wilson


Striker Gemma Flynn is back in the Black Sticks women's squad after missing the recent Oceania Cup tournament. PHOTOSPORT

Black Sticks women's coach Mark Hager has turned to a trio of Super Rugby coaches to try and overcome his side's poor recent record in big matches.

Hager named his 18-strong squad on Thursday to contest the eight-team World League Final tournament in Argentina, starting on December 6 (NZT).

Of the top eight ranked teams in the world, only the USA will not be in action, making it a valuable part of the fourth-ranked Black Sticks' preparations for next year's Rio Olympics.

New Zealand lost a shootout to the Netherlands in the semifinals of the 2012 London Olympics, before going down 3-1 to Great Britain in the bronze medal playoff.

The Black Sticks have also been bettered in shootouts by Australia in the last two Oceania Cup finals and Hager was not shying away from the fact his team needed to start winning when it mattered most.

Along with working closely with psychologist Rod Corban and implementing plenty of match scenario training, Hager and assistant Sean Dancer have called on some of the country's best rugby coaches for advice.

"[We've] spoken to Todd Blackadder (Crusaders), Jamie Joseph (Highlanders) and Dave Rennie (Chiefs)," Hager said.

"They've been fantastic in offering their experience and what they've gone through. It's different sports, but we all have the same issues and problems to solve. We've changed some things in our programme because of their experiences and what they've learned.

"Sometimes our team can be a bit standoffish with each other and not challenge each other on or off the pitch. That's something we've worked really hard on."

The return of defender Emily Naylor, New Zealand's most-capped women's player, and striker Gemma Flynn are positive additions to the group travelling to Rosario.

Former skipper Kayla Whitelock and experienced striker Katie Glynn are notable absentees, both still returning to full fitness and earmarked to feature again for another trip to Argentina in February.

While only 16 players will go to Rio, 25 will be picked in a wider Olympic squad at the end of this year. Hager said around 18 players were pencilled into that squad, but felt filling the remaining spots would not be easy.

With the development programmes introduced in 2011 starting to prove their worth, the depth among New Zealand's best female players was the best he had seen.

"It's exciting when you look at the calibre of players we have," Hager said.

"We are not quite at 100 per cent full strength yet ... but for me and with the opportunities we've given players this year, it's been a really challenge to pick this team.

"We've been playing some intra-squad games and I'm quite excited about some of the young kids that are coming through."

The Black Sticks face eighth-ranked Korea (December 6), No 1 ranked Dutch (December 7) and ninth-ranked Germany (December 9) in pool play to determine their qualifying position for quarterfinals in Argentina.

After two regular time draws with world No 2 Australia at last month's Oceania Cup, with the likes of Naylor, Flynn and Whitelock absent, a medal for the Kiwi side is a realistic goal.

For Hager, though, the time for settling has gone and his team must start finally stepping up when it counts.

"[We want a] gold medal and nothing less," he said.

"We have to start putting our hand up and saying this is the mountain we want to climb. Until now I think we've been a little bit happy with climbing it halfway, getting a third, fourth or fifth.

"We don't accept that and it's time to make those changes."

Black Sticks women's squad: Emily Naylor, Olivia Merry, Petrea Webster, Sally Rutherford, Brooke Neal, Ella Gunson, Sam Charlton, Liz Thompson, Sophie Cocks, Kirsten Pearce, Georgia Barnett, Gemma Flynn, Charlotte Harrison, Rose Keddell, Pippa Hayward, Kat Henry, Stacey Michelsen, Anita Punt.

Stuff

Watkins returns to Irish national squad


Picture: Adrian Boehm

Monkstown’s Gareth Watkins is set to make his first Irish international appearance for three years following his inclusion in his country’s panel for an upcoming series against Spain from November 30 to December 3.

Watkins, 30, earned 21 caps, scoring 10 goals, between 2009 and March 2012 but suffered a cruel blow in the lead-up to the Olympic qualifiers, missing out on potentially being part of that panel when he sustained an ankle injury before a warm-up game against the Czech Republic.

He has been in good form in the EY Hockey League, scoring four times, while also firing home a goal in the EHL against Club Egara.

Eleven of the European bronze medal winning panel are included in the 20-player selection with a number of players hoping to stake their claims for prolonged inclusion in Craig Fulton’s Olympic plans.

Speaking about the upcoming series coach Craig Fulton said “We play three important tests against Spain at the beginning of December. It will be an important phase for us after officially qualifying for Rio as Spain is also a qualified team for the Summer Olympics.

“They have a strong squad of players. We have a few players back for Ireland in Maurice Elliot, James Lorimer and Gareth Watkins all strong editions and we look forward to the time together and performing in the Test matches.”

Euro Hockey League media release

Stats Speak: Junior Asia Cup (Men)

By B.G.Joshi (Sehore-Bhopal, India) 

Statistics of Junior Asia Cup (Men) scheduled to commence from November 14, 2015 in Kuantan, Malaysia are as under:                                                              

How they fared

At a glance

Matches and Goals

Fieldhockey.com

Unbeaten two prepare for clash


Univ of Birmingham's Vanessa Hawkins, right, in action against Buckingham's Amie Hone, Oct 10 2015, Credit Andy Smith

The two remaining unbeaten teams in the Investec Women’s Hockey League Premier Division do battle this Sunday as Surbiton host the University of Birmingham.

Leaders University of Birmingham are two points clear of second-placed Surbiton, but all that could change depending on the result of their mouth-watering clash at Sugden Road.

“It’s a big game for both of us, Surbiton are a quality side with some really good players,” said Phil Gooderham, Head Coach of the University of Birmingham. “We always enjoy playing down there.

“If we’re being honest the table isn’t looking like we thought it would. After last season we were going for a play-off place, so we’re exceeding our initial target, but as the season progresses that may change.

“We have such a young side with 11 freshers in the squad, and we’re rotating so everyone is getting game time. They’re learning so quickly this year and I really can’t fault their attitude.”

Third-placed Canterbury are hosting Bowdon Hightown as they bid to keep pace with the top two, while East Grinstead – who lost by the odd goal to Canterbury last weekend – will want to bounce back as they go to Clifton.

Holcombe and Buckingham are preparing for battle at Rochester, while Reading take on Leicester at home.

In the Investec Conference East, Harleston Magpies played well in drawing 2-2 with second-placed Cambridge City, but they will need to do even better this weekend when they travel to runaway leaders Slough on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Cambridge City head to Hampstead and Westminster, and third-placed Wimbledon go to St Albans.

Leaders Wakefield entertain Liverpool Sefton in the Investec Conference North, while the University of Durham are also at home against Brooklands Poynton, as they bid to stay second and keep the heat on Wakefield.

Oxford Hawks will be aiming to make it four wins in a row as they entertain leaders Sutton Coldfield in the Investec Conference West, while second-placed Swansea City are on the road to Gloucester City.

Investec Women’s Hockey League (Sunday, November 15 2015):

Investec Premier Division
Clifton v East Grinstead 13:00
Holcombe v Buckingham 14:00
Reading v Leicester 12:30
Surbiton v Univ of Birmingham 14:00
Canterbury v Bowdon Hightown 15:00

Investec Conference East
Chelmsford v Sevenoaks 12:30
Slough v Harleston Magpies 12:30
Maidenhead v Ipswich 13:30
St Albans v Wimbledon 13:30
Hampstead and Westminster v Cambridge City 14:00

Investec Conference North
Whitley Bay and Tynemouth v Beeston 12:30
Loughborough Students v Ben Rhydding 14:00
Wakefield v Liverpool Sefton 13:30
Springfields v Belper 14:00
Univ of Durham v Brooklands Poynton 14:00

Investec Conference West
Bristol Firebrands v Univ of Bristol 12:00
Gloucester City v Swansea City 12:00
Stourport v Trojans 12:00
Isca v Olton and West Warwicks 12:30
Oxford Hawks v Sutton Coldfield 13:30

England Hockey Board Media release

Wimbledon ready for Surbiton battle


Surbiton's Chris Grassick. Credit Tim Reder

Last season’s champions Wimbledon are preparing to face Surbiton in the Men’s Hockey League Premier Division on Saturday evening in what could prove to be a crucial test for both teams.

Wimbledon lost at home last weekend against Reading who leap-frogged them on the back of that result, but Surbiton also lost on the road at Holcombe, so both teams will be aiming to get back to winning ways.

“Our performance was good last weekend, but the result went against us,” said Wimbledon’s Director of Hockey Ben Marsden. “We created a lot of chances and had, I think, nine short corners, but just couldn’t convert.

“But in terms of our season it was a little dip in what has so far been a successful season for us.

“Surbiton had a very good unbeaten run, but they hadn’t come up against the stronger teams like Holcombe or ourselves. Holcombe have so far been the strongest team we have played this season.

“We will be hoping to play a very competitive game. We haven’t lost yet to Surbiton in the Premier Division, and we don’t intend to do so now.”

In other top flight action, Holcombe could go top if they beat visitors Hampstead and Westminster and Surbiton lose, while Reading go to Cannock on Saturday evening.

Brooklands Manchester University battled to a dramatic 3-3 draw with Cannock last weekend, and they will be aiming to take the same fighting spirit to East Grinstead. Finally, Beeston host Canterbury in a clash of the bottom two clubs.

In the Men’s Conference West, leaders Cardiff and Met face third-placed Cheltenham who lost to and were overtaken by the University of Birmingham last weekend.

Loughborough Students will want to continued their good run in the Conference North when they entertain Wakefield on Saturday, while the University of Durham – who beat Wakefield last weekend – are at home against Sheffield Hallam.

And in the Conference East table-topping Richmond are preparing to take on third-placed Sevenoaks on Saturday, with second-placed Cambridge City going to Southgate.

Men’s Hockey League (Saturday, November 14, 2015):

Men’s Premier Division
Beeston v Canterbury 14:00
Holcombe v Hampstead and Westminster 14:00
East Grinstead v Brooklands Manchester University 15:00
Surbiton v Wimbledon 18:00
Cannock v Reading 18:00

Men’s Conference North
Bowdon v Olton and West Warwicks 11:45
University of Durham v Sheffield Hallam 12:00
Lichfield v Preston 13:30
Loughborough Students v Wakefield 14:30

Men’s Conference East
West Herts v Brighton and Hove 13:30
Southgate v Cambridge City 14:00
Harleston Magpies v Bromley and Beckenham 14:00
Oxted v Teddington 17:00
Richmond v Sevenoaks 18:00

Men’s Conference West
University of Birmingham v Indian Gymkhana 12:30
Isca v Team Bath Buccaneers 12:30
Chichester Priory Park v University of Exeter 13:30
Fareham v Guildford 17:30
Cardiff and Met v Cheltenham 18:00

Men’s Hockey League (Sunday, November 15, 2015):

Men’s Conference North
Doncaster v Deeside Ramblers 14:00

England Hockey Board Media release

Success for Kelburne at Renfrewshire Community Sports Awards


Award winners Rachel Ewing-Day (Community Coach of the Year), Chris Nelson (Bromac Kelburne Men's Hockey team of the Year), Barbara Morgan (Technical Official of the Year).

Kelburne Hockey Club enjoyed an evening of success at the Renfrewshire Community Sports Awards held in Johnstone Town Hall on Friday 6 November 2015.

The event was hosted by BBC journalist Alison Walker and included a Q & A sessions with Golfer Eilidh Briggs part of the Curtis Cup winning team and Glasgow 2014 Chairman Michael Cavanagh.

Renfrewshire was recognising the efforts of a number of volunteers, coaches, officials and clubs in promoting and delivering sport at grass roots and international level.

Barbara Morgan a long time member of Kelburne picked up the Technical Official of the Year award.  Whilst representing the club and international level as and EHF/FIH Technical Official she continues to help develop new umpires and officials within the club and district.


Barbara Morgan

Team of the Year went to Bromac Kelburne Men’s 1st Xl, a tough category which recognised the clubs outstanding level of consistent success over the last 11 years.  Chris Nelson collected the award on behalf of the team and highlighted that the success was built on the hard work and dedication of coaches, managers, parents and volunteers as well as the players over the years.


Bromac Kelburne Hockey Club

Rachael Ewing-Day was also successful in the Community Coach of the Year award, being recognised for her commitment to the coaching of young players.  Rachael has taken a fresh approach to coaching of the jockey section, setting up a holistic approach to player development.  As a result of this number within the youth section continue to grow.


Rachael Ewing-Day

Special mention to Ellie Halliday, who was nominated for Young Sports Personality of the Year, however, she was pipped to the award by a truly deserving winner.

It is great to see all these awards for Kelburne Hockey Club and to see the club getting some well deserved recognition from the local community.

Scottish Hockey Union media release