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News for 18 January 2020

All the news for Saturday 18 January 2020


2020 FIH Pro League (Men)
Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar

18 Jan 2020 19:00 (GMT +5:30)     IND v NED (RR)
19 Jan 2020 17:00 (GMT +5:30)     IND v NED (RR)

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

FIH Match Centre



Debut an opportunity for Indian hockey team to get much-needed competition against stiff opposition

Sundeep Misra


Manpreet Singh will lead the Indian team at the FIH Pro League.

The past exerts its own pressure. Scoffers might sneer and say, ‘Who cares?’ They do have a point. Too many years have passed since India won a big title – Olympic Games or the World Cup. They are not even serious contenders for the Pro League on their debut (they didn’t play the inaugural Pro League last year). Wins in Asian Games, Asia Cup or even the Asian Champions Trophy are highs but fleeting, a balm before the perpetual elephant in the room – ‘but what about the Olympic medal?’

At the Kalinga Stadium, from 18 January, the search once again begins for that moment Indian hockey, many decades back, had got used to; picking up the Olympic gold or a podium finish at least. Combinations, player form, coaching staff evaluation all being brought together into a single form of energy, aspiration and desire that would propel the team towards the 2020 Tokyo Olympics podium.

Even though all eyes are on the Olympic Games, the immediate task at hand is to start winning against big opponents, the ones who are above you – Argentina (4), Netherlands (3), Belgium (2) and Australia (1). The ones directly below are teams, dangerous and cannot be classified as floaters – Germany (6), England (7), Spain (8) and New Zealand (9); all fighting for a place in the top four of the Pro League, more importantly, understanding the rest when it comes to the Olympic Games. In the last three decades, India has never stuck to a fifth place ranking for more than a year. In the 1994 World Cup, we did end up fifth. But then plummeted at the bigger tournaments and slipped in and out of the top ten.

In Bhubaneswar, Billy Bakker’s Dutchmen stand, yet again, in front of the Indian team. They broke Indian hearts 13 months back in the World Cup quarter-final with a close 2-1 win. Interestingly, the assistant coach of that Dutch side, Australian Graham Reid is now the chief in the Indian dugout. Max Caldas, the then Dutch coach carries on hoping to start the second season of the Pro League with a win against India, and in that win, find a momentum that carries them to the league final and provide the key to a Tokyo podium finish.

There is no denying the race is for Tokyo. But that is, if one can call it, a problem in the Olympic year. Against the Olympics, other tournaments, like the Pro League, get overshadowed. India make their debut in the elite nine and finally get some competition against top teams. Every coach asked for more matches but finances or politics never made it happen.

In a way, excuses will now have to remain in the shadows after India plays the Pro League. This is where the men walk and do the talking. And it would be interesting to understand and figure out the men in the Indian team. Skill wise they are second to none. But it’s the performance in pressure situations, key moments that separate the rest of the teams from the top four or top two.

There are times when the Indian team resembles the French tennis player Gael Monfils – miraculous shots, amazing court craft but no big win. Ric Charlesworth, the Aussie coach would probably lunge in here and give a lecture on consistency. Yet, that is exactly what would be worrying Reid – following decades of inconsistency.


Chinglensana Singh returns to the Indian side.

In an interview after the team announcement, Reid said: “We have chosen a relatively experienced side to take on Holland. Varun Kumar will be back in training but won’t be able to play against the Dutch after his injury in the Olympic Qualifying matches.” Reid was also happy about Chinglensana Singh returning after almost a year out and Sumit after a six month lay-off. He attributed Gurjant returning to the side because of his hard work and form in the training camps. “It will be important to start strong against the top three sides in the world. It also gives us an opportunity on getting our structures right in the preparation for the Olympic Games,” said the Indian coach.

With a lot of games in the Pro League, one can’t read too much into the selection process right away. The Dutch captain has said 90 percent of the players selected will find their way into the Olympic squad. Can the same be said for India? It will be too early to roll the dice. But one would have liked to have Simranjeeet Singh against the Dutch. In 2018, he had impressed in the World Cup quarter-final by opening up space for others. Hardik Singh, a surprise call at the 2018 World Cup, would be disappointed to not make the Indian side for the Pro League opener. But with 16 matches to go, tweaking the side to play against various opponents is Reid’s call.

Eyes would be on Rupinder Pal Singh and Harmanpreet Singh on penalty corner conversions, even though India has Amit Rohidas as the third flicker. It’s also the midfield that would be judged, consistency being the priority parameter. There is enough competition in the forward line with hopes circling on Mandeep and Gurjant Singh; a step behind in creating from the top of the circle would be Akashdeep Singh and Lalit Upadhyay. One still remembers the clean, reverse hit strike by Akashdeep in the World Cup quarter final. And, then, how the Dutch captain Billy Bakker, falling back, killing the pace, held the Dutch side to eke out a 2-1 in. Though, one also remembers, as clear as daylight, Nilakanta Sharma’s flick, inches from the left flank, hitting the post and going out; Harmanpreet Singh’s blazing reverse hit from the top of the circle, stopped brilliantly by Dutch goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak.

A Pro League opener will not be conservative in terms of play, openings and goals but to expect a repeat of the World Cup quarter-final where a different kind of pressure does inhibit players may not be seen at The Kalinga. In the last five matches against each other, both sides have won two each with a match drawn. India have won 2-1 and 4-3 while Holland won 2-1 (WC QF, 2018) and 3-1. In the 2018 Champions Trophy, both sides had played a 1-1 draw.

It’s the start of the season which will wind up with the Olympic Games in Tokyo with teams all trying to peak in the Japanese capital. It’s also a pointer that India’s preparations start at The Kalinga, a stadium where a loyal army of fans come out to cheer and in some way or the other kept a sport alive, which according to many, was losing lustre for a long time. Whether, the Indian team chase down a big title in 2020 or not, yet another year of hope has, surely, arrived.

Firstpost



Reid's India eager to outwit Dutch challenge

The last time India faced Netherlands, Graham Reid was on the Dutch bench. A year later, Reid leads India against the same opponent in the Hockey Pro League.

Uthra Ganesan


Having been a part of the Dutch coaching setup in the past, India coach Graham Reid will give his Indian side great insights going into their Pro League match against the Netherlands.   -  Biswaranjan Rout

Constantly under the spotlight with the invisible burden of history, the Indian men’s hockey team will take its first steps towards yet another Olympic dream with the first game of the double-header against Netherlands in its Hockey Pro League opener here on Saturday.

The upcoming six months will be the most comprehensive Olympic preparation for the team in recent times, in terms of both quality and quantity. Having withdrawn from the inaugural edition of the competition in 2019, this year will see the team take on the world’s top-eight teams in similar back-to-back games in the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics. The coming weekend would be the first test in that series, in a format the team hasn’t played too often.

The last time the team did so competitively was during the Olympic Qualifiers in November last but, with an opposition like Russia, that would be worlds away from the kind of challenge Netherlands would pose. With most European players used to it in their club games, the visitor, for once, would be in a more familiar situation than the host.


The Indian men's hockey team, led by captain Manpreet Singh (second from right), trains on the eve of its Pro League clash against Netherlands.   -  Biswaranjan Rout

The last time the two teams met, the Dutch came back from being a goal down to end India’s World Cup campaign in the quarterfinals in 2018. India coach Graham Reid, then, was on the opposition bench as deputy to Max Caldas and would be the insider in the Indian management.

In the year since, India has had outings against teams largely ranked lower, while Netherlands finished third in the inaugural HPL. Adding to the excitement – or pressure – would be the fact there would be a winner every game with drawn matches heading into shootouts.

Despite the general impression, there is little to separate the two sides in recent times with India winning four to Netherlands’ five with a draw in the last 10 outings. The difference, though, is in the fact that while India’s wins against top sides have remained occasional high points in its kitty, Netherlands has gone on to make the podium of major events more often than not.

That experience of being able to grab the big moments would be the biggest advantage for this Dutch side. India captain Manpreet Singh admitted that most of the team’s recent games could have gone either way but it was the ability to take the half-chances that made the difference. On Saturday and Sunday, it would be more of the same. Reid, across the line now, would be hoping to finish on the winning side yet again.

Sportstar



Indian hockey team's fitness more than a match for the Dutch

Uthra Ganesan

With almost zero fat, lean muscle and improved strength and stamina, this could easily be a front-runner for the fittest team at the moment.

One area the Indians would be more than a match for the Dutch would be fitness.

While the Indian hockey team has been among the fittest over the past decade, the physiques on the field during the final training session on Friday were completely different from what one saw even three months back.

With almost zero fat, lean muscle and improved strength and stamina, this could easily be a front-runner for the fittest Indian team at the moment.

At least seven of the players, including both seniors like Lalit Upadhyay, Manpreet Singh, Surender Kumar and youngsters Sumit and Jaskaran Singh, have managed to beat the 23.8 mark in the Yo-Yo test, the maximum possible.

The inside joke among the players is “generally sportspersons fail the Yo-Yo test. Here, Yo-Yo has failed us, get something more intense”.

A far cry from the times when Indians were automatically assumed to be inferior to Europeans and Australians.

For the record, the Indian cricket team’s fittest player at last count was Manish Pandey with a score of 19.2.

The Hindu



Graham Reid: I love winning, but I'm not reckless

Ahead of India's game double-header against Netherlands, national coaches Graham Reid and Max Caldas talk strategy and what's at stake.

Uthra Ganesan


India and Netherlands coaches, Graham Reid and Max Caldas, are all set to clash in the Hockey Pro League, but the focus is Tokyo.   -  Biswaranjan Rout

Graham Reid has been with the Indian team for almost a year now but the double-header against Netherlands would be his first big test.

The Australian has inside knowledge – he was on the other side when they last came visiting for the 2018 World Cup and sent the host packing in the quarterfinals – but prefers looking ahead.

“It is a great test for us to play the top-three teams of the world in the first three games of the Pro League. This year is about us trying to continuously improve in the next seven months and take every opportunity to grab the lessons we need,” Reid said on the eve of the first game here.

The format is something the Indians haven’t played too often but Reid isn’t worried. “We actually played Spain in weekend games on our recent tour to Europe and played well in both games. As far as understanding these games is concerned, they are often the semifinals and the final of important tournaments and so they have to play accordingly. All you can do is prepare them for it,” he said.

His opposite number, Max Caldas, claims he has lost over 20kgs, for a new look in the new year, but would gladly trade it for the elusive Olympic gold. “Of course every team wants to win gold at the Olympics. Difficulty is not balancing between Pro League or Tokyo, it is the fact that they all want to play in Tokyo. And every time you may not choose a player for a game, they might get anxious about the Olympics. As a team, we have discussed that we want to be at our top level in every HPL game. Because unlike India or Australia, we do not get a lot of time together,” Caldas said.

Asked about Reid Caldas said, “Graham is a very committed individual. He is relentless in what he demands from the players, wants to involve them in the process and know what they think.”

Dutch captain Billy Bakker added, “he was my club coach as well and always said the team didn’t dare to lose and to make sure you play at your maximum to win instead of being scared to lose.”

Reid, on his part, admitted he was aggressive but not reckless. “I have spent too long with Ric Charlesworth to go out and play reckless hockey. I agree that I love to win and also like to play attacking hockey. But I don’t like taking ridiculous risks. The principle should be that you play the same in the 1st minute as you play in the last minute. I don’t believe in protecting a lead.”

Sportstar



Manpreet Singh on Pro League: We can learn a lot ahead of Olympics

Aashin Prasad


Manpreet Singh receives the Sportman of The Year (Team Sports) award from Zafar Iqbal at the Sportstar Aces Awards 2020 in Mumbai.   -  VIJAY SONEJI

Hockey India (HI) had pulled the Indian team out of the inaugural edition of the Pro League in 2019. This time around, India will be among the nine teams facing off against each other and Manpreet Singh, the captain of the men's team, stressed on the importance of a good Pro League outing heading into the Tokyo Olympics.

India will take on the Netherlands in the opening game of the tournament in Bhubaneswar on Saturday.

“This year is very important for us because we are playing the Pro League. The Pro League is important to us for the upcoming Olympics as well," Manpreet told Sportstar on the sidelines of the Aces Awards 2020.

"We can learn a lot of things from the Pro league which we can apply during the Olympics since we will be playing against the same teams at the Olympics."

In an interview with this publication, India's analytical coach Chris Ciriello had highlighted the importance of finding the right balance in terms of workload in the six-month-long Pro League.

On that matter, Manpreet felt it was important for the players to maintain match-fitness in the build-up to the Olympics. "This Pro League is important because we need to maintain consistency throughout. We are playing with the best teams here and we need to maintain our game and players as well because fitness is really important for us. We need to give our best for every game and I am aiming to play in top gear," said the midfielder.

The 27-year-old was the recipient of the sportsperson of the year in the team sports category at the Aces. On the recognition, Manpreet said, "It's a great honour to receive the award especially from the hockey legends. This award also goes to my team-mates because they help me both on and off the field."

Manpreet has featured in two Olympics without much success but is eager to make it count in Tokyo later this year.

"As a player, I want to win a medal in the Olympics. But we need to play as a team which is really important. First, we are aiming to top our group stages then we will see how it goes.

"I don't think there is any pressure because as an athlete it's a dream to play in the Olympics. I am really looking forward to that and hopefully play as the captain," he said.

Sportstar



Stats Speak: First match of Hockey which will get ranking points

By  B.G.Joshi (Sehore-Bhopal, India in Bhubaneswar)


Harmanpreet Singh (strike rate 63) and Mirco Pruijser(strike rate 59) will be key players of the match. Photo(courtsey FIH)

Indian hockey had begun their Golden era in Amsterdam Olympics (1928).  India beat Netherlands in final by 3-0. Legendary Dhyan Chand (2 goals) and George Marthins (1 goal) had scored the goals.

Since then 92 years has been passed.  India-Netherlands played 106 times, last played in Bhubaneswar in World Cup 2018. Childish and stupid play of Goalkeeper PR Sreejesh and of Amit Rohidas leads the destruction of India 1-2.

Here are statistical highlights of India-Netherlands in international Hockey since inception:

India- Netherlands :Head to head  by  B.G.Joshi

Particulars

India

Netherlands

World Ranking

5

3

World Ranking Points

1823

2155

If wins today’s match in

regulation period, gain of points

66.50

33.50

If wins today’s match in

shootout, gain of points

33.25

16.75

Total Matches Played

106

106

Won

33

49

Drawn

24

24

Goals Scored

216

239

Penalty Corner Expert Record

Harmanpreet

Mink ven der Weerden

Expert Shirt Number

13

30

Matches Played

111

167

Goals Scored

70

104

Strike Rate(1goal per match is 100)

63

62

Main Striker

Mandeep

Mirco Pruijser

Expert Shirt Number

11

16

Matches Played

153

118

Goals Scored

78

70

Strike Rate(1goal per match is 100)

51

59

 Fieldhockey.com



Jones and Shipperley proud to fly Welsh flag in FIH Pro League



Sarah Jones and Rupert Shipperley believe there will be plenty more Welsh players to don the GB shirt over the coming years after four of the country’s athletes were selected for the opening 2020 FIH Pro League fixtures against Australia and New Zealand.

They will be joined by Leah Wilkinson and Jacob Draper as the team fly out to Brisbane this weekend before heading to Sydney the following week, where they will play their first games of the new season against Australia on 1-2 February. They will then head to Auckland to face New Zealand on 8-9 February.

Having been the only Welsh player in the senior programme when she made her GB debut in November 2018, Jones believes the ascension of her compatriots is very much deserved and knows this will give hope to many more waiting in the wings.

“I’m so proud to see Leah, Rupert and Jacob all on the trip,” the 29-year-old said.

“It just shows how far Hockey Wales have come and Jacob and Rupert have so well to come in at this point in the cycle. Hopefully it’ll pave the way and show Welsh athletes that they can come in to the GB squad.

“I do think there is a much clearer pathway into the senior squad now through the GB Elite Development Programme (EDP). I’m really proud to see them all in the squad.”

Having played 70 times for Wales since his debut in 2014, Shipperley is now set to make his Great Britain debut during the upcoming tour.

He only started training with the squad a few weeks before Christmas but impressed Danny Kerry and is now hoping to repay that faith by putting in some solid performances against two of the world’s toughest teams.

“It was really exciting to get the call,’ the Hampstead & Westminster player said.

“You get the same feeling for any team you’re selected for, whether that’s your first hockey game at club level through to now, but it’s that little bit more special. I was really excited, really happy and really proud.

“Primarily I’m just focusing on nailing everything in Australia and New Zealand and playing well out there. But you can’t hide from the fact that the Olympics are just around the corner so that is another goal you want to set for yourself.

“Really over the next few weeks though I’m just focusing on playing really well in Australia and New Zealand.”

Jones is also excited to get out on the pitch too having missed GB’s FIH Olympic Qualifiers against Chile due to illness.

She also cannot wait to experience the highly competitive nature of the FIH Pro League once again, having featured in 15 of GB’s 16 matches last year.

This trip will also be a particularly special one for her too as it will be the first time she plays for Great Britain alongside fiancé Leah Wilkinson.

The Holcombe midfielder said: “I’m really excited, it’s really nice to be back on the pitch with the girls. Coming back here, having two solid weeks of training and then getting out there and taking on some quality opposition in Australia and New Zealand, I can’t wait.

“The FIH Pro League was definitely completely different, playing one-off games or back-to-back games, and asked a lot of questions of us as a squad in terms of the way we prepare ourselves. It really gives us a great opportunity to be really on it for those one-off games.

“Leah and I have played for club and Wales together for a long time; being able to play with her is so special. It’s something so few people can do.

“It’s an honour to pull on a GB shirt at any point but to do it with your other half is something we will remember for the rest of our lives and will be incredibly special.”


Chris Griffiths celebrates for Great Britain's men in the FIH Pro League

Are you a member of a club? Part of the Player Pathway? An umpire? Or have you purchased international tickets to see England/Great Britain in the last three years? Then you qualify for the ‘Hockey Family Window’ to secure early bird tickets for when the FIH Pro League returns to London this year.

Great Britain Hockey media release



Hager: Dutch not unbeatable

FIH Pro League opposition insight



With the FIH Pro League getting off to a flying start as the Netherlands’ women twice defeated China away from home in the opening weekend, the 2020 League is already off to an exhilarating start.

Great Britain’s men and women get their campaign underway on the weekend of 1 and 2 February away to Australia and, ahead of the trip, GB Women’s Head Coach Mark Hager analysed each of the sides competing in the league and what we can expect from them:

China:

“They’ve obviously got a bit of confidence having qualified for the Olympics, they’re a very fast team who like to counter-attack quickly. Their set plays will be very strong as they have some good quality corner specialists, so they’ll be tough and hard to beat. They’ve probably been in a bit of a lull over the past couple of years, but I think they’re growing and growing and getting more confidence, so they’ll be a difficult side to play against.



Australia:

“When I was coaching New Zealand, we used to play Australia quite a bit and got to know them well. They’ve brought a couple of senior players back so they’re a bit of a new look side, everyone is looking towards the Olympics, so it’ll be interesting to see how everyone coaches through the FIH Pro League. Everybody likes to get momentum, but it’s also about giving players an opportunity over this next phase before making final decisions for the Olympics.

“Aussie, as we know, are physical, strong from corners, good defensively, have a good goalkeeper, are very fast, skilful and aggressive so they’ll be a tough team.”



New Zealand:

“We know they’re a quick side, they’ve also got a couple of senior players who haven’t played for three or four years that have come back so it will be interesting to see how they fit into the group and where they fit within the programme in terms of what positions they play.

“They’re a counter-attacking team, so if you give them an opportunity, they can hurt you with their speed. They’ve been growing over the last 12 months and getting better. I think that’s a good thing about the competition, if you’re a bit off your game then opposition teams will punish or beat you. We had one win against New Zealand and Australia beat us twice, so they are two teams that we need to start benchmarking and winning these games.

“For us, the first tour across to Australia and New Zealand is about learning to win away from home and I think that’s something that we really have to work on to get that belief that we can win away from home as well.”



Netherlands:

“They gave us as an England side a real touch up in the Europeans, that still hurts. We didn’t play well, and they were a masterclass that day. We allowed them too many penalty corner goals and probably tried to play too attacking against them which they punished us for on the counter-attack, they were very clinical that day. Like every team, everyone will be fitter coming into the Olympic Games so now it comes into the mind games, but if you look at the Dutch, they’ve got quality right across the park, so we’ll have to look at our own strengths and utilise them.

“We had a really good game against them last year in the FIH Pro League at Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre when we lost 1-0, but I felt it was in the balance for quite a lot of the game, so I think if we can get back to that standard again it’ll be a good contest.

“I think Alyson Annan, the Dutch coach, will rotate the team around again and then as it gets closer to the Olympics she’ll start to fine tune who she wants, but we’re probably all going to do that as coaches so that’ll be quite interesting. I think she’ll leave some of the senior players out to see how the team plays without them, but as we know they’ve got a lot of depth in that group.

“They’re like any team, they’re not unbeatable, yes they are a very very good side which you’ve got to respect, but you’ve also got to be able to not fear them and play your game with trust and belief that you can do the job.”



Germany:

“Again, they’ve got some experienced players who play a good expansive style which can be very attacking at times, they’re very good defensively with typical German style hockey which is very disciplined, physical and a hard team to play. We face them in the last game of the FIH Pro League and the first game of the Olympics, so it will be really interesting to see how both teams perform in the last FIH Pro League game. There’ll certainly be some bragging rights going into the Olympics.

“For us, we had a good game against them in the 2019 FIH Pro League but lost in the last 40 seconds of the match. They’re a team that we need to be able to beat and to do that we’ve got to be able to perform well on the day.”



Belgium:

“They’ll be disappointed that they’re obviously not going to the Olympics, so you’d think that they’ll use the FIH Pro League for a bit of rebuilding. Whether they bring a lot of youngsters in to give them an opportunity remains to be seen. For them there’s ranking points from the FIH Pro League which are important, but they’ll also have an eye on the opportunity to blood players for two years ahead of the next World Cup and then the Paris Olympics in four years time.

“They have improved over the last four or five years, but they’re obviously going to want to prove a point and play well so I guess in one way this is their Olympics so they’ll play with no fear in these matches and will have a plan to go all out knowing that they’re not preparing for Tokyo.”



Argentina:

“They’re a good side with lots of flair through the team. They’ve got a lot of ability to score goals in their forward line and some good senior players at the back with a lot of experience who are very smart hockey players.

“They’re a team that if you let get on top of you, will punish you. It’s a lot of one on one type ability against the Argentinians, if you can win those battles then you’re going to be in the contest. With their ability they pattern the play and are smart hockey players who create a lot of havoc in the defence for you.”



USA:

“I think they’ll be quite similar to Belgium. They’ve got a new coach, they’ll obviously want to build for the next four years but we know that they’re hosting the Olympics in eight years time so I’m sure that they’ll have a small eye towards that, but also wanting to do well along the way as well.

"They’ll be very much like Belgium by experimenting with some young players coming in. With the new coach it’ll also be interesting to see whether they change their style of play. They’re hard-nosed, very very fit and never give up so they’re a tough team to play.”



Great Britain will host four weekends of high octane FIH Pro League action once again this summer so don't miss out on your chance to be part of #ThePride and watch the action, support your country and have a great day out watching the best international hockey has to offer.

Great Britain Hockey media release



Nelson-Nichols Names 2020 FIH Hockey Pro League Roster



LANCASTER, Pa. – The second edition of the FIH Hockey Pro League is here! As action has already begun around the world, the U.S. Women’s National Team is in final preparations for their opening weekend of matches. With one week remaining until game day, USWNT Head Coach Caroline Nelson-Nichols and coaching staff have named the roster that will compete against some of the world’s top field hockey nations.

"We are incredibly excited to get underway with the 2020 FIH Hockey Pro League season,” said Nelson-Nichols. “The team has been training hard and the players are growing every day. With our opening match a week away, we look forward to final preparations before kicking off against The Netherlands."

Similar to last season, USA’s roster features goalkeepers Jess Jecko (Sauquoit, N.Y.) and Kealsie Robles (Yorktown, Va.). Leading the defense is veteran Ashley Hoffman (Mohnton, Pa.), who will be joined by Ali Campbell (Lancaster, Pa.), who returned to the USWNT after retiring in 2017, and newcomers Alexandra Hammel (Duxbury, Mass.) and Carrie Hanks (Niskayuna, N.Y.).

The midfield features several recognizable USWNT athletes, including Amanda Magadan (Randolph, N.J.), Anna Dessoye (Mountaintop, Pa.), Linnea Gonzales (Bel Air, Md.) and Taylor West (Princess Anne, Md.), who all participated in the inaugural season of FIH Hockey Pro League. They are joined by Laura Hurff (Newark, Del.), who returned to the USWNT after leaving in June 2019, and a handful of new faces to the red, white and blue who are eager to earn their first international caps while being key contributors to USA’s success in 2020.

Much like the 2019 season, a mix of proven veteran leaders and young talent are ready for the second edition of the highly anticipated international competition.

Nelson-Nichols also noted that athletes that are currently on, or away from the senior USWNT could be added to the FIH Hockey Pro League roster at a future date.

 
MARY BETH BARHAM

#18 | Midfielder
20 Caps
Fairfax, Va.


VIRGINIA BRAMLEY
#6 | Midfielder
2 Caps
Elizabethtown, Pa.

   

ALI CAMPBELL
# 7 | Defender
31 Caps
Lancaster, Pa.

ANNA DESSOYE

#17 | Midfielder
54 Caps
Mountain Top, Pa.

   

LINNEA GONZALES

#16 | Midfielder
28 Caps
Bel Air, Md.

DANIELLE GREGA

#4 | Midfielder
28 Caps
Kingston, Pa.
   

ALEXANDRA HAMMEL
#21 | Defender
0 Caps
Duxbury, Mass.

CARRIE HANKS
#33 | Defender
0 Caps
Niskayuna,N.Y.
   
 
KARLIE HEISTAND
#25 | Midfielder
0 Caps
Hamburg, Pa.
 
ASHLEY HOFFMAN

#13 | Defender
68 Caps
Mohnton, Pa.
   

LAURA HURFF

#27 | Midfielder
23 Caps
Newark, Del.

JESS JECKO
#3 | Goalkeeper
10 Caps
Sauquoit, N.Y.
   


KELEE LEPAGE
#24 | Midfielder
0 Capps
Honey Brook, Pa.


AMANDA MAGADAN
#12 | Midfielder
77 Caps
Randolph, N.J.

   

MADISON MAGUIRE
#10 | Striker
0 Caps
Rumson, N.J.

LAUREN MOYER
#2 | Midfielder
72 Caps
York, Pa.
   

ALYSSA PARKER
#8 | Midfielder
41 Caps
Woodbine, Md.

KEALSIE ROBLES
#30 | Goalkeeper
8 Caps
Yorktown, Va.
   

 
CASEY UMSTEAD
#5 | Defender
25 Caps
Green Lane, Pa.


TAYLOR WEST
#11 | Midfielder
74 Caps
Princess Anne, Md.


The FIH Hockey Pro League is designed as an entertainment product and kicked off in January 2019, replacing the Champions’ Trophy, FIH Hockey World League Semifinals and World League Final. It is an annual global league involving the best national teams in the world and enables fans to see their favorite team play at home against the elite of international field hockey.

Taking place in the first half of the year, the FIH Hockey Pro League provides a regular calendar of must-see events played in packed stadiums across the world.

In its first edition in 2019, Australia (men) and The Netherlands (women) were the inaugural Champions.

Each nation that competed on the women’s side of the event last year returns in 2020, which consists of FIH World Ranked No. 1 The Netherlands, No. 2 Australia, No. 3 Argentina, No. 4 Germany, No. 5 Great Britain, No. 6 New Zealand, No. 10 China, No. 12 Belgium and No. 13 USA.

USA begins their 2020 FIH Hockey Pro League campaign against The Netherlands on Friday, January 24. For a full detailed schedule, roster, news and more, click here.

#FIHProLeague
#MyProLeagueMoment
#HockeyInvites

USFHA media release



EuroHockey Indoor Championship 2020 (M) - Day 1
Berlin, Germany

17 Jan 2020     POL v UKR (Pool A)     5 - 4
17 Jan 2020     AUT v RUS (Pool A)     5 - 3
17 Jan 2020     CZE v NED (Pool B)     2 - 6
17 Jan 2020     GER v BEL (Pool B)         12 - 1
17 Jan 2020     RUS v UKR (Pool A)     5 - 3
17 Jan 2020     POL v AUT (Pool A)     3 - 5
17 Jan 2020     BEL v NED (Pool B)         4 - 7
17 Jan 2020     CZE v GER (Pool B)     2 - 12

Pool Standings

Pool A

Rank Team Played Wins Draws Losses Goals For Goals Against Goal Difference Points
1 Austria 3 3 0 0 16 7 9 9
2 Russia 2 1 0 1 8 8 0 3
3 Poland 2 1 0 1 8 9 -1 3
4 Ukraine 3 0 0 3 8 16 -8 0

Pool B

Rank Team Played Wins Draws Losses Goals For Goals Against Goal Difference Points
1 Germany 2 2 0 0 24 3 21 6
2 Netherlands 2 2 0 0 13 6 7 6
3 Belgium 2 0 0 2 5 19 -14 0
4 Czech Republic 2 0 0 2 4 18 -14 0

FIH Match Centre



EuroHockey Indoor Championship II 2020 (M) - Day 1
Lucerne, Switzerland

17 Jan 2020 10:00     DEN v TUR (Pool B)     3 - 7
17 Jan 2020 11:15     POR v BLR (Pool B)     4 - 5
17 Jan 2020 12:30     CRO v SVK (Pool A)     2 - 3
17 Jan 2020 13:45     SUI v ITA (Pool A)         7 - 2
17 Jan 2020 16:00     TUR v BLR (Pool B)         5 - 5
17 Jan 2020 17:15     POR v DEN (Pool B)     6 - 3
17 Jan 2020 18:30     ITA v SVK (Pool A)         5 - 5
17 Jan 2020 19:45     CRO v SUI (Pool A)         2 - 2

Pool Standings

Pool A

Rank Team Played Wins Draws Losses Goals For Goals Against Goal Difference Points
1 Switzerland 2 1 1 0 9 4 5 4
2 Slovakia 2 1 1 0 8 7 1 4
3 Croatia 2 0 1 1 4 5 -1 1
4 Italy 2 0 1 1 7 12 -5 1

Pool B

Rank Team Played Wins Draws Losses Goals For Goals Against Goal Difference Points
1 Belarus 3 2 1 0 18 10 8 7
2 Turkey 2 1 1 0 12 8 4 4
3 Portugal 2 1 0 1 10 8 2 3
4 Denmark 3 0 0 3 7 21 -14 0

FIH Match Centre



EuroHockey Indoor Championship III 2020 (M) - Day 1
Santander, Spain

17 Jan 2020 12:00     WAL v IRL (Pool A)         2 - 2
17 Jan 2020 13:25     SLO v ESP (Pool A)         0 - 9
17 Jan 2020 18:00     SCO v IRL (Pool A)         11 - 3
17 Jan 2020 19:25     WAL v ESP (Pool A)     0 - 9

Pool Standings

Pool A

Rank Team Played Wins Draws Losses Goals For Goals Against Goal Difference Points
1 Spain 2 2 0 0 18 0 18 6
2 Scotland 1 1 0 0 11 3 8 3
3 Ireland 2 0 1 1 5 13 -8 1
4 Wales 2 0 1 1 2 11 -9 1
5 Slovenia 1 0 0 1 0 9 -9 0

FIH Match Centre



Indoor men take the lessons from first international for 33 years


The Irish men’s indoor side in Santander

“A good day, a challenging day and a really educational day, an amazing experience,” John Jackson reflected after a draw and a loss marked Ireland’s return to indoor international action after 33 years.

The skipper fired home to earn Kenny Carroll’s side a 2-2 draw against Wales in Santander in the first of two ties at the EuroHockey Indoor Championships III.

They trailed 2-1 in the first half with goals from Alistair Clift and Rhys Bradhsaw with Callum Robson getting the Irish reply but they kept plugging away in an excellent second half performance to find the leveler at the end.

Game two was a much tougher baptism against an experienced Scotland side, captained by 2008 Olympian Stephen Dick, who pulled 11-3 clear in the second half.

The first half was relatively tight but Ireland could not convert any of the first three corners with UHC Hamburg’s Tommy Alexander picking off a series of good stops. The Scots, meantime, were clinical to build a 3-1 lead with Ross Canning getting the response.

Ireland began to chase the game too soon and Scotland preyed on this, running up the next three goals to move almost out of sight and five final quarter goals put Kenny Carroll’s side to the sword.

Speaking about the Welsh tie, Jackson told The Hook: “We made a slow start in finding our press and our out-letting structures and they scored a stroke.

“We clawed our way back into the game and the difference between the first and second half was pronounced. We started stringing phases together, pressing together, and it was very hotly contested.

“Our penalty corner defence was on it; perhaps our corner attack could have been better but we worked really hard, took the goalie off when we needed to get a result, just reward for our efforts.

“Hopefully it proves to be an important point and helps us when it comes to Sunday and getting into some kind of medal game. Boys were in good spirits after that naturally.”

The two games were punctuated by a dip into the Atlantic, feeling the full effect of the 10-degree water to aid recovery.

Then it was straight into the tie against the Scots who were playing in their first game of the tournament.

Jackson felt it was a competitive first half, saying: “We worked their goalkeeper pretty hard. He was definitely the busier even though we were 3-1 down.

“We went and chased the game and that really bit us in the second half; they countered well, getting two more goals up, and they just picked us off time and again.

“We were naïve and got stretched and were neither pressing up nor were in deep defence and had quality across the court. Their experience told in the end.”

Nonetheless, as a first outing in so long, Jackson said it was an important day and a more than decent starting point on a new journey.

“Lots of lessons to be learned but we can take some positives. Our stats man had us with more circle entries so we are doing some good things but Scotland were that bit better in the circles.

“We will be put under way more pressure by a very good Spanish side so we will see how much we have learned. Slovenia might be the game which determines if we play for a medal.

“We did come here with high expectations, coming here to win and get promoted but this is our first foray into indoor, hopefully the first of many and future success.”

Ireland face Spain at 11.25am (Irish time – live streamed on www.eurohockeytv.org) before meeting Slovenia at 4.40pm. The Spaniards ran up 9-0 wins over both Slovenia and Wales to mark them out as favourites for one of the final spots.

Third and fourth place in the five-team group advance to bronze medal match on Sunday.

Men’s EuroHockey Indoor Championships III (all in Santander)

Friday: Ireland 2 (C Robson, J Jackson) Wales 2 (A Clift, R Bradshaw); Ireland 3 (R Canning 2, J Jackson) Scotland 11 (D Coultas 3, C Falconer 2, C Golden 2, J Golden, G Amour, E Sandison, S Dick)

Saturday: Ireland v Spain, 11.25am; Ireland v Slovenia, 4.40pm

Sunday: classification matches

The Hook



Scotland score 11 in sensational start to Men’s Indoor EuroHockey Championship III



Scotland got off to a blistering start at Men’s Indoor EuroHockey Championship III in Santander with a sensational 11-3 victory against Ireland. A hat trick from Dan Coultas; doubles from Craig Falconer and Cammy Golden; and goals by Gordon Amour, Jamie Golden, Stephen Dick and Elliott Sandison gave Scotland the eye-catching opening to the tournament on day one.

The Scots recovered from an early missed penalty stroke to take the lead after four minutes when Dan Coultas blasted home from a penalty corner to make it 1-0.

Just a few minutes later and Craig Falconer made it 2-0 to Scotland as they got off to a flying start in the opening quarter.

Before the Irish knew it, there was a second for Dan Coultas as Scotland went 3-0 ahead early in the second quarter. Ross Canning then pulled one back for Ireland from a penalty corner to reduce the Scotland lead to 3-1.

The third quarter brought a flurry of goals for the Scots. First Gordon Amour struck an early goal in the half for Scotland to go 4-1 ahead. Then a blink of an eye later and Coultas made it 5-1, completing his hat-trick in the process.

It went to 6-1 to Scotland when Jamie Golden added his name to the score sheet with another fine Scottish goal.

Ireland pulled another back from a John Jackson penalty corner as the quarter reached a conclusion.

The final quarter brought more goals and Scotland went 7-2 ahead when the captain Stephen Dick struck sublimely from a penalty corner.

Elliott Sandison then got in on the act to make it 8-2 to Scotland with five minutes left to play. The goal came from a lovely flowing movement up the court for Sandison to provide the finish.

Another Ross Canning penalty corner gave Ireland a third goal but Falconer quickly followed up with a ninth goal for Scotland.

There was no stopping the Blue Sticks. In the final minute Scotland hit double figures when Cammy Golden struck a penalty corner for 10-3, before striking again to make it 11-3 to Scotland with a last minute double.

Scotland play Slovenia and Wales on day two of the tournament in Santander.

Scotland Indoor Head Coach Stuart Neave said, “I’m absolutely delighted, the guys were absolutely fantastic and it’s great to make such a good start to the tournament. We were never out of control in the match, although there were little periods of pressure, but we definitely won each quarter.

“Tomorrow there’s two games so tonight we’ll refocus, look at the video and prepare for two tough matches. There’s a lot of good stuff to look at but definitely some things we’ll look to improve as well.

“Slovenia will be up for it after a tough result today then it’s a quick turnaround for Wales. We’ve made an excellent start but maintaining it will be the challenge. If we come through the next two games how we hope we’ll be in a good place.”

Scottish Hockey Union media release



2020 Test matches BRU v SGP (M) - 1st Test
Bandar Seri Begawan (BRU)

17 Jan 2020     BRU v SGP     0 - 6

2020 Test matches BRU v SGP (W) - 1st Test
Bandar Seri Begawan (BRU)

17 Jan 2020     BRU v SGP     0 - 5

FIH Match Centre



Landmark international matches for Brunei



It will be a historic first for hockey as Brunei is set to host its first men’s and women’s international matches against Singapore this weekend. While Brunei hosted the Women’s Asia Hockey Challenge in 2017, this is the first time both genders will play matches as part of an international fixture.

Brunei, whose men are ranked 88th in the FIH World Rankings and whose women are ranked 75th, are pushing hard to develop hockey at both elite and grass roots level.

Masnurfaiza Zaini, the Secretary General of the Brunei Darussalam Hockey Association says of the occasion: “We hope to inspire the younger generation to be more interested in hockey and see how Brunei has the potential to move forward internationally.”

Zaini adds that the national association is also seeking to develop the quality, performance and experience levels of officials working within the game. The long term goal is to develop the capacity to host more international events.

“We are still trying to improve ourselves in so many aspects, not only in terms of high performance but also to develop our grassroots programmes and technical officials development,” says the Secretary General.

“When we hosted Women’s Hockey Challenge back in 2017, that was an eye opener to our potential to develop in so many aspects. We hope to host more international tournaments here in Brunei.”

Hockey is definitely a growing sport in the Asian country. Coaching and development work is being carried out in schools across the country, with taster sessions and follow up courses attracting plenty of young people into the sport.

And if a positive attitude can drive a sport forward then the future of hockey in Brunei is bright. There is no doubting the passion and enthusiasm of Zaini. “We truly believe Brunei hockey can get better with the support that we have. Grassroots development has been a major focus for our association for the past year, and we can see the increase in the number of quality players who one day will be part of our elite athletes’ programme.”

The first day of matches between Brunei men and women and Singapore on 17 January saw the Singapore men and women register wins. Both the teams will play again on Saturday 18 January.

#Hockey4Life

FIH site



Selection set to be toughest yet with only 16 spots for Tokyo


Anna O’Flanagan. Picture: Deryck Vincent

Anna O’Flanagan is anticipating the most “cut-throat” selection processes as Olympic year begins in earnest this Sunday for Tokyo with their first match of their a warm-weather training camp in South Africa.

They deliberately travel with a smaller squad than usual for this kind of trip with just 20 players, 17 outfielders and three goalkeepers, due to July’s tournament regulations.

All other international fixtures allow squads of 18 but the Olympics limits countries to just 16.

It means the squad know, at the very least, two of November’s qualifier heroes will be cut from the panel, making for a really tough selection process.

“It’s the hardest we will ever face,” O’Flanagan said. “It’s what we have been building for. Other countries qualify every four years but there’s a lot of us for whom we have been working for this for 10 years or more.

“We know there will be big names who miss out and that will be difficult. With two less places, there’s massive competition.”

It is something coach Sean Dancer addressed last weekend at the first major training camp of 2020, emphasising the importance of each member of the 35-player panel buying into the team culture.

While temperatures drop and the rain has lashed, they have all been raising the temperature for what is expected to be one of the hottest Games on record.

That has meant several heat chamber sessions, hitting the treadmill or exercise bike for 60-minute stints with the dial turned up to 38 degrees.

“It is a shock when it is three degrees outside and lashing and you have just run from your car! The conditions are extreme and difficult. At first, I definitely struggled but I am starting to acclimitise and it got easier as time went on which is the aim.

“We will continue to do them over the course of the year. We initially did them for 60 full minutes but, in a match, you would have times in the shade so we are doing more than we would actually be exposed to in a match.”

The trip to Stellenbosch will also help. Thursday hit 36 degrees and more of the same is anticipated for some of their six-game series which starts on Sunday with a match against the South African hosts (2.30pm, Irish time).

Further games will be played against the Netherlands Under-21s and Germany. The schedule is designed to match the Olympic tournament where Ireland could play up to eight times in 14 days should they go all the way to the final.

“The big thing is we are hoping the Games will be eight matches in 14 days for us. It is such a high load for only 16 players, 15 outfielders. What has been set out for us in our plans is trying to replicate that.

“In South Africa, we only have 17 outfielders – at present, it’s 35 degrees and we will play six or seven games in a similar timeframe. It’s always about replicating Tokyo so we have done it before. Everything we do is aimed completely at that.

The travelling party features youngsters Ellen Curran, Hannah McLoughlin and Sarah Torrans who have a chance to stake a claim in the central panel while experienced performers like Nicci Daly, Zoe Wilson and Megan Frazer are not involved this time.

Gillian Pinder was not initially due to travel but has come in in place of Beth Barr who picked up an injury.

Sunday, January 19: Ireland v South Africa, 4.30pm
Tuesday, January 21: Ireland v Netherlands Under-21, 7pm
Saturday, January 25: Ireland v Germany, 3pm
Sunday, January 26: Ireland v South Africa
Tuesday, January 28: Ireland v South Africa, 7pm
Wednesday, January 29: Ireland v Germany, 7pm

The Hook



Olympic hockey qualifiers for Paris 2024 to be played in home and away format

By Liam Morgan


All 14 two-legged qualifiers for Tokyo 2020 were won by the home team ©FIH

Teams competing in the qualifiers for the hockey tournament at Paris 2024 will play home and away under changes implemented by the International Hockey Federation (FIH).

Seven two-legged men's and women's qualifiers were held to determine the final places in the Olympic hockey competition at Tokyo 2020, and the top-ranked teams played both games at home.

FIH chief executive Thierry Weil told insidethegames the governing body had altered the process for Paris 2024 to allow the lower-ranked nations to play one of the two legs in their own country.

A total of 28 teams across the men's and women's events competed in the Tokyo 2020 qualifiers.

The highest seeds were placed in one group and drawn against a lower-ranked nation from the second pot.

All 14 ties were won on aggregate by the home team.

Weil said the FIH would retain this system, but revealed the Paris 2024 hockey qualifiers would be held in March rather than the October-November period for Tokyo 2020.

"This will be fantastic for the smaller nation, to have the top teams coming to play there," Weil said.

"It will be great for promotion, great for their experience, for learning to set up events and for the hockey lovers in that country.

"For me, it is fairer if you can play a game away and a game at home."

Weil, a former marketing director at FIFA, praised the quality of the Tokyo 2020 qualifiers, which were well received by fans, players and those on social media.

"I have to admit, when I came in I was quite sceptical, mainly because we only had six weeks from the day we know who will play to qualifiers, to organising them, which is an extremely short period of time," he added.

"For those countries who had potentially never organised such a thing - like Canada, for example - that was quite a short period to set this up and put it in place.

"Also, from a commercial point of view, to make some commercial impact or sell it within six weeks - you can just forget it.

"If you try to pre-sell it, and you can't tell the people who is playing and where, it is extremely complicated.

"But then, I have to admit, when we played the qualifiers, you clearly saw this is one of the best things we have in hockey."

Inside the Games



Men’s National Team heads south for warm-weather training tour

Team Canada kicks off Olympic campaign with test tour in Chile



With a layer of snow blanketing Canada, the Men’s National Team sets its sights on Santiago, Chile for two weeks of warm-weather training and four test matches.

The Men’s National Team qualified for the 2020 Olympic Games in dramatic fashion on home soil in the fall. Since then they have been centralized and training in Vancouver, BC. This upcoming tour to Chile kicks off their 2020 campaign with the Olympics in July being the ultimate goal.

According to head coach, Paul Bundy, the objectives for this tour are three-fold: to play in a warmer climate, to give a broader group of athletes access to international play and identify gaps in their physiological and tactical aspects of their game.

Bundy, who has been the head coach of Canada since 2017 has led the team to the 2018 World Cup and now a 2020 Olympic berth. Their 2020 qualification marked only the second time a Canadian men’s field hockey team has qualified for back-to-back Games.

Team Canada will arrive in Chile on January 18 and immediately play a warm-up game against the host country. They will then play four officially capped games: two versus Chile and two versus Argentina. Argentina is the current Olympic gold-medal holder and ranked fourth in the world. Bundy said the ability to play two quality sides to kick off 2020 will provide an excellent opportunity for his athletes.

“Chile is a good, young team that defends well,” Bundy said. “And Argentina is the reigning Olympic champion. They are a very good hockey team and it will be good to set a benchmark against them at this point in the season.”

Both Chile and Argentina are Pan Am rivals. Canada beat Chile in a tight semi-final match in Peru at the 2019 Pan American Games and subsequently lost to Argentina in the gold-medal match. These rematches will offer some reflection and comparison for Bundy and his coaching staff and they plan to use this tour as a jumping off point.

“It’s important to identify gaps and give our players a chance to play meaningful games early in the year,” he said. “This will give us a good sense of what to tackle in our training block between now and Azlan Shah in April.”

Although the roster features many familiar names, some key players will stay at home and continue to rehab injuries suffered last summer or in the Olympic Qualifier in October. Mark Pearson, David Carter and young star Jamie Wallace are among those who won’t be making the trip.

There are a few fresh faces on tour as UBC’s Sam Cabral and Belgian-Canadian goalkeeper, David Vandenbossche will represent Canada on the senior stage for the first time. Tsawwassen’s Brendan Guraliuk, who has one cap to his name, will also make the trip looking to add to his international experience.

Check out the schedule and roster below and follow along on Field Hockey Canada’s social media and website for results and an event recap.

Schedule

JANUARY 22 – 8pm vs Chile
JANUARY 24 – 7pm vs Chile
JANUARY 26 – 5:30pm vs Argentina
JANUARY 28 – 5pm vs Argentina

*Game times are listed in local time (GMT-3)
Roster

PLAYER NAME POSITION PROVINCE
Antoni Kindler GK BC
David Vandenbossche GK BC
John Smythe DEF BC
Gordon Johnston DEF BC
Sam Cabral DEF BC
Scott Tupper DEF BC
Taylor Curran DEF/MID BC
Brenden Bissett MID BC
Gabe Ho-Garcia MID BC
Sukhi Panesar MID BC
Adam Froese MID BC
James Kirkpatrick FWD/MID BC
Floris Van Son FWD/MID BC
Brendan Guraliuk FWD/MID BC
Devohn Noronha-Teixeira FWD/MID BC
Matt Sarmento FWD BC
Oliver Scholfield FWD BC
Iain Smythe FWD BC
Keegan Pereira FWD ONT
Fin Boothroyd FWD BC
     
STAFF ROLE PROVINCE
Paul Bundy Head Coach BC
Gregg Clark Assistant Coach South Africa
Kelly Vanry Team Manager BC
Tricia Hayton Physiotherapist ONT

Field Hockey Canada media release



A dismal year for the national game

Anwar Zuberi



ABSENCE from inaugural FIH Pro League, failing to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, turmoil at home, allegations of corruption and lack of vision surrounded Pakistan hockey as incumbent PHF chief retired Brig Khalid Sajjad Khokhar played gimmick, first by sending PHF secretary Shahbaz Sr. home and bringing Asif Bajwa for the second time and later silencing the critics by inducting them into the fold. It can be described as “year of miseries”.

By keeping mum instead of reprimanding and sending PHF hierarchy home for Pakistan’s slump to its worst-ever 17th ranking in the world, former Test cricketer-turned Prime Minister Imran Khan’s silence deeply pertaining to national game annoyed the nation.

The nation is paying for what Khokhar and Shahbaz have collectively sowed despite “enormous funding”. The money was allegedly wasted due to ill planning.

According to last five years (2014-15 to 2018-19) figures available with Dawn, the government had doled out Rs420,422,790 to the PHF which include annual and special grants besides grants on the PM/President directives. After reports of alleged corruption in the press, the government didn’t release any funding to PHF in 2018-19. The federal government grant is besides the Sindh Chief Minister’s financial support to the tune of millions of rupees to the PHF.

Khokhar had disclosed in a press conference on July 18 that the PHF received Rs610m from the federal and Sindh governments during last four years and spent on 28 foreign tours. However, some of the foreign trips including juniors visit to Canada were a wasteful exercise and the PHF wasted government exchequers money.

The hockey fraternity has not mentally recovered from shock of missing the Rio Olympics when they received yet another bad news that Pakistan hockey team won’t be able to compete at Tokyo Games. Alas! A nation that has ruled the world hockey is now among the also-rans.

The country received first shock of the year on Jan 24th when the FIH suspended Pakistan from the inaugural Pro Hockey League after they couldn’t compete due to a paucity of funding.

Shahbaz, who had resigned on Dec 30, 2018 citing government’s apathy, resumed charge as PHF secretary on Feb 7 and Khokhar said ‘he had not accepted his resignation’.

It is pertinent to mention that Shahbaz in his resignation had said: “If government had no time to look into hockey affairs then he too had no time for the same.”

In Shahbaz’s absence, 1984 Olympic gold medallist Ayaz Mahmood and the PHF treasurer Ikhlaq Usmani worked on ad-hoc basis.

Five days after resuming power, the 1994 World Cup-winning captain offered olive branch to the critics of the game but to no avail as 10 former Olympians on April 8 again urged PM to sack PHF. The 10 ex-Olympians include Manzoor Hussain Jr, K. M. Junaid, Khalid Bashir, Hanif Khan, Waseem Feroz, Saleem Nazim, Tariq Aziz, Col Mudassir Asghar, Naveed Alam and Mohammad Saqlain.

On May 4, Khokhar dropped a bombshell by appointing former Olympian Asif Bajwa as new PHF secretary for second time by accepting Shahbaz’s resignation. It may be mentioned that Bajwa had earlier served under successive PHF chiefs namely Gen Asiz, Qasim Zia and Akhtar Rasool from 2013 to 2018.

Bajwa, who took over on May 6, had said in his opening statement: "Don’t expect miracles at 2020 Olympics." It is quite interesting to note that Khokhar had targeted Tokyo in 2016 after being elected as the PHF chief.

The appointment of Bajwa raised quite a few eyebrows indicating that no other sane person was available in the country then to reappoint a person on an important post on which he had already served.

His reappointment coincided with imposition of heavy cash penalty of $190,000 on PHF by the FIH for not fulfilling its commitment and backing out from the Pro Hockey League. It was announced that Pakistan’s fate will be decided in FIH disciplinary committee meeting in June.

According to Bajwa, backdoor diplomacy with Argentina, Holland and New Zealand counterparts in the disciplinary case before FIH produced positive results and the PHF managed to reduce penalty from $190,000 to $80,000 with bright chances of getting FIH nod to compete in 2020 Tokyo Olympic qualifiers. Pakistan had requested the three countries against whom it had to play Pro league, to withdraw their claims.

The PHF secretary said the FIH could fine $100,000 but it reduced it to half ($50,000) with the instructions to use the remaining on grassroots activities

Khokhar explained Pakistan’s position of withdrawal from Pro League before FIH disciplinary committee at Lausanne where he was asked to pay $50,000 in three installments. After paying first installment of $17,500, Pakistan was drawn to play two matches against world No three Holland on their soil and had to win the both for a getting a ticket to Tokyo.

In back-to-back meetings held at Islamabad midway through the year, National Assembly Standing Committee on Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) slammed PHF for national team woes while the Senate panel of parliamentarian on recommendations of its three-member sub-committee report called for immediately sacking of PHF president and secretary.

While Bajwa got vote of confidence from PHF Congress at Abdul Sattar Edhi Hockey Stadium on July 23 Khokhar refused to resign by taking responsibility of Pakistan’s consistent decline.

Manzoor Jr who was appointed chief selector said he will prepare a healthy pool of players with an eye on 2022 Asian Games and 2024 Olympics. The co-selectord include Ayaz Mahmood, Waseem Feroz and Khalid Hameed The committee was extended with the induction of Kaleemullah and Naasir Ali. K. M. Junaid was brought in as head coach with Waseem Ahmed, Sameer Hussain and Ajmal Khan his deputies.

A little earlier Dr Junaid Ali Shah and Haider Hussain’s Karachi Hockey Association (KHA) for the second time in four years was declared ‘legitimate’ body by the PHF. Both of them were allowed to represent Karachi/Sindh in PHF Congress.

Fast emerging Oman hockey team visited the country in Oct and played matches against PHF Development squad at Lahore.

The greenshirts, led by Rizwan Sr, left for Germany on way to Holland to play Olympic qualifiers in October. Germany outplayed Pakistan 6-1 and 6-2 in the first and second preparatory Tests respectively at Mochangladbatch.

A rejuvenated Pakistan held Holland to four-all in the first of the two Olympic qualifying matches in Amsterdam on Oct 26 but the greenshirts were thrashed by the Dutch 6-1 in the second game the following day that dashed their Tokyo hopes.

In a first of its kind incident, noted Olympian Islahuddin Siddiqui returned to Sindh government unused grant of Rs20m with profit. “I’m returning Rs27,614,326.31 through cheque,” he told a press conference at Karachi Press Club on Nov 23.

It may be mentioned that the grant was given to him for his Academy in North Nazimabad in 2014 but remained unused and he was asked to returned it with profit.

National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) defeated Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) 5-4 on penalty shootout after being tied one-all in regulation time to win the national title for an overall fifth time. The 65th National Hockey Championship was dedicated to one of the greatest sports administrator retired Air Marshal Nur Khan.

Obituaries: Eminent Olympians retired Brig Abdul Hamid ‘Hamidi’, Khawaja Mohammad Aslam, goalkeeper Zakir Hussain.

Dawn



Tenaga blitz minnows, but coach not pleased

By Jugjet Singh


Nor Saiful Zaini.

TENAGA Nasional won their fourth straight match in the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) when they hammered HockAdemy 6-0 in Bukit Jalil yesterday.

However, coach Nor Saiful Zaini was far from happy with his team’s performance as they have met only weak teams so far.

Azrai Aizad (second, 24th), Akhimullah Annuar Esook (eighth, 41st), Syed Syafiq (26th) and Arif Syafie (30th) netted for Tenaga.

‘The national players in my team (13 of them) are still heavy footed due to last year’s tough season while the others are still too soft in their approach.

‘Also, we’ve only met ‘weaker’ teams so far. The real challenge starts when we face Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) and Terengganu Hockey Team (THT),’ said Nor Saiful.

While Tenaga won easily, UniKL and THT were pushed to the limit yesterday.

UniKL defeated TNB Thunderbolts 4-2 while Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) fought gallantly before losing 5-3 to THT.

‘We will know where we stand when we meet THT on Wednesday,’ said Saiful.

South Korean import Jang Jong Hyun gave THT the lead in the first minute before UiTM responded through Danial Asyraf (21st) and Zulhamizan Awang Abas (24th).

But the experienced THT prevailed, with goals from Faizal Saari (28th), Fitri Saari (33rd) and Jong Hyun (54th).

The other UiTM goal was scored by Luqman Hakim in the 52nd minute.

RESULTS

MEN: TNB Thunderbolts 2 UniKL 4, HockAdemy 0 Tenaga Nasional 6, THT 5 UiTM 3.

FIXTURES

TODAY

WOMEN: HockAdemy v Sabah (Likas Stadium; 4pm), Mutiara Impian v PKS-Uniten (National Hockey Stadium, Pitch I; 5pm), Terengganu Ladies v Police Blue Warriors (Batu Buruk Stadium; 5pm).

New Straits Times



No easy start for Harte

By R.KIRUBASHINI


Under threat: UniKL’s Roel Bovendeert tries to flick the ball past TNB Thunderbolt goalkeeper Che Shahrul Azmi. — SHAARI CHEMAT/The Star

KUALA LUMPUR: Ireland’s international David Harte entered the fray in the Malaysian Hockey League facing high expectations – but he failed to live up to the hype in his first outing.

The lanky UniKL goalkeeper conceded two goals against minnows TNB Thunderbolt at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil. Although they won 4-2, they struggled for much of the match against the youngsters.

Much had been expected of Harte who captained Ireland in both the 2016 Olympics and the 2018 World Cup but the 31-year-old brushed off the below-par performance.

“We could have won with a bigger scoreline as we dominated the match, ” he said.

“Thunderbolt took the opportunities they had due to our own mistakes.

“Of course, you never want to concede as a goalkeeper but the most important thing was the win, ” said Harte, who only arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday as he had to be with his wife who is due to give birth soon.

The good news for UniKL is that forward Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin Tengku Abdul jalil, who underwent a jaw surgery on Thursday, was at the stadium to support his teammates.

He had been ruled out for the rest of the league but could yet make a return if he recovers sooner than expected.

UniKL and Tenaga are both tied with 12 points but Tenaga top the standings with better goal difference.

Thunderbolt surprised the fancied UniKL side by taking the lead in the fourth minute off a field goal by Nasrul Syahkhir Sadikul.

Hardly a minute later, Mohd Razie Abdul Rahim equalised off a penalty corner drag flick. UniKL kept up the pressure and added another two goals to take a comfortable lead.

Izwan Firdaus Ahmad Tajuddin scored from close range in the 14th minute before Mohamad Faid Farhadh made it 3-1 in the 25th minute.

But Thunderbolt still managed to reduce the deficit in the 46th minute off a penalty corner goal by Mohd Fahmi Khalid.

In the 49th minute, Australian Timothy Deavin scored from an acute angle to make it 4-2 and regain the two-goal lead.

UniKL coach Arul Selvaraj said the team were caught off guard when Thunderbolt scored the first goal.

“We are unhappy with the mistakes we made and for failing to capitalise on the chances we had, ” he said. “Anyway, we secured the three points and are on the right track to win the league, ” he added.

The Star of Malaysia



De Greve steps back after glorious tenure at Waterloo Ducks



Waterloo Ducks’ EHL winning coach Xavier de Greve has decided to step back from coaching the club after 11 seasons, including five as men’s head coach, at the end of the season.

De Greve has been a club member with the WatDucks since he was eight. As a player, he reached the playoffs seven times between 2002 and 2009 and won Belgian Championships in 2006 and 2009 before moving into coaching.

He first trained the women’s first team for six season, combining the role as T2 to two of the greatest coaches in Belgian hockey history, Pascal Kina and Shane McLeod.

During this period, the side became men’s champion three times from 2012 to 2014. De Greve took over the head coach role in 2015, culminating in a run to the Euro Hockey League title in 2019 in Eindhoven.

De Greve has combined his job for two years as French assistant coach, aiding their spectacular rise. He has also been the club’s youth school director since 2014.

The club have thanked him “for all these seasons of beautiful emotions and shared joys and wish him a lot of success in his future projects. By winning the EHL, you managed the unthinkable.”

Euro Hockey League media release



Scottish Women’s Indoor National League 1 enters exciting pool stage

The women`s Indoor National league 1 championship now enters its pool stage on Sunday at Bell`s with Dundee Wanderers, Watsonians, Edinburgh University and Grange in one group and Clydesdale Western, Inverleith, Grove Menzieshill and Hillhead in the other. In both pools the teams finishing in the top two spots will fight it out in the subsequent semi-finals, while those finishing last will enter the relegation contest.

After taking forward the relevant results from the league part of the competition, Dundee Wanderers and Watsonians have a good opportunity to finish one and two in pool A, and they meet head-to-head in the opening fixture of the day. At the moment Wanderers top the table with nine points with the Edinburgh side three points behind.

It was an 8-2 Wanderers` victory in the league encounter, with the usual suspects Emily Dark and Vikki Bunce doing most of the damage.

If Wanderers can repeat that performance it could set up an intriguing second contest between Watsonians and Edinburgh University, if the latter can see off Grange in their first game. That would leave both Edinburgh sides on six points, and all to play for on the day.

Watsonians were 6-2 winners in their league encounter, Emily Newlands was top scorer then with a second half hat-trick.

Grange are the bottom side with no points to date, they will need to pick up something from Sunday`s tussles against Edinburgh University and Wanderers if they have any hope of moving to safety.

There are many different scenarios that could develop.

Pool B has a similar look to it, Clydesdale lead unbeaten on nine points and Inverleith on six, and they are in opposition first off on Sunday.

Although Inverleith won four of their seven outings in the league, they went down 6-1 to Clydesdale. Much of the outcome may depend on whether the Clydesdale defence can put the shackles on Sarah Jamieson, she has already rattled in 14 in the seven matches to date, including a double hat-trick against Grange.

At this stage Grove Menzieshill and Hillhead have a challenge to be in the semi-final race, but if the Taysiders can see off the Glasgow side in their first game and then do the same to Inverleith in their second, then all things could change. However, last time out Grove Menzieshill went down 7-2 to Inverleith, so a tough contest is on the cards.

The Grove Menzieshill-Hillhead encounter could also be the relegation play-off decider, the Dundonians have their noses in front following their earlier narrow 3-2 victory, a game that remained tight right to the end. So it could still be all to play for in their opening match on Sunday.

However things go on Sunday it’s sure to be an exciting and entertaining day of indoor hockey.

Scottish Hockey Union media release



Police, Magnolias to defend national titles

By Nigel Simon

Less than two months af­ter be­ing crowned na­tion­al cham­pi­ons in their re­spec­tive men and women 2019 T&T Hock­ey Board In­door Cham­pi­onship Open Di­vi­sion cham­pi­ons, Po­lice (men) and Shandy Carib Mag­no­lias (women) will put their ti­tles up for grabs when the 2020 edi­tion of the tour­na­ment flicks off at the Wood­brook Youth Fa­cil­i­ty, Hamil­ton-Hold­er Street, Wood­brook on Sat­ur­day.

This year's com­pe­ti­tion has been brought for­ward to aid the se­nior na­tion­al men and women team play­ers in prepar­ing for their re­spec­tive In­door Pan Amer­i­can Cup in Lan­cast­er, Penn­syl­va­nia, USA from March 25 to 29, a qual­i­fi­er for next year's FIH In­door World Cup at a venue and date to be de­ter­mined.

The lo­cal men's team who qual­i­fied to the 2017 World Cup in Ger­many and are the reign­ing Pan Amer­i­can In­door cham­pi­ons will face host USA, Cana­da and Ar­genti­na from which one team will qual­i­fy to the World Cup, and in the women's six-na­tion qual­i­fiers in Lan­cast­er, T&T tack­les USA, Cana­da, Ar­genti­na, Puer­to Ri­co and Uruguay from which one team will al­so qual­i­fy to the World Cup.

Last No­vem­ber in the na­tion­al men's in­door fi­nal at Wood­brook, Jor­dan Reynos scored twice to lead star-stud­ded Po­lice past De­fence Force 5-1.

Fea­tur­ing a host of na­tion­al past and present play­ers, Po­lice al­so got goals from Dwain Quan Chan, Solomon Ec­cles, and Akim Tou­s­saint while Mar­cus James net­ted the lone item for De­fence Force.

The law­men will get their 2020 cam­paign off and run­ning against Queen's Park Crick­et Club, third-placed fin­ish­ers last year af­ter be­ing crowned cham­pi­ons in 2018 from 8 pm on Sat­ur­day.

The Parkites are al­so com­ing off a vic­to­ry in their re­cent Guyana and UWI In­vi­ta­tion­als, and a run­ner-up spot be­hind De­fence Force in the just con­clud­ed 17th Ven­tures Hock­ey Club Tour­na­ment.

Mag­no­lias, fresh of their ti­tle run in the Ven­tures Tour­na­ment will start their de­fence on Sun­day against long-time ri­vals Ven­tures from 4 pm, but be­fore that Malvern, sec­ond last year af­ter a 3-6 loss in the fi­nal tack­les Ven­tures on Sat­ur­day from 5 pm.

In last year's women's fi­nal, Sa­van­nah De Fre­itas scored a hat-trick, Tracey Lee-James added a dou­ble, and Re­bekah Ngui the oth­er for Mag­no­lias in their de­feat of Malvern.

The oth­er teams who will be de­fend­ing their ti­tles in­clude Po­lice (Vet­er­ans), Notre Dame (Trin­i­ty Men), Har­vard Check­ers (Trin­i­ty Women), Paragon (Un­der-19 Boys), and Mag­no­lias (Un­der-19 Girls).

Po­lice claimed the Mixed Vet­er­ans crown beat­ing QPCC 5-0 led by a dou­ble from Solomon Ec­cles and one each from Com­mis­sion­er of Po­lice Gary Grif­fith, Nicholas Wren, and Roger Daniel.

The fi­nal day of com­pe­ti­tion flicked off with the Un­der-19 Di­vi­sion Boys and Girls fi­nals with Paragon and Mag­no­lias ex­pect­ed­ly lift­ing crowns over Malvern (7-2), and Paragon (3-1) re­spec­tive­ly.

And on Sat­ur­day night, Notre Dame lift­ed the Trin­i­ty Men's Di­vi­sion ti­tle cour­tesy a 3-2 sud­den-death penal­ty-stroke shootout win over QPCC while Har­vard Check­ers de­feat­ed the Dames 6-2 in the Trin­i­ty Women's de­cider.

To­day's Fix­tures

Un­der-19 Boys: Shape vs Malvern, 1 pm
Trin­i­ty Men: QPCC vs Carib, 2 pm
Trin­i­ty Women: Har­vard Check­ers vs Paragon, 3 pm
Vet­er­ans: Shape vs Fa­ti­ma, 4 pm; De­fence Force vs Po­lice, 6 pm
Open Women: Ven­tures vs Malvern, 5 pm
Open Men: Fa­ti­ma vs Paragon, 7 pm; Po­lice vs QPCC, 8 pm .

To­mor­row's match­es

Un­der-19 Boys: Fa­ti­ma vs QPCC, 1 pm
Trin­i­ty Men: Po­lice vs Notre Dame, 2 pm; Shape vs Malvern, 3 pm
Open Women: Mag­no­lias vs Ven­tures, 4 pm
Vet­er­ans: QPCC vs Notre Dame, 5 pm
Open Men: De­fence Force vs Malvern, 6 pm

The Trinidad Guardian



Australian bushfires: Hockey India contributes USD 25,000 for victims

Hockey India has joined their Australian counterparts in raising funds for the victims of the devastating bushfires Down Under with a contribution of USD 25,000.

Hockey India also donated signed national team jerseys which will be put for auction and the proceeds will be used through Red Cross to help those affected by the wildfires.

Hockey Australia has expressed its gratitude in a letter to the Hockey India president Mohd Mushtaque Ahmed.

“On behalf of the Board and Management of Hockey Australia, we really appreciate your support towards Hockey Australia’s fundraising efforts for the recent bushfires,” the letter from Hockey Australia president Melanie Woosnam and Chief Executive Matt Favier said.

“The signed India team jerseys will soon be included on our auction platform and there is no doubt that the generous support of USD 25,000 towards the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal will be very well received,” the letter said.

Hockey Australia said Hockey India's gesture will reinforce “the strength of relationships between Australia and India including our shared love for the sport of hockey“.

The bushfires raging in Australia since September last year have affected millions of acres of land, destroying more than 2500 homes, killing more than 30 people and millions of animals.

Sportstar

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