Welcome to the Fieldhockey.com Archives

Daily Hockey news updated @ 10:00 GMT

News for 17 April 2018

All the news for Tuesday 17 April 2018


The Hockey Social: Australia and New Zealand hockey rule the Gold Coast


Black Sticks captain Stacey Michelsen carried the NZ flag at closing ceremony

The Hockey Social looks back on a memorable Commonwealth hockey tournament for two Antipodean rivals and perfect send off for a retiring great

“There was powerful motivation for the Kookaburras to win one final gold medal for the retiring captain Mark Knowles’, writes Nicole Jeffery in The Australian newspaper. “And they refused to disappoint him.”

Six straight Commonwealth Games titles was confirmed in fine style with the win over the Black Sticks on Saturday night. That and a mountain of trophies and medals for Knowles to also savour.

Now, the Kookaburras will turn up for their first training session with a key figure missing and expectations galore.

Writes AAP: “Australia will now be expected to challenge for the Champions Trophy in June and World Cup in December, even allowing for the gaping hole Knowles’ exit leaves in the dressing sheds and defence.

“It has the makings of a golden year but in typical fashion, Knowles left them with one final message.

“Colin Batch the new coach made it absolutely clear that nothing matters along the journey except Tokyo,” Knowles says. “We haven’t been good enough in Beijing, we haven’t been good enough in London, we haven’t been good enough in Rio and this team now is preparing for Tokyo.”

The Morning Bulletin, meanwhile, preferred to dwell on the current.

“He retires after 318 matches, including an Olympic Games gold medal in Athens, two World Cup gold medals, and a 2014 player of the year award,” wrote the newspaper.

“Knowles first picked up a hockey stick at age four, and pushed around a paper ball made out of a Morning Bulletin newspaper.

“It was the moment team mate Jake Whetton placed the game ball in Mark Knowles pocket that perfectly ended the world-class athlete’s career.

“He found that ball for me, and that’s a small memento that will stay with me,” he said. “It’s not too often that you get to keep those things for yourself, so that was nice.”

Meanwhile, gold medals are being transported across to New Zealand after the women’s team beat the Hockeyroos.

“Pride was the major feeling for Stacey Michelsen as New Zealand received their first Commonwealth Games gold medal in hockey,” was the New Zealand Herald‘s opener.

Captain Stacey Michelsen had been there for the disappointments at the Delhi and Glasgow campaigns as well as the heartbreak at the Rio Olympics.

“Years of “almosts” and “so closes” were transplanted by a confidence which stunned their opponents into submission in front of a roaring bipartisan crowd that included Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.

“Late in the third quarter, Split Enz’ History Never Repeats boomed over the public address system as New Zealand went 3-0 up. That proved a prophetic anthem. Australia, a team which had won the title on four of the five previous occasions, were bound for defeat.”

What they said

Mark Knowles on making the right decision …

    “I feel completely at ease with my decision, I love playing hockey but I feel like it’s the right time. I am leaving the game when I still love it. I am fit and healthy and I can run around for 60 minutes and still celebrate. I wouldn’t give back a second of my career, but I am stoked these young guys got to feel how good it feels to win gold.”

Black Sticks’ Shiloh Gloyn on a gold medal in her first Games …

    “It’s indescribable really, I’m getting emotional just thinking about it. When it actually starts sinking in, gold is amazing, and playing at the Commonwealth Games has always been a dream. Just being here is amazing, but to win gold is the epitome of playing hockey for your country.”

The Hockey Paper



HA Congratulates Athletes, Coaches & Support Staff On Games Success

Ben Somerford



After an amazing 10 days at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast where the Kookaburras won a record sixth gold medal and the Hockeyroos won a silver medal, Hockey Australia (HA) wishes to pay tribute to all of the athletes, coaches and support staff who made the experience a success.

HA Performance Director Toni Cumpston said: "The support we received from Commonwealth Games Australia, along with the Australian Institute of Sport has been incredible.

"The work that was done in the lead up to and during the Games enabled our teams to have best preparation possible.

"I know that our Coaching and support staff were able to deliver their best efforts here because we have been well supported in and around the village.

"We know what we need to do at big tournaments such as this and so to have people working with us supporting our strategy and approach makes performances such as this achievable."

At the close of the Hockey tournament, HA also paid tribute to outgoing Kookaburras captain and Australian Commonwealth Games Team Opening Ceremony flag bearer Mark Knowles.

"Mark has been an incredible player for Australia and an inspirational leader of our team," Cumpston said.

"We had an opportunity to thank Mark for his wonderful contribution and remarkable career in Hockey at the close of the tournament, and I am really pleased we were able to do it in a way where he was surrounded by his team mates, family and friends."


Australian Men's coach, Colin Batch

Cumpston also noted that none of this would be possible without our two Head Coaches.

"Colin Batch and Paul Gaudoin continue to lead our teams with confidence and skill," Cumpston said.

"I am just so proud of them both and pleased that we have them working with our programs.

"Colin has really created a team atmosphere and belief across our player group that makes us a formidable opponent for any team.

"Paul has transitioned well into the Hockeyroos program and our results here, in achieving a silver medal, reflect the journey that this team is on as we look towards the World Cup in July this year."

The overall performance by the Australian Commonwealth Games team at the Gold Coast surpassed the performance in Glasgow by a significant margin.

Australia recorded a total of 198 medal and a total of 80 gold medals in 2018 versus a total of 137 medals and 49 Gold in Glasgow in 2014.

Australia regained the number one position at the Commonwealth Games following a 2nd place overall finish in 2014.



Hockey Australia media release



Poor conversion, lack of creativity behind Indian hockey’s no medal show in Gold Coast

Both teams played their worst games of the tournament when a medal was at stake.

Praveen Sudevan


Indian hockey at Commonwealth Games.

There are numbers that might explain the Indian hockey contingent’s failure to win a medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. We’ll get to them later. For, they reveal the areas that the men’s and women’s team ought to improve but the reason for returning empty-handed from the Games is more a mental one.

Both teams, especially the women, after their hard-fought semi-final defeats, seemed lacking enough mental energy for the bronze medal game. In short: both teams played their worst games of the tournament when a medal was at stake.
Disaster against England

The women, who’d beaten England in a group game, conceded six goals – four of them in the final quarter – in the bronze medal match. Until the first half of the match, they were just a goal down and had a chance of upsetting their opposition, ranked second in the world. But in the final quarter – after Sophie Bray added another goal for England – when they were expected to come up with a relentless attack (which they did against Australia in the semis) they cracked, collapsed and finished the tournament with a humiliating scoreline.

But this defeat, for Rani Rampal and company, was an aberration. Because they’d reached the semis, playing a level of hockey that was expected of them ahead of the tournament. Yes, against Wales, who are ranked 26th in the world (16 places lower than India), in the first match, they stuttered and lost 2-3. But the following victories – against Malaysia, England and South Africa – nourished the hopes of a first women’s hockey medal for India since 2006.

Barring the disaster against England in the bronze medal, this was India’s best performance in women’s hockey in ages. This team, under Rani Rampal, coached by Harendra Singh, is training hard and aiming high. Pre-tournament, they had won the Asia Cup, an away series in South Korea and were looking to win the top prize at Gold Coast. So, the England defeat shouldn’t demoralise them.

Harendra Singh, meanwhile, would want them to convert more chances they create and the ones they get. They converted only three of their 33 penalty corners in Gold Coast. In the bronze medal match, they failed to score off the five field goal chances they created and the five penalty corners they got.

OPPOSITION FIELD GOALS SCORED PENALTY CORNERS SCORED
vs Wales 1/6 1/15
vs Malaysia 2/5 2/7
vs England 1/7 0/1
vs South Africa 1/4 0/2
vs Australia 1/5 0/3
vs England 0/5 0/5
TOTAL 6/32 3/33

The conversion rates of silver-medallists Australia are similar to India’s. They have scored in five of the 41 chances they created and could convert only four of their 34 penalty corners. But they made up for that in defence, which was breached for the first time by New Zealand in the gold medal clash. Whereas, the Indian defenders – even if they didn’t give away too many penalty corners (about three per match) – the numbers suggest weren’t so strong.

OPPOSITION FIELD GOALS CONCEDED PENALTY CORNERS CONCEDED
vs Wales 2/4 0/2
vs Malaysia 0/1 1/2
vs England 1/9 0/6
vs South Africa 0/2 0/3
vs Australia 1/5 0/3
vs England 5/8 1/4
TOTAL 9/29  

Conversion woes remain for Marijne’s boys

The Gold Coast campaign would sting the men’s team more because this is first time in 12 years it has failed to clinch a medal.

“We can beat any side in the world on our day. I feel we can win a medal. But I don’t know whether we will return with a gold or not,” captain Manpreet Singh had said ahead of the tournament. The expectations, then, was not too high. So, Manpreet and his men would rue that they couldn’t even meet that.

Another thing that Manpreet had commented about before leaving for the games was India’s penalty corner problem. Even in their bronze medal winning campaign in the Hockey World League finals and the fifth place finish in Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, converting penalty corners was the main problem.

“Regarding penalty corner conversions, we have four specialists (drag flickers) in the team and we should be able to convert as many penalty corners as possible. I think we have improved on that front also,” he’d said.

They haven’t. Their penalty corner conversions this tournament:-

OPPOSITION FIELD GOALS SCORED PENALTY CORNERS SCORED
vs Pakistan 1/4 1/4
vs Wales 1/7 3/13
vs Malaysia 0/4 2/9
vs England 2/7 2/3
vs New Zealand 0/8 1/9
vs England 0/8 1/1
TOTAL 4/38 10/39

And Harmanpreet was the only one who

After the exhilarating performance against England in the last group match that saw Manpreet & Co overturn a 2-3 deficit and win 4-3 in the game’s last five minutes, India faltered in the next two matches.

The vulnerable midfield was weakened further by Rupinder Pal Singh’s injury in the semi-final and the bronze medal match. Manpreet apart, the others hardly injected the ball to the strikers. And, the striking, too, needed improvement.

As with the women, the men’s defence couldn’t cover the shortcomings of the attackers.

OPPOSITION FIELD GOALS CONCEDED PENALTY CORNERS CONCEDED
vs Pakistan 1/3 1/8
vs Wales 0/1 3/4
vs Malaysia 1/2 0/3
vs England 1/5 2/5
vs New Zealand 2/3 1/4
vs England 0/2 2/7
TOTAL 5/16 9/31


Results don’t bother Marijne as much as performances do. Which is why, despite a fifth place finish in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, he defended his team, who lacked several key players. But this was the best squad that he had put together and wishes to continue till the Olympics. And, neither the results nor the performance in Gold Coast would make the coach happy. He has quite a few things to iron out ahead of the Asian Games in August.

Scroll.in



Malaysia not in shape to battle for Asian Games hockey gold

By Jugjet Singh


Going by current form, the Malaysian men's hockey team are far from ready to win the Asian Games gold medal and qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Pic by NSTP/YAZIT RAZALI

KUALA LUMPUR: Going by current form, the Malaysian men's hockey team are far from ready to win the Asian Games gold medal and qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Failing which, they will have to try the tougher World League route to qualify for the Olympics, which Malaysia last played in 2000 in Sydney.

The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) have reiterated many times that they want to qualify for the Olympics via the Indonesia Asian Games on Aug 18 to Sept 2, but coach Stephen van Huizen's men are not in battle condition for the mission yet.

Malaysia must beat India, Pakistan, South Korea, Japan and China if they want to win their first Asiad gold medal.

Malaysia have only won one silver, in 2010 in Guangzhou, China, and six bronze medals since 1958.

Malaysia finished fourth at the last Asian Games in South Korea.

Based on performances in the Asia Cup, Azlan Shah Cup and Commonwealth Games, it looks like India are van Huizen's nemeses.

Malaysia's record against India in the last three encounters all ended up in losses. Malaysia lost 2-1, 5-1, 2-1 in the Asia Cup, Azlan Shah Cup and Commonwealth Games respectively. Malaysia ended fifth while India fourth at the Gold Coast Games.

The only silver lining for van Huzien's men is that they beat India 3-2 in the quarter-finals of the World League Semifinals in London, to qualify for the World Cup.

Van Huzien admitted that the Asian Games gold quest is not going to be easy.

"Overall going by our performance at the group stage I believe there is still much room for improvement and many areas need to be strengthened, because we will be playing in the Asian Games after this.

"And after playing against India and Pakistan (drew 1-1), I can see that the Asian Games is going to be a very tough tournament as South Korea and Japan are also expected to put up a good fight (for the Olympics slot)," said van Huzien.

New Straits Times



Kampong, Bloemendaal and Amsterdam stamp Dutch playoffs tickets


©: Frank Uijlenbroek/world Sport Pics

A double weekend in the Netherlands saw SV Kampong, HC Bloemendaal and AH&BC Amsterdam all sweep into the top four playoffs with Oranje-Rood making a big move toward joining them.

Kampong got their thanks to a 2-0 win over Den Bosch on Friday night before undoing EHL FINAL4 rivals HC Rotterdam 4-3 away from home on Sunday.

That latter win saw them win a cracking battle with Philip Meulenbroek’s pair of goals giving the Utrecht side a dream start only for Diede van Puffelen and Jeroen Hertzberger to level the games at 2-2.

Quirijn Caspers made it 3-2 with eight minutes to go before Hertzberger tied it at 3-3 with five left. Rotterdam went for the all-important win but they were caught by a last ditch Martijn Havenga corner goal to settle the game.

Rotterdam had beaten HGC 3-1 on Friday night with two goals from Albert Beltran but they ended the weekend with seven points to make up on Oranje-Rood with three games left. It means they must win all their games and hope the Eindhoven club lose their two.

Oranje-Rood did get an important 1-1 draw on Sunday against Bloemendaal with Niek van der Schoot scoring a beauty into the top corner before Tim Swaen equalised with a corner. Pirmin Blaak made a series of brilliant saves to preserve the draw.

Van der Schoot described it as “one of my most beautiful goals ever; I don’t score very often!”A win next Sunday against HGC will see them confirmed in the top four.

Amsterdam eased into the playoffs with a 5-1 win at HDM and a 6-2 win over SCHC.

Euro Hockey League media release



Herakles keep good EHL form rolling in Belgian league


©: Frank Uijlenbroek/world Sport Pics

Herakles continued their good form off the back of the EHL KO16 as they beat Oree 3-2 with all the goals coming in the second half.

Nick Haig’s corner was added to by Amaury Keusters scoring a clever second a minute later. Jacob Smith put them game out of reach at 3-1 in the 58th minute, keeping them ahead despite Ignacio Bergner’s stroke with a minute left. The playoffs, though, look out of reach for Herales with eight points and thre places to make up with just three games remaining.

Waterloo Ducks and KHC Dragons continue to dice at the top of the Belgian league table, level on 45 points at the top with a place in the playoff stages assured.

Dragons beat Daring 4-0 with Florent van Aubel starting the scoring before Alex Hendrickx doubled up. Felix Denayer and Jeffrey Thys scored in the last four minutes to make it look more comfortable.

The WatDucks won 4-1 against Leuven on the road and they remain top by a single goal on goal difference.

Racing gave their playoff chances a big boost with a 4-1 win over La Gantoise with two goals from Tom Boon, one from Conor Harte and an absolute peach from the left baseline by Achille de Chaffoy, a first time chip. They are now five points ahead of the Ghent club who sit in fifth.

Leopold drew 3-3 with Beerschot to stay in third place. Pingouin were officially relegated after their 4-2 defeat at the hands of Braxgata.

Euro Hockey League media release



Success all round for the Edinburgh sides


Scottish National Division Division 1 – Western Wildcats v Grove Menzieshill

This season`s Men’s Scottish Cup final will be an all-Edinburgh affair between Grange and Edinburgh University.

Having disposed of Grove Menzieshill in the previous round, the students travelled to the den at Auchenhowie to face the Wildcats in the semi-final and proceeded to tame them with a 2-0 victory.    A set piece conversion in each half settled the issue, Davyn Keuter opening the scoring with David Mawhinney repeating the dose in the second half.

Grange took a more tortious route, they were held to a 2-2 draw at Titwood.   After it looked as if the first half would finish goalless, there were three goals in the final four minutes.  Callum MacKenzie opened for Grange, David Nairn replied for the home side, and on the stroke of half-time James Nairn restore the Edinburgh side`s lead.

The second-place side in the league failed to add to their tally but Andrew Allan restored parity for Clydesdale with a penalty corner conversion… and so to a penalty shoot-out.   Clydesdale failed to impress in this department, only scoring once in their four attempts, while MacKenzie, Nairn and John McCluskey converted for Grange to give them a 3-1 winning advantage.

The women`s tie between Grove Menzieshill and Wildcats also required a penalty shoot-out to settle the issue.    Lucy Smith opened for Grove Menzieshill but strikes by Alex Stuart and Heather Aitken put the Wildcats in front.    However, with four minutes remaining Emily Watson levelled for the Taysiders after a scramble in the circle. And on to the shoot-out, after twelve efforts the score was still stuck at 0-0.  The winner finally came from Lauren Kingston to put Grove Menzieshill into the final.

Over in Peffermill, defending champions Edinburgh University women’s faced GHK in the Scottish Cup. The first goal was seen for Edinburgh University in the opening five minutes with Sophie Maunoer scoring a cracker of a shot. By half time, the score was 2-0 to Edinburgh with a successful shot by Bridie Marlow. The second half set off strong for GHK with a few attempted shots on goal, a cracking attempt from Lynsey Waddell, diving for the ball but just falling short and missing the post. However, Edinburgh University came out on top, scoring another 7 goals, with Sophie Maunoer scoring the final of the match, ending the game 9-0.

Scottish Hockey Union media release



Champs Kenya Police, Butali in winning starts

By AYUMBA AYODI


Butali Warriors midfielder Zack Aura (left) controls the ball during their Kenya Hockey Union men's Premier League match against Nairobi Simba on April 16, 2018 at the City Park Stadium, Nairobi. PHOTO | KANYIRI WAHITO |  NATION MEDIA GROUP

Champions Kenya Police and Butali Warriors launched their campaign for this year’s Kenya Hockey Union (KHU) men’s Premier League title on a good footing when they dismissed their opponents at City Park at the weekend.

Police upheld their dominance over Nakuru wedging them out 2-1 on Saturday, before Butali cracked on their systems to pip Nairobi Simba 2-1 on Sunday in what perhaps was the match of the weekend.

Butali could have claimed an early league’s lead but their match against Greensharks on Saturday was washed out with the Warriors leading 2-0 at half time.

The remaining half will be played at the two teams' convenient date.

However, the start of the league was marred by boycotts from the umpires, who were demanding their allowances from last season, forcing KHU to use team officials and players to handle matches.

The score line between Butali and Simba was not a reflection of the match especially for Butali, who could have scored more goals in the first half where they led 1-0.

Brian Musasia put the 2015 champions Butali ahead in the 13th minute from a penalty corner before Emmanuel Simiyu made it two from a field goal just three minutes into second half.

Then Simba’s assault would pay dividends when Shabaan Ali was set loose on the left flank to unleash a back hand past newly signed Linus Sang in the Butali goal in the 50th minute.

Butali have acquired Sang, who is Kenya’s first choice keeper, from United States International United University-Africa (USIU-A).


Sliders' Charity Miller drives during their Kenya Hockey Union women's Premier League match against Vikings at the City Park Stadium, Nairobi. April 16, 2018. PHOTO | KANYIRI WAHITO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

Brian Saina drew first blood for Police in the fourth minute from a beautiful field goal, but Nakuru level four minutes later through David Pewa. Calvins Kanu would score for Police what ended up as the deciding match in the 14th minute.

“It’s always a derby when we meet Nairobi hence not a game that you can take easily,” said Butali coach Dennis Owoka. “They forced us to play on the left and they actually succeeded.”

Owoka said his team will bank on their depth this season, having signed Sang alongside striker George Mutira and sweeper Nickson Amadi from Chase Sailors.

“Mutira has good pace and is skilful with the ball, something we lacked in the past two seasons,” said Owoka.

Simba’s skipper Arif Rajput acknowledged defeat as he rued missed chances.

“It’s our first match and things will change as the season rolls out. We also missed several players,” said Rajput.

The 1998 champions Sliders crushed Vikings 5-0 with a second half double from Doris Kirui in women’s Premier League on Sunday.

Besides Kirui (35, 41), Sliders' other scorers were Nancy Kibogong (11), Christine Mboone (11) and Anita Agunda (59).

Daily Nation



Ten Days of Hockey Made Derr a Coach For Life



Field hockey has a curious way of becoming one of the most loved sports in the world. When it collides with a lifelong passion to teaching kids through sports, it’s a recipe for success. Such is the case for Bob Derr, who has come a long way from his humble beginnings as a coach of the game.

Coming from a wrestling background, Derr has made a career as a physical education teacher since exiting college in 1972 and has been a recognizable face at Warwick High School and Middle School in Lititz, Pa. ever since. When he signed on, Derr’s responsibilities also included being the varsity track and field coach, as well as the middle school head wrestling coach. It’s been a dream job since day one; a man whose coaching philosophy is instilled in teaching and getting kids involved in sport and physical activity. It stems from the teachings Derr received as a student-athlete growing up. The resulting impact his coaches left on him naturally generated an equal life goal of giving back to the next generations of student-athletes.

According to Derr, he was very fortunate with coaches growing up because as a kid he just loved playing sports.

“I wanted to give them the same passion, discipline and training that my coaches gave me,” said Derr. “I wanted to give that back to the kids. That was my main goal was giving kids the best opportunity they can possibly have and realize it doesn’t come easy. It’s hard work, and that hard work and discipline will pan out and help you in your future life.

“Sports offers so many life lessons that carry over in your everyday life: in your job, raising a family, tons of lessons each and every day.”

With his hands in multiple sports over the years, how did such a recognizable coach get started in field hockey, let alone become accomplished in it?

Ten days is all it took for Derr to be an educator of the game for life. When Warwick Middle School’s field hockey coach unexpectedly resigned with a handful of practices and games remaining in the year, the Warriors needed a placeholder. Sandy Moyer, the high school coach at that time, asked Derr to step in. Back then, everything was laid out for him to finish those final ten days of the season: whole practice lessons, drills, plays for games. He and Moyer met every morning to review the practice sessions and cover every little question the newcomer had to the game of field hockey.

What Derr couldn’t predict however was the enthusiasm of his temporary players.

“I was so impressed on how much the girls wanted to be good,” commented Derr. “When I was showing them a move and how to move the stick, their eyes were as big as saucers.”

Derr loved every moment of it, so much that when those ten days came and went, he asked Moyer if he could do it again next year. The rest has been history in the making over three decades later as the second longest tenured coach in the Lancaster-Lebanon League.

Knowing nothing about the sport, Derr spent the next several months going through the process of learning the game from the inside out. He started by heading to the Eastern Field Hockey Camp run by Judy Wolstenholme, whom Derr knew from his days at West Chester University. From there, Derr and his team learned the sport together, one question after another.

Since then, Derr has also been the head coach of Sutter's Brigade for over 20 years. The club has generated countless memories for him, with just as many bright and eager players.

“I couldn’t even tell you,” said Derr when recalling all the fond years. “I remember when we first started, going into National Hockey Festival in 1991 when we took the team for the first time we ended up winning it in overtime. That was a great experience there, but we’ve also has some great experiences at Disney Field Hockey Showcase.”



His philosophy has never been stronger as Derr enters his 36th year of coaching field hockey. He doesn’t seem primed to hang up the clipboard anytime soon.

“You’ve got to love what you’re doing,” continued Derr. “If you want to coach, go out, go to clinics, camps and find people that are successful, but also have a true passion for the sport. You’ll be able to tell. I was very fortunate.

“You as a coach have to be a teacher. A good teacher of the sport that is able to break things down and simplify so young kids can understand what you are saying and what you want them to do. You as an individual show the love of the sport.”

Derr will continue behind the bench as Sutter’s Brigade transitions into members of Nook Hockey in Lancaster, Pa. With his entire staff coming in tow, both he and the athletes of Sutter’s Brigade are preparing for their next challenge of transitioning and mixing into the Nook Hockey system. All in all, it’s a win-win situation for everybody.

“I think it’s going to be fun,” admitted Derr. “It’s going to be exciting, going to be challenging, going to be competitive. As a coach you can’t ask for more.”

USFHA media release

Fieldhockey.com uses cookies to assist with navigating between pages. Please leave the site if you disagree with this policy.
Copyright remains with the credited source or author