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All the news for Wednesday 18 May 2011

Technical Official Eric Donegani retires after 40 years


Eric Donegani(right) with Ken Read at 2004 Olympic Games, Athens

Canadian Eric Donegani, one of the most experienced international Technical Officials, recently announced his retirement from active duty after a national, continental and international career spanning 40 years and a vast variety of appointments. Eric is still a member of the FIH Rules Committee however, so his involvement in hockey is not over.

Eric started playing hockey at the age of ten in a junior program established by Dr. Harry Warren in Vancouver. He played for the Vancouver Hawks FHC, for the British Columbia provincial team and for the Canadian Team extended squad.

While still playing, he quickly took responsibilities as coach and manager, then as administrator. In 1971, he became President of his Vancouver club, and the first Executive Director of the Canadian Field Hockey Council, a professional position that took him for eight years to Ottawa during the preparation of the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, the first Olympic hockey competition to be played on artificial turf.

In 1980, Eric was elected Vice-President of Field Hockey Canada, a position he kept until 1995.

Eric Donegani started his involvement as a Technical Official in 1971, first in national competitions in Canada, but very quickly at continental and international levels. He was a Judge for the first time at an international competition for the 1975 Pre-Olympic Tournament in Montreal, then for the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, the 1983 Pan American Games in Caracas, the 1985 Junior World Cup in his home town of Vancouver and the 1987 Pan American Games in Indianapolis.

He graduated to Tournament Officer (TO) in 1985 for a Junior Pan American competition, then for the 1991 Pan American Games in Cuba, the 1994 World Cup in Sidney, the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, the 2002 World Cup in Malaysia and the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Eric was the Tournament Director (TD) for the 1997 Junior World Cup in England, the 1998 Champions trophy in Lahore, the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, the 2003 Pan American Games in Santo Domingo and the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. His last appointment was the 2009 Pan American Cup in Santiago de Chile.
When asked what were the highlights of this extraordinary career, Eric mentions:

• Being a co-founder of the Vancouver Hawks Club in 1965 and seeing it grow into one of the largest clubs in North America;
• Being the first Executive Director for Field Hockey in Canada during the exciting build up to the 1976 Montreal Olympics.  It was historic to be involved with the Montreal Olympic Organizers and the FIH when the decision was made to play the games on artificial turf.
• Being the Canadian FHA Vice President in charge of the men’s national team program when Canada won its first Pan American gold medal in 1983 and then repeated in 1987.
• Being an international official for thirty-five years from 1975 to 2010.  The highlight was being appointed as TD for the Sydney Olympics and also being “on the table” for three Olympic finals: Montreal, Atlanta and Athens.
• But by far the most special part of being involved with international hockey is the incredible number of friendships that he has made with people from all corners of the world!

The Pan American Hockey Federation (PAHF) would like to thank Eric for his years of dedicated commitment to hockey and wishes him well in his retirement.

Pan American Hockey Press Release

Scots face English test as preparations continue for international competitions

Head coach Russell Garcia will lead Scotland Men against England this weekend when the two countries meet in two international matches at Lilleshall on 21-22 May.

Garcia names sixteen players in his squad for the English encounters, and although the matches are uncapped, the matches will still provide Scotland with vital preparation and experience against nation ranked in the world’s top ten, as they prepare for the FIH Champions Challenge in France and the EuroHockey Nations Trophy in Ukraine later this summer.

“The experience will be good for the players and the matches against England are an important part of our preparations for the Champions Challenge and European competition, in particular. We performed well against Canada recently, so we know we can compete against nations ranked higher than us. We can work further on developing a game plan for matches against these international teams and we’re all looking forward to this weekend.

Scottish National League champions Glynhill Hotel Kelburne provide eight players travelling to Lilleshall for the two matches, including newly crowned Young Player of the Year, Michael Bremner, and Player of the Year, Michael Christie, who has been in great goal-scoring form for the Paisley outfit this season.

Bowden HC duo Jamie Cachia and Ross Stott, together with Surbiton’s Chris Grassick, will make the short journey to the England base for the Scots, whilst Edinburgh University veteran Graham Moodie also returns to the squad. With Niall Stott recently involved with Great Britain in Malaysia, there are opportunities for others to impress Garcia as the senior management assess the squad for the their forthcoming internationals.

Scotland Men: Mark Fulton, Michael Bremner, William Marshall, Michael Christie, Allan Forsyth, Gareth Hall, Gordon McIntyre, Iain Scholefield (all Glynhill Hotel Kelburne), Jamie Cachia, Ross Stott (Bowden HC), Graham Moodie (Edinburgh University), Russell Anderson (Brooklands), Chris Grassick (Surbiton), Gavin Byers (Grove Menzieshill), Wei Adams (AMN Hillhead), Callum Milne (Grange HC).

Scottish Hockey Union media release

Delhi win Fed Cup

Kusum Arora

Jalandhar: The Delhi men’s team lifted the Federation Cup Hockey title as they defeated a spirited Punjab side 2-1, while Haryana eves had a cakewalk as they thrashed the hopes of Punjab 4-1 at the PAP Astroturf in Jalandhar on Tuesday.

Earlier in the day, an organized Delhi team dominated Punjab right from the word go. Delhi took the lead and opened their account in the 13th minute of the game when Mohit posted a field goal 0-1. Till half time the winners were leading 0-1.

The second half of the match saw Punjab score an equaliser through Karanpal Singh (1-1). Punjab missed many scoring opportunities while hitting Delhi on the counter, and lost as many as seven golden chances of capitalising on penalty corners. For Delhi, Munish Rana scored the final goal in the 53rd minute, leading the team to victory.

The Tribune

IOC beat Karnataka XI in the quarters

s2h team

Mumbai, May 17 Captain Deepak Thakur leading by example scored a brilliant hat-trick to help Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) rally brilliantly to overcome Karnataka XI 4-3 in quarter-final match of the DCB Presents Aga Khan hockey tournament - 2011, at the Bombay Gymkhana ground, on Tuesday.

In a match of fluctuating fortunes, IOC conceded the lead thrice but fought back gallantly to pull off the win and book their place in the last four. Hamza Mujthaba got the other goal for the winners. Karnataka got their goals through a penalty stroke conversion by Deepak M R and field goals from Muthana P R and Nitin Thimmaiah.

Karnataka have themselves to blame for the defeat as they missed a penalty stroke in the 60th minute and a couple of easy chance late in the game. Deepak’s attempt was saved by Baljit Singh, who dived to his right to push the ball out.

Earlier in the afternoon, Rail Coach Factory (RCF), Kapurthala scored a well-deserved 4-2 win against outfit Bandra Select in a first round match. The winners enjoyed a narrow 1-0 lead at the end of the first half.

The highlight of the kapurthala side’s victory was the two goals scored by Roop Singh in a space on nine minutes. Deepak and Ranjod Singh got the other two goals for the Punjab team. Peter Fernandez and Saad Pathan wala were on target for the Bandra lads.

Results

1st round: RCF, Kapurthala 4 (Deepak 12th min, Roop Singh 40th, 49th, Ranjod Singh 69th) beat Bandra Select 2 (Peter Fernandez 42nd, Saad Pathan wala 63rd).

Quarter-final: Indian Oil 4 (Deepak Thakur 21st, 67th, 69th, Hamza Mujthaba 46th) beat Karnataka XI 3 (Deepak M R 15th (PS), Muthana P R 34th, Nitin Thimmaiah 63rd).

Today’s sports/ Sports Clock DCB Present Aga Khan Hockey Tournament: RCF SA, Kaurthala or Companeroes vs Central Railway, 5.00 pm; BEG, Pune vs RCF, Mumbai, 7.00 pm, at Bombay Gymkhana ground, M.G. Road.

Stick2Hockey.com

Five-star performance by BPCL

The BPCL thrashed Indian Oversees Bank 5-0 to reach the semifinal of the Aga Khan hockey tournament at the Bombay Gymkhana, here on Tuesday.

Both the squads had an addition to their squad as Rupinder Singh of IOB and Ravipal Singh of BPCL returned from national duty to take their places in the sides.

BPCL got off the tracks quickly and the IOB goalie KH Shan had to make a number of saves. It was the 13th minute in which IOB finally pierced the BPCL circle and this attack yielded them a penalty corner. Rupinder Singh, who scored six goals in the Azlan Shah, managed only a weak pass that was easily dealt with.

The Banglore side’s pressure paid off as Birender Lakra found himself free with the defenders occupied with other attackers on the other side of the post. A pinpoint through ball was followed by a powerful shot by Lakra that got past Shan.

IOB increased the pressure on them in the second half but BPCL dealt with the attack with ease and counter attacked. In one such reversal, they won a penalty corner and a superb dummy by skipper Ajay Saroha left Gurpreet Singh with just the keeper to beat in the 42nd minute. He doubled the lead with a powerful drive into the bottom corner.

BPCL sealed the game late on when Jarnail Singh trapped a pass from the half line into the circle and finished with a diving reverse hit in the 58th minute. They made it a complete rout when Jarnail Singh another in the very next minute. Amar Aiyama scored just before the final whistle to make it 5-0.

The tournament lasted only one match for Rupinder, who was unable to use his drag-flicks on grass. “It is very difficult to stop the ball and drag it on this surface,” he said.

The 21-year-old was not pleased with his own and the collective defensive performance in the game. He said, “When you have conceded so many goals it’s evident that the defense has been bad.”

About his performance in the Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia, the tall defender said, “It was a disappointing campaign on the whole but being the joint top-scorer of the tournament was quite pleasing on a personal level.”

Earlier, captain Deepak Thakur leading by example scored a brilliant hat-trick to help Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) rally brilliantly to overcome Karnataka XI 4-3 in their quarterfinal match.

In another match, Rail Coach Factory (RCF), Kapurthala scored a well-deserved 4-2 win against outfit Bandra Select in a first round match. The winners enjoyed a narrow 1-0 lead at the end of the first half.

The highlight of the Kapurthala side’s win was the two goals scored by Roop Singh in a space on nine minutes. His first goal in the 40th minute and added the second in the 49th minute. Deepak and Ranjod Singh got the other two goals for the Punjab team. Peter Fernandez and Saad Pathan wala were on target for the Bandra lads.

DNA

Thakur's hat-trick leads IOC to brilliant win in Aga Khan hockey

MUMBAI: Skipper Deepak Thakur led from the front scoring a hat-trick to help Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) beat Karnataka XI 4-3 in the quarterfinal match of the Aga Khan hockey tournament 2011 at the Bombay Gymkhana ground on Tuesday.

In a match of fluctuating fortunes, IOC conceded the lead thrice but fought back gallantly to pull off the win and book their place in the last four stage.

Hamza Mujthaba got the other goal for the winners. Karnataka got their goals through a penalty stroke conversion by Deepak M R and field goals from Muthana P R and Nitin Thimmaiah.

Karnataka had themselves to blame for the defeat as they missed a penalty stroke in the 60th minute and a couple of easy chances late in the game.

Deepak's attempt was saved by Baljit Singh, who dived to his right to push the ball out.

Earlier in the afternoon, Rail Coach Factory (RCF), Kapurthala scored a well-deserved 4-2 win over Bandra Select in a first round match.

The winners enjoyed a narrow 1-0 lead at the end of the first half.

The highlight of Kapurthala's victory was the two goals scored by Roop Singh in a space of nine minutes. Deepak and Ranjod Singh got the other two goals for the Punjab team.

Peter Fernandez and Saad Pathanwala were on target for the Bandra lads.

In another quarterfinal encounter, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) proved too good for Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), Chennai, winning by a handsome 5-0 margin to storm into the semifinal.

BPCL, leading by just a solitary goal at half-time, produced a solid combined display in the second session to run away worthy winners.

Jarnail Singh netted a brace, while Birendra Lakra, Gurpreet Singh and Amar Aiyama contributed one each to complete the rout.

The Times of India

Rupinder is here to stay, says Jugraj

Sudheendra Tripathi

MUMBAI: Indian hockey has an uncanny knack up throwing up quality drag-flickers. Jugraj Singh was the first and easily the finest exponent of this lethal weapon. Thereafter many, including Sandeep Singh, Len Aiyappa, Dhanajay Mahadik, Diwakar Ram, to name a few, followed. Unfortunately, not all of them were blessed with an all-round game. But if Jugraj is to be believed, India's latest drag-flick sensation, Rupinder Pal Singh, is indeed an exception.

"I can assure you that this boy is going to stay," Jugraj, India's short corner coach, told the TOI.

"Our drag flickers have been found wanting when it comes to counting the overall skill level. But Rupinder is different. He is a quick learner and can be used in attack and in defense. His field game is way better than many," he added.

Not for nothing is Rupinder in awe of Jugraj and indebted to the master too. "Whatever I have learnt is from him. He has shaped up my drag flick action," Rupinder who, turned out for the Indian Overseas Bank, Chennai, in a losing cause against Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) in the Aga Khan hockey tournament at Bombay Gymkhana on Tuesday, said.

The Rupinder-Jugraj combine first came in contact during the junior India camp in Delhi in 2005.

"The moment I saw him, I knew he had some spark. He had great physique and looked very confident," Jugraj said. "Se we began working and he came across as a very good student. He did what he was told with complete dedication. Now, his career graph can only go up."

Rupinder made his international debut during the previous edition of the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament. But, being a green-horn, opportunities were few and far between. So, they went back to the drawing board and hard hours of training later emerged a much more efficient Rupinder.

It paid off when he got a national call-up due to his noticeable performances on the domestic circuit. Rupinder not only made the mark, but also created a huge impact. He was the only Indian player to be selected in the Aga Khan XI.

But Rupinder admits there is room for improvement. "Accha lagta hai. All this attention is very pleasing, but I know I can improve a few notches more. But I am pretty confident about my drag-flicks," he said.

For a small-town boy from Faridkot, Rupinder sure has come a long way.

Results: QF: Indian Oil 4 (Deepak Thakur 21, 67, 69, Hamza Mujthaba 46) beat Karnataka XI 3 (Deepak M R 15 (PS), Muthana PR 34, Nitin Thimmaiah 63); Bharat Petroleum 5 (Birendra Lakra 13, Gurpreet Singh 42, Jarnail Singh 58, 59, Amar Aiyama 70) beat IOB, Chennai 0.

The Times of India

Azlan Shah team missed experienced players: Halappa

NEW DELHI: Indian hockey captain Arjun Halappa says the lack of experienced players was one of the reasons for the team's disappointing performance in the Azlan Shah Cup, where they finished sixth at the bottom of the table.

On the team's return from Ipoh, Malaysia, Halappa said that the youngsters in the team benefited a lot from the exposure and they will be better off for the experience.

India were the co-defending champions with South Korea in the tournament.

"It is a disappointing result. We would have liked a podium finish," said Halappa.

"Experience counts in pressure situations and we missed out on it. We could not hold onto the lead or consolidate the position after forging ahead in some of the matches. Simply put, we could not finish matches after being on top."

"All the same, the youngsters were able to test themselves against top teams and they must have learnt a lot from the tournament. It was important to give the youngsters an opportunity, if you are looking to have a bunch of 35-40 players good enough to play at the top level," said Halappa, who was leading the team for the first time.

Halappa said drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh, who scored seven goals, and forward Gurwinder Singh Chandi had a good tournament.

"S.V. Sunil, who was back after an injury kept him off for over year, is back in the groove."

Halappa said it is a learning curve for most of the players and they should make use of the experience profitably.

"We have been able to learn a lot and we all have to individually asses our performance. It is about 11 players gelling on the field.

"We have got potential. There are lot of things to work on. We have to work hard and need more match practice. It is a process and it will take time," said the veteran midfielder.

Asked whether he missed players like Sandeep Singh and Sardara Singh, Halappa said: "The team will definitely benefit with the experienced players."

The Times of India

Indian hockey needs fresh legs: Bhaskaran

NEW DELHI: Holding the game's administrators responsible for the team's poor show in the just-concluded Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia, former chief coach Vasudevan Bhaskaran has said that Indian hockey need fresh legs ahead of next year's Olympic qualifiers.

2009 champions and 2010 co-winners, India finished a lowly sixth out of seven teams in this year's Azlan Shah Cup and Bhaskaran said the need of the hour for the erstwhile powerhouse of world hockey is a strong bench strength.

"We have to qualify for London Olympics anyhow. We don't want to face the agony of not qualifying for the Olympics like 2008. But for that we need fresh legs in Indian hockey," Bhaskaran, who led India to its eighth and last Olympic gold in 1980 Moscow Games, said.

"When I was the chief coach the pool was almost the same and there is no big difference visible in the last five years. We don't have any dearth of talent but there is urgent need to nurture them. We need to forget the power struggle between Indian Hockey Federation and Hockey India," he said.

"People say that we missed midfielder Sardara Singh in the Azlan Shah Cup but that is not an excuse. We must have 3 or 4 players for each position. Why doesn't the administration try to broaden the pool? questioned Bhaskaran, who was the coach of the national team during the 2006 World Cup at Monchengladbach, Germany.

Lauding young penalty corner specialist Rupinder Pal Singh for his impressive performance in the Azlan Shah Cup, Bhaskaran suggested zone-based tournaments to broaden the country's reserve pool in hockey.

"Rupinder Pal Singh is the find of the tournament but he would not have been in the starting line-up if Sandeep Singh was there. That is not the right process.

"We must have proper set up and zone-based tournaments. Nobody knows how the players for national camps get selected, what is the criteria. There should be more players in the trials or it should be an open trial," he said.

"(Former chief coach) Jose Brasa had also repeatedly complained about the selection process. The new coach ( Harendra Singh) should concentrate on making the pool of players broader," added Bhaskaran.

He also blamed the players for lack of consistency. "We played well in patches. We managed a draw against World champion Australia and then faltered in relatively easier games. Deep defence was pathetic," Bhaskaran insisted.

Another Olympian Mohammad Shahid, under whose captaincy India won its first gold medal at the Azlan Shah Cup, was of the view that India should avoid over experimenting.

"Every time we lose a tournament and make excuse that this was a new look team. I think we should stop experimenting before the qualifiers to be held in February 2012. We have to play London Olympics to save Indian hockey," he said.

"We must field our strongest team in every tournament and try to win. If the situation remains the same, Indian hockey will die," Shahid said.

The Times of India

Poor show in Azlan Shah is a concern, says Maken

Union Sports Minister has raised concerns over Indian hockey team’s below-par performance at the just concluded Azlan Shah tournament. The two time defending champions, eventually finished sixth, after squandering leads against Pakistan (1-3) and New Zealand (3-7).

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of inaugurating the Hockey Training for children under “Come and Play Scheme” at the National Stadium, the minister said the timing of team’s dip in form ahead of Olympics qualifiers was disconcerting.

“It is a matter of concern for all of us the way Indian hockey team has performed at the Azlan Shah Cup tournament. In two editions before this, we were the champions and I had hoped that this year also we would win the tournament,” he said.

“We have two most important tournaments coming up — the Champions Trophy and the Olympic qualifiers. And unless we qualify, our run to the Olympics would be over as far as the hockey is concerned,” he added.

Minister added that both the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and National Sports Federations have to be made more accountable. “I have said earlier also that we would not like the government to be intrusive, we will ensure that any intrusive provision in the bill should be removed. We will also try to place some responsibility on SAI because it also needs to be accountable. It also has to play a very important role,” Maken said

“There is a lot of scope for improvement as far as SAI is concerned. So, it is not only the National Sports Federations only which we would like to give some targets but also to the SAI,” he explained.

Indian Express

US Women's National Championship team rosters announced

Ashley Meunier

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO – Athlete selections have been announced for the Senior Women’s National Championship at American University, May 20-27, 2011. Top field hockey athletes in the United States will compete for a highly coveted spot on the National Team roster and title of Regional Champions.

“These are the most elite athletes in the country,” said Lee Bodimeade, USA Women’s National Team Head Coach. “They will be assessed to continue on towards participation in the Olympic Games. We are seeking the highest quality athletes to represent the USA National Team and bring Olympic success to USA Field Hockey.”

Athletes will compete in six matches, including the finals on Friday, May 27 at 6pm. Following the conclusion of the Championship match, names selected to represent the USA Women’s National Team will be announced. These athletes will have the opportunity to train at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA, compete against top international competition and represent their country on the world’s biggest stage.

The following athletes have been selected to represent their High Performance Center at the Women’s National Championship:

Mid Atlantic: Tara Puffenberger (Dallas, Pa), Maxine Fluharty (Millsboro, DE), Brianna Davies (Annville, Pa), Ali Mcevoy (Gilbertsville, Pa), Hadley Bell (Pepper Pike, OH), Jenn Bradley (Pequea, Pa), Tatum Dyer (Windham, NH), Michelle Vittese (Woodbury, NJ), Jill Witmer (Lancaster, Pa), Nicole Fernandez (Tewksbury, MA), Haley Carpenter (Virginia Beach, VA), Katie O’Donnell (Blue Bell, Pa), Dina Rizzo (Annapolis, MD), Lindsay Cutchins (Suffolk, VA), Paige Selenski (Shavertown, Pa), Kim Kastuk (Putnam Valley, NY), Melissa Vassalotti (College Park, MD)

New Jersey: Roslynn Ellis (Amherst, MA), Alyssa Pyros (Shavertown, Pa) Kimberly Tunell (Wilmington, DE), Katie Evans (Newtown Square, Pa), Rachel Neufeld (Doylestown, Pa), Rachel Dawson (Berlin, NJ), Emily Wold (Freehold, NJ), Katie Gerzabek (Springfield, Pa), Katie Briglia (Phoenixville, Pa), Julia Reinprecht (Perkasie, Pa), Katie Reinprecht (Prekasie, Pa), Amanda Fleischut (Doylestown, Pa), Kathleen Sharkey (Moosic, Pa), Michelle Cesan (New Vernon, NJ), Meredith Long (Ocean City, NJ), Rebecca Stiles (Medford, NJ), Bridget Settles (Hadden Township, NJ), Sarah Dalrymple (Philadelphia, Pa)

California: Kendra Bills (Berkeley, CA), Torrie Albini (Escondido, CA), Deanna Kennedy (San Diego, CA), Emily Tregoning (San Jose, CA), Rachelle Comeau (Los Gatos, CA), Caitlin Collins (Yorktown Heights, NY), Kelly Dostal (Louisville, KY), Rebecca Spengler (Lititz, Pa), Erin Magill (Berkeley, CA), Lauren Greenwald (Carlsbad, CA), Katelin Peterson (Escondido, CA), Kelly Driscoll (West Chester, Pa), Caroline Nichols (Coralville, IA), Adrianna Crovo (Los Angeles, CA), Maren Ford (Ann Arbor, MI), Lauren Crandall (Doylestown, Pa)

Pennsylvania: Rhian Jones (Media, Pa), Kathryn Kirk (Lititz, Pa), Heather Susek (Plains, Pa), Nicole Nelson (Telford, Pa), Jaime Montgomery (Lewisburg, Pa), Laura Gebhart (Mount Joy, Pa), Stephanie Kratzer (Lititz, Pa), Katelyn Smither (Suffolk, VA), Jennifer Stone (Newtown, Pa), Shannon Taylor (La Mesa, CA), Rayell Heistand (Hamburg, Pa), Amy Daniel (Mountain Top, Pa), Lindsey Davenport (Dallas, Pa), Claire Laubach (San Diego, CA), Amy Swensen (Norfolk, VA), Kayla Bashore-Smedley (Shoemakersville, Pa)

New England: Lauren Pfeiffer (Mt. Laurel, NJ), Abby Beltrani (East Setauket, NY), Chapin Duke (Dedham, MA), Pamela Spuehler (Sudbury, MA), Melissa Gonzalez (Mohegan Lake, NY), Alicia Angelini (Boiling Springs, Pa), Nicole Schuster (Doylestown, Pa), Courtney Tavener (Winchester, MA), Kate Murphy (Millbury, MA), Georgia Holland (Stony Brook, NY), Kendall Deck (Bridgewater, NJ), Whitney Frates (Woodstock, VT), Corrine Mcconville (Lehighton, Pa), Carrie Lingo (Bloomington, IN), Emily Bastiaanse (Granby, CT), Macey Gaumond (Warren, MA), Jennifer Long (Allston, MA), Alesha Widdall (Whitney Point, NY)

South: Adelaide Knott (Winston-Salem, NC), Sarah Bietsch (Chambersburg, Pa), Marta Malmberg (Marathon, NY), Emily Cummings (Winston-Salem, NC), Jesse Gey (Greenlane, Pa), Stefanie Fee (Virginia Beach, VA), Meghan Dawson (Berlin, NJ), Jaclyn Radvany (Lawrenceville, NJ), Melanie Brill (Fleetwood, Pa), Kelsey Kolojejchick (Larksville, Pa), Caitlin Van Sickle (Wilmington, DE), Elizabeth Stephens (Chapel Hill, NC), Michelle Kasold (Chapel Hill, NC), Teryn Brill (Chapel Hill, NC), Katelyn Falgowski (Landenberg, Pa) Jaclyn Kintzer (Chapel Hill, NC)

Admission is free and open to the public. All matches will be played on Jacobs Field on the Campus of American University, 4400 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20016.

The designated University parking lot will be Nebraska Avenue, located on Nebraska Avenue between New Mexico and Massachusetts Avenue. Please note that all University parking regulations will be in effect.  Vehicles parking in University lots, Monday-Friday between 8:00am and 5:00pm, are required to use the pay-as-you-go meters located in the front of the lot ($1.50/hr).

The schedule is as follows with all times listed in local EST. Event news and results will be posted to the website daily.

Friday, May 20

2:30pm South vs California
4:15pm PA vs Mid Atlantic
6:00pm NJ vs New England

Saturday, May 21

2:30pm Mid Atlantic vs California
4:15pm NJ vs South
6:00pm New England vs PA

Monday, May 23

2:30pm PA vs NJ
4:15pm California vs New England
6:00pm South vs Mid Atlantic

Tuesday, May 24

2:30pm New England vs South
4:15pm Mid Atlantic vs NJ
6:00pm California vs PA

Thursday, May 26

2:30pm Mid Atlantic vs New England
4:15pm South vs PA
6:00pm NJ vs California

Friday, May 27

2:00pm 5 vs 6
4:00pm 3 vs 4
6:00pm FINAL

USFHA media release

FIH Youth Challenge 2011


Fiji takes part in the Age Fit program

On May 14-15, the FIH Youth Challenge 2011 took place. This global annual event, which was held for the 11th time, invited National Hockey Associations from all over the world to focus on Youth and its development.

Central theme of this year’s Youth Challenge was “Age Fit”, inviting NAs to focus on age specific coaching - appropriate to the age group, suiting the physical and mental capabilities of a certain age.

Each Association was sent an AGE FIT booklet outlining the player characteristics and needs of the different target groups which assisted in creating a wonderful and useful AGE FIT event.

NAs reporting on the event competed for one of the FIH stick packages consisting of 100 sticks each.

FIH President Leandro Negre said “It’s important to stimulate age appropriate coaching to give every youth player in the world a challenging experience which keeps them in the game for life. The Youth Challenge is an excellent platform to promote this. Being a FIH branded event it helps NAs reaching local and national media coverage, which raises the profile of hockey in their countries. This can only be good for our global hockey community”.

Reports and pictures of the event can be found on the FIH Youth page, which see by clicking here

FIH site

Trinidad and Tobago hosts Youth Festival

One of the most anticipated events hosted by the Trinidad and Tobago Hockey Board (TTHB) is its Easter Youth Hockey Festival, which is a major part of the evaluation process for their Youth Development Program.

The Primary Schools Segment of the tournament, which was again a success attracting approximately 30 schools teams, took place at the National Hockey Centre, Eastern Regional Sports Complex, Tacarigua on Thursday April 7th, 2011. The other segments of the festival were the U13 Mixed segment on April 20th, the U15 Boys and Girls segment on April 21st and the U21 Boys and Girls segment on April 22nd.

The tournament celebrated its 11th year in existence and the participation, expectations and role of the festival has grown considerably, imploring the TTHB to raise the standard of quality delivery to its main stakeholders - the sporting community and the youth of our country. One proud fact of which the 2011 Edition of the festival can boast is that it was run by the National Hockey Youth Committee of which all the officials are between the ages of 12 to 25, with the advisory support of senior officials of the TTHB.

Trinadad and Tobago Press Release