Sport Ireland Campus to play host to series of Irish international fixtures

The Irish men are set to play their first capped international fixtures in Dublin since May 2019 as they welcome Chile and Austria for final warm-up games in the Sport Ireland Campus next week ahead of the EuroHockey Championship qualifiers in late August.

In addition, the Irish senior women will also play two uncapped games against France at the venue as they, too, get back into gear for the Euro qualifiers following their World Cup campaign.

It will be the first time the Sport Ireland Campus has hosted a formal senior international fixture and acts as preparation for the senior women’s hosting of their qualifier at the venue.

For the 14th-ranked men, coach Mark Tumilty has named a 23-player panel with Lisnagarvey’s Mark McNellis the one addition to the panel having missed the recent successful series against Italy and the Four Nations tournament in Glasgow. Charlie Rowe steps out this time.

They will face world number 23 side Chile three times in what should be a strong challenge following their run to the Pan-America Cup final in January. Those games will start next Tuesday, August 2nd with the second game on Wednesday, August 3rd and the closing one on Tuesday, August 9th.

Ireland will then face Austria (ranked 20th) on Saturday, August 6th and Sunday, August 7th, a showdown which usually has plenty of spice to it and lots of goals based on their most recent meetings.

“The players and staff are looking forward to our first games in Dublin since the summer of 2019,” said Tumilty of the series.

“These are an important series of matches as they are the final preparation before we go to Calais for the Euro qualifier. I feel we have made progress in recent months but we must continue to develop as a group during this series. It is also vital that the results are positive”.

“Chile and Austria will pose different challenges to the squad than we have previously experienced this summer due to their playing styles, and I look forward to seeing how we overcome those challenges.”

For the women, it will be their first fixture since the World Cup which saw Ireland finish in 11th place overall. Caoimhe Perdue is a doubt due to a hand injury sustained against South Africa in the classification matches.

Their games take place on Saturday, August 6th and Monday, August 8th while a development team will face the French on Friday, August 5th, offering an opportunity for young players to step up.

 

Ireland men’s panel for series against Chile and Austria, Abbotstown

Mark Ingram (Pembroke)

Jaime Carr (KHC Leuven)

James Milliken (Lisnagarvey)

Kyle Marshall (Old Georgians)

Tim Cross (Annadale)

Luke Madeley (Gantoise)

Johnny Lynch (Lisnagarvey)

Rory Patterson (Wimbledon)

Luke Witherow (Banbridge)

Mark McNellis (Lisnagarvey)

Neal Glassey (Annadale)

Michael Robson (Annadale)

Sam Hyland (YMCA)

Nick Page (Old Georgians)

Sean Murray (Gantoise)

Daragh Walsh (Braxgata)

Callum Robson (Annadale)

Ben Johnson (Three Rock Rovers)

Kevin O’Dea (UCD)

Conor Empey (SCHC)

Johnny McKee (Banbridge)

Ben Walker (Braxgata)

Jeremy Duncan (Monkstown)

 

Fixture schedule (all at Sport Ireland Campus, Abbotstown)

Men

Tuesday, August 2: Ireland v Chile, 7.45pm

Wednesday, August 3: Ireland v Chile, 7.45pm

Friday, August 5: Austria v Chile, 7.45pm

Saturday, August 6: Ireland v Austria, 3.30pm

Sunday, August 7: Ireland v Austria, 9.30am

Tuesday, August 9: Ireland v Chile, 7.45pm

 

Women (uncapped fixtures)

Friday, August 5: Ireland Development side v France, 5.30pm

Saturday, August 6: Ireland v France, 12.30pm

Monday, August 8: Ireland v France, 5.30pm

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‘Sport for All’ Disability Supports Club Funding

As part of 2022 NGB Dormant Accounts Fund, Sport Ireland will provide a €2,000,000 ‘Sport for All’ Disability Supports Club Fund. The Scheme will be open to the affiliated clubs of Sport Ireland Recognised National Governing Bodies only. This fund offers every club affiliated with a Sport Ireland recognised National Governing Body an opportunity to provide inclusive opportunities for participation for people with a disability. It will provide funding supports for local clubs to connect in a meaningful way with their community, potentially even building the club’s own community over time through the inclusion of people with a disability in all club activities.

A minimum application amount of €1,000 and maximum application amount of €5,000 is available for clubs to apply to their NGB for the following:

  • Disability Supports Education & Training.
  • Disability Supports Programme Activation and Delivery.
  • Disability Supports Small Scale Equipment and Infrastructure

For examples of what to include in your application, see the following spreadsheet DAF Club Support Budget H4A

To apply for the funding click here

Deadline for applications is 26th Aug 2022.

If you have any question, please don’t hesitate your Regional Development Officer, or Sue at: sue.haslam@irelandhockey.sportlomo.com / 00353 831007105 / 00447465947447)

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Irish Under-21 men focus on promotion target in Czech Republic

The Irish Under-21 men’s side travel to the Czech Republic this weekend for the EuroHockey Championships II, looking to land promotion back to the top tier of continental actino.

 

With Belarus and Russia excluded from the competition, they face a six-team tournament, battling for one of the two promotion places on offer with Turkey, Wales, Italy, Poland and the Czech Republic hosts.

 

It will play out in one round-robin group phase and Joe Brennan, the head coach, says it is a very significant competition, not just for their own aspirations but for teams further down the line.

 

“It’s vital for Irish hockey and the men’s programme,” Brennan said ahead of the side’s departure on Friday.

 

“It is vital to get up to the A division because the way things work with World Cup qualification [for 2023], the only route is through the top tier. It means there is a cohort of guys, like where we are now, who will never get that opportunity to play in an Under-21 World Cup.

 

“Hopefully, if we go up, there are definitely guys here who can come back in two years time and can have a run at the World Cup 2025.”

 

Brennan was actually part of the last Irish men’s to play in a Junior World Cup in 2001 in Tasmania. Back then, the side drew with Australia and just missed out on a quarter-final spot to a late England goal.

 

They ended up with three wins and a draw from their eight games and was a significant developing ground for future senior internationals like Brennan, John Jermyn and David Hobbs.

 

And Brennan adds having that kind of target in mind is hugely important: “It gives a real reason for anyone in that under-18 squad for them to train, to commit to a programme for two to three years, knowing there is a reason to buy-in to 24 to 36 months with a real goal at the end of it. It’s a key age group and a key tournament. It is this group you will be looking at for your LA Olympics [in 2028].”

 

The side has a healthy look to the future with a dozen teenagers included, five of whom were still in school until June while Rex Dunlop has another year to go at King’s Hospital.

 

Mark Collins and Ian Perrott were both part of the Bandon Grammar School side who won the All-Ireland Schoolboys Championship earlier this year. They are among a trio of Munster players along with former Waterford man Ian Balding – now with Cork C of I – who will be a key figure in the defensive line-up.

 

Bar injury, Louis Rowe would have been in opposition for Banbridge Academy in that schools final but he is back in good shape for this tournament, adding to a busy summer for his family – his twin brother Charlie is currently making inroads with the senior setup.

 

Ollie Kidd and Johnny Lynch are part of the line-up following a hectic year, winning five trophies with their club, Lisnagarvey. Lynch made his senior international debut in June against Italy while Kidd was in the Irish indoor side who played in European competition in the winter.

 

All told, Ulster have seven representatives – Portadown goalkeeper Scott Dale linking up with Annadale duo James Clark and Patrick Rose as well as Bann’s Mark Cowan.

 

Craig Mackay is another dual international having played for the Irish Under-21 indoor side in January. He is among eight players who won the interprovincial series with Leinster, lifting the trophy along with goalkeeper Ross Clarke (Monkstown), Adam Walker (YMCA), Mark Duggan (Pembroke), Josh Filgas (UCD), Scott Ruttle (YMCA) and Evan Jennings (Three Rock Rovers).

 

In terms of preparation, the panel came together formally in March for the first time with a training camp in Belgium before ramping up preparations in the past five weeks from their base at Corinthian’s Whitechurch Park whom they are indebted to for the support for this programme.

 

Their schedule included fixtures against the English Over-35s, the Irish senior team and, last week, against Scotland’s Under-21s who are playing this week in the top tier.

 

Each series has seen results improve each day, closing the gap to the senior team while they won their second of two games with Scotland to finish preparations on a high.

 

“The guys have all bought into it and trained ridiculously hard, pushing the boundaries for themselves, probably more than they have had to do before. It has been excellent – they have put in a huge, honest effort and I couldn’t be happier with where they are as a group.

 

“For this particular age group, Covid has been a difficulty [over the past two years]. A lot have missed out on school and the first year of college life so we gave them a two-week break during the programme to go on holidays, enjoy themselves, and then asked them to come back for five hard weeks which they have all done.

 

“I felt it was the best way for the guys to come back hungry and to experience some of the life they hadn’t had at the age they are. They all came back fully committed, physically and mentally, and they have come a long way.”

 

As for their opposition in Plzen Litice, research is hard to come by but they have picked up video of the Polish Under-21s who face the Irish Under-18s last week – a 2-1 win for Poland – as well as Wales in action against the Scots. The Czechs will likely play a similar style to their senior team with the same coaching team in place.

 

But these tournaments are typically a journey into the “unknown” and managing that is high on Brennans’s agenda.

 

“We have worked really hard on our defensive game because the B division is really difficult to get promoted as we have seen on the last couple of occasions for the Under-21s and even at senior level.

 

“The players must approach each game with the same level of desire and intensity and concentration, regardless of opposition, giving each opponent the respect they are due because they have different styles, are technically different, or come from a country with a history of good hockey.

 

“Everything is cyclical at Under-21s and anyone can have a really strong group; you don’t know how it will work out. The idea is to get these guys into a really positive mindset to work to become really difficult to beat. If we are strong enough defensively then, we have some quality players, to take advantage of our opportunities up front.”

 

Irish Under-21 men’s team for the EuroHockey Junior Championships II (all in Plzen Litice, Czech Republic)

Scott Dale (Portadown)

Ross Clarke (Monkstown)

Adam Walker (YMCA)

Mark Duggan (Pembroke)

Mark Collins (Cork C of I)

Ian Perrott (Bandon)

Scott Ruttle (YMCA)

Oliver Kidd (Lisnagarvey)

Rex Dunlop (Three Rock Rovers)

Josh Filgas (UCD)

James Clark (Annadale)

Patrick Rose (Annadale)

Evan Jennings (Three Rock Rovers)

Craig Mackay (Corinthian)

Louis Rowe (Banbridge)

Ian Balding (Cork C of I)

Jonathan Lynch (Lisnagarvey)

Mark Cowan (Banbridge)

 

Head Coach Joe Brennan

Manager: David Howard

Assistant coach: Michael Styles

Physiotherapist: David McCrea

Video technician: Ross Howard

 

Men’s EuroHockey Junior Championships II (all in Plzen Litice, Czech Republic)

Sunday, July 24: Ireland v Turkey, 10.30am

Monday, July 25: Ireland v Czech Republic, 5pm

Wednesday, July 27: Ireland v Poland, 2.45pm

Friday, July 29: Ireland v Wales, 11.45am

Saturday, July 30: Ireland v Italy, 9am

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Irish Under-21 side take on EuroHockey Junior Championships in Ghent

With the last Junior World Cup only three months in the rear-view mirror, the Irish Under-21 women are already back on the qualification trail at this week’s EuroHockey Junior Championships in Ghent.

 

The top five from the Euros – which run from Sunday, July 24 to Saturday, July 30 – will all earn their place at Chile 2023.

 

Ireland will look to build on the experience of April’s World Cup in South Africa with 12 of the panelists eligible once again for this next cycle. The newcomers, meanwhile, saw plenty of action at the highly competitive Uniphar Five Nations tournament in Belfield in June.

 

This tournament takes on a standard eight-team format with the top two from the initial four-team groups advancing to the semi-finals and earning a World Cup place into the bargain.

 

Miss out on one of those places, the next challenge will be to win Pool C which brings the winner the final ticket to Chile.

 

Ireland’s initial group is a tough one, featuring the World Cup silver and bronze medalists. Nonetheless, they will take confidence into their opening tie against England from their performance against the same opposition in Potchefstroom when they meet on Sunday.

 

A day later, they face Scotland before closing out the preliminary phase against Germany, second placed in April, in the third fixture.

 

“Having the Junior World Cup silver and bronze medallists highlights how tough our group is and emphasised by a recent series lost against Scotland who make up the pool,” said coach David Passmore.

 

“The team has worked hard in recent weeks, spurred on by the World Cup in Amsterdam and with the memories of the recent JWC 9th placed finish. Many of that Junior World Cup group have moved on but some of the younger additions have really stepped up.

 

“The Uniphar 5 Nations provided a great opportunity for further development and coupled with a hard physical period we will be ready to go against England who we narrowly lost to in South Africa.

 

“It was disappointing for Lisa Mulcahy to miss out due to a leg injury as she contributes so much on and off the field but this highlights the importance of having depth in terms of numbers and positional flexibility.

 

“It will be key for us to get our set pieces right and take our chances in front of goal while defending smartly in our own circle”

 

In terms of selection, goalkeepers Ellie McLoughlin and Holly Micklem have both been in and around the senior panel this year and provide an excellent last line of defence.

 

KJ Marshall, Emma Paul and Siofra Murdoch are augmented in the backline by Lucy Crowe and Caoimhe Byrne with Ellen Reid in for a second Euros having also played in the last edition in 2019.

 

Paul will co-captain the side along with Catholic Institute’s Anna Horan with the Limerick woman operating between defence and midfield.

 

In midfield, Sophia Cole and Amy Elliott are experienced hands at Under-21 level. Ali Griffin will bring her pace to proceedings in this area following an outstanding season with Pembroke but they will miss Lisa Mulcahy who picked up an injury last week to rule her out of contention as is Eva Lavelle.

 

Pegasus’s Niamh McIvor and Old Alex teenager Mikayla Power will operate between the mid and forward lines.

 

Up top, World Cup players Rachel Kelly and Aoife Taaffe will link up with Cork Harlequins Leah O’Shea and Trinity’s Laura Noble.

 

Senior internationals Sarah McAuley and Charlotte Beggs are still underage for this category but are currently on a rest period following their involvement in the senior squad at the World Cup.

 

The tournament will be live-streamed on www.eurohockeytv.org.

 

Ireland Under-21 squad for Women’s EuroHockey Junior Championships (July 24 to 30, Ghent)

Ellie McLoughlin (VC, UCD)

Holly Micklem (Old Alex)

Caoimhe Byrne (UCD)

Lucy Crowe (Railway Union)

KJ Marshall (UCD)

Emma Paul (Co-Capt, UCD)

Ellen Reid (Loughborough Students)

Siofra Murdoch (Harvard University, USA)

Sophia Cole (UCD)

Amy Elliott (UCD)

Anna Horan (Co-Capt, Catholic Institute)

Alison Griffin (Pembroke)

Leah O’Shea (Cork Harlequins)

Aoife Taaffe (Loreto)

Niamh McIvor (Pegasus)

Laura Noble (Trinity)

Rachel Kelly (UCD)

Mikayla Power (Old Alex)

 

Head Coach: David Passmore

Manager: Lorraine McGowan

Coach/stand-in manager: Una McCarthy

Coach: Steven Arbuthnot

Coach: Niamh Small

ATT: Rachel Dipeolu

S&C/Physiologist: Ali Meeke

Performance Analyst: Aaron Passmore

 

Fixture schedule (all times Irish)

Sunday, July 24: Ireland v England, 10 am

Tuesday, July 26: Ireland v Scotland, 11 am

Wednesday, July 27: Ireland v Germany, 12.15 pm

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Ronan Murphy to become next CEO of Hockey Ireland

Hockey Ireland is delighted to announce the appointment of Ronan Murphy as its new Chief Executive Officer, taking up the role on October 17th, 2022.

Murphy joins Hockey Ireland, bringing with him a vast range of experience in sports governance, business leadership and strategic planning with over 20 years as a senior business leader.

From 2017 to 2020, he was the CEO of Horse Sport Ireland (HSI), implementing a complete restructuring of the National Governing Body based on the Department of Agriculture’s Indecon report recommendations within a record 10-month timeframe.

In the sporting arena, the highlight included the historic qualification of all three Irish senior equestrian teams for the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games.

During his tenure, HSI also devised and established robust, transparent and effective Corporate Governance systems and processes and developed sustainable, multi-annual funding models for the Irish Sport Horse Sector.

Most recently, he has been the CEO of the Irish Limousin Cattle Society which is the approved body to look after the interests of its 2,400 members, covering all aspects of marketing, administration and promotion of the breed. He is also a board member of Dressage Ireland and has recently served as Chair of the European Equestrian Federation EU Committee.

Speaking about the new role, Murphy said: “I am excited to take up the role of CEO with Hockey Ireland as the sport looks to continue its recent growth and rise to prominence in Irish sporting life.

“I see many aspects of hockey in Ireland that we can augment and develop, and I look forward to working with the staff, the board, provinces, clubs, members, sponsors and the grassroots of the sport to implement our strategic ambition and to realise the full potential of the sport across all levels from the very earliest participation and development pathways to delivering championship and Olympic success for Team Ireland. ”

His appointment follows a rigorous selection process over the past few months following Jerome Pels’ move from Hockey Ireland to a role with England Boxing. Between now and October, Nick McElwee will continue in the interim role as Hockey Ireland CEO.

Hockey Ireland chair Trevor Watkins said of his appointment: “We are delighted that Ronan Murphy will head up the team in Hockey Ireland to continue to drive and implement our ambitious strategy and take further opportunities for our sport.

“Ronan’s experience and success in sport and business give him the ideal background to continue the drive to grow hockey in the community and continue our success on the international stage.”

Murphy’s brief will see him continue the implementation of the Hockey Ireland Strategy 2021-2024 and the clear vision to ‘Change the Game’.

The Strategy has a clear focus on the importance of the commercial and marketing functions, aimed at securing the future of the sport, developing a financially secure and commercially-focused organisation that maximises public funding, sponsorship and revenue generating opportunities.

Through this, Hockey Ireland will establish itself as a nationally respected sports brand, communicating with professionalism and passion with its stakeholders.

Murphy will take on the role amid a busy year in which the Irish senior women’s squad outdid their pre-tournament ranking at this summer’s World Cup and look forward to European Championship qualifiers and the FIH Nations Cup.

The senior men have a similar schedule with Euro qualifiers in August and the FIH Nations Cup in the winter while an exciting national season is just around the corner with several new clubs continuing their growth with Hockey Ireland support.

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Ireland bow out of World Cup with eleventh place finish

Women’s World Cup ninth place playoff

Ireland 1 (M Carey) China 3 (C Yang, Z Jiaji, C Yanhua)

Ireland finished the women’s World Cup in 11th place overall following a tough final day loss to China who struck twice in the last 10 minutes to pull clear at a scorching hot Wagener Stadium.

 

For periods, the Green Army made most of the running but China’s half-court defence and greater accuracy in the two circles made the difference. Chen Yang’s corner goal in the seventh minute broke the deadlock before Zhong Jiaji and Chen Yanhua stretched the scoreline out before Michelle Carey’s sliding touch got one back in the final throes.

 

The 11th place finish comes with the small consolation of putting Ireland above their pre-tournament ranking and they will hope to use this experience when they face August’s European qualifier tournament in Dublin.

 

“It took us to be 1-0 down to start to play how we wanted,” said Sean Dancer, reflecting on the result.

 

“We did enough to get back into it in the third quarter; we had good opportunities and put them under pressure but if you don’t score, it’s always hard.

 

“Overall, we played a couple of good games against the top teams in Holland and Germany but didn’t get any results. The next step is to get some points. Disappointed about not finishing the Chile game which was key for us. Great for the highs of beating South Africa but we didn’t put everything out there today so it is a sour taste in the mouth.”

 

China were out of the blocks quicker, winning the first of eight penalty corners in the first half in the early stages. Ireland’s defence in this facet of the game was strong with Sarah Torrans – despite heavy bandaging on her knee – charging down a series of shots.

 

But they could not keep out a neat move in the seventh minute when Ma Ning turned smartly onto her backhand and slipped the ball across for Chen Yang to deflect home.

 

The Green Army gave as good as they got in a stop-start first quarter. Hannah McLoughlin’s corner shot did find its way in via Naomi Carroll but illegally so with a free out given and Deirdre Duke’s shot cleared the crossbar in a good phase of attacking waves.

 

The second quarter was tighter still with chances at a premium outside of corner chances for either side, McFerran up to the challenge.

 

The scoreline remained the same through Q3 which was far more engaging. China hit the post from their ninth corner but it was brief respite for the Asian side as Ireland piled on the pressure for this 15-minute phase.

 

Michelle Cary and Duke led the line brilliantly, hassling at every turn to help effect a string of well-placed turnovers while Duke also made work Liu Ping work, as did Róisín Upton with a corner drag-flick.

 

But they were left with a mountain to climb – with Sarah McAuley in the sin-bin – when Zhong Jiaji’s penalty corner drag made it into the bottom of the backboard. And the game was out of sight in the 52nd minute when Zhang Xindan slipped the ball into the path of Chen Yanhua who swept home first time.

 

Ireland kept fighting and did get one back with two minutes to go, a lovely Carey touch to an Upton push at corner time to close out the result.

 

The match itself was special for Ayeisha McFerran becoming the joint most capped Irish female goalkeeper – alongside Emma Gray on 118 caps – while Siofra O’Brien made her debut, coming in for the injured Caoimhe Perdue.

 

McFerran paid tribute to Gray and her influence on her career: “I had no idea about it. Emma was brilliant and I learned a lot from her whenever I was coming in and she set the tone for me as a goalkeeper, an athlete and a goalkeeper coming through.

 

“To be up there with Emma is a real honour because she was a stalwart of goalkeeping for hockey in Ireland for a long time.”

 

As for O’Brien, it was a bittersweet start to her capped international career: “Obviously a disappointing result; we wanted to get the win. Personally delighted to get my first cap and what an honour to get to do it at a World Cup with this group of girls.

 

“This week was tough for Erin [Getty] and I. The girls have been great and rallied together and it was still a squad of 20, never just the 18 plus two [reserves], sticking together. You don’t wish an injury on anyone and obviously it was awful for Caoimhe after a great tournament for her but it isn’t an easy place as a reserve.”

 

The next step is to now regroup and take the experiences from this event into next month’s European Championship qualifiers in Dublin from August 18th to 21st, a key step on the road to Paris 2024.

 

“We always knew it would be the case – World Cup and then Euro qualifiers which is extremely important. We have do well there and qualify. That sets up the long road to Paris and the long-term goal. We’ll take a few days to recover but we have to be prepared for that one. It will be a fight every game in Dublin and qualification is the only option.”

 

Ireland: A McFerran, M Carey, R Upton, S Hawkshaw, K Mullan, H McLoughlin, S Torrans, L Tice, N Carroll, S O’Brien, E Curran

Subs: S McAuley, Z Malseed, C Beggs, K McKee, D Duke, C Hamill, L Murphy

 

China: L Ping, Q Cui, Y Gu, M Liang, X Zhang, J Zheng, N Wang, H Yang, Y Chen, T Luo, J Zhong

Subs: B Gu, J Li, N Ma, X Zhang, M Yuan, Y Chen, X Li

 

Umpires: E Yamada (JPN), A Rostron (RSA)

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Student Sport Ireland Women’s Coaching Academy – Applications Open

Student Sport Ireland (SSI) has announced that applications for the 2022-23 Women’s Student Coaching Academy is now open.

The Women’s Student Coaching Academy is a collaborative programme between SSI, Sport Ireland, 26 third level institutions and ten national governing bodies of sport (NGBs). One of these NGB’s is Hockey Ireland.

The aim of the academy is to provide female student coaches with the support system that will enable them to develop and reach their coaching potential. Furthermore, the academy aims to increase the number, and visibility, of female coaches in third level institutions and create female role models for other female students to progress into coaching.

After a successful pilot year for the academy in the 2021-22 academic year, over 30 female coaches completed the programme, with several of the students hoping to continue in the academy for the coming year.

The 2022-23 academy is open to continuing students only and not open to first year students.

The closing date for receipt of applications is August 8th, with the aim to have suitable students confirmed and ready to begin the academy in the first week of September.

More information on the programme and application process can be found HERE.

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Dancer and Hawkshaw thrilled with Ireland resilience to beat South Africa

Women’s World Cup ranking match

Ireland 2 (S Hawkshaw, R Upton) South Africa 0

Penalty corner goals from Sarah Hawkshaw and Róisín Upton saw Ireland bounced back from their World Cup group stage elimination to put them in the frame for a ninth place finish overall.

They will now playoff for ninth place overall on Tuesday against either China while this win also means they will finish the tournament in a higher ranking than their pre-event rating.

 “We are thrilled [with how we bounced back from exiting the group stages],” said Hawkshaw afterwards

“We talked a lot about performances and we have put in some good ones but it is about time we got a win. Of course it is difficult to put the group stages out of our mind. We  didn’t reach our initial goal and we had to reset.”

Sean Dancer was delighted with how the side put together the performance, too, and says getting this extra phase of classification matches is a boost for his young side.

“The thing about the second half of the tournament is there is nothing we can do now about the first half. We’ve got a lot to play for, not just for the ranking points but around us as a group and where we are trying to get to.

“This game was very important around performance, a result, but also the way we played and I was certainly happy how we did that and Tuesday will be no different. It will be about how we play for the group.

“I was on the other side [with New Zealand in 2018] when we got knocked out early and hung around for nothing. So to get some classification games is a positive and it gives us more hockey to play.”

The Green Army showed they were the fresher side from the start having three days to clear the heads after their group stage exit while South Africa had been in action less than 24 hours before in a crossover fixture.

Katie Mullan fired one to test impressive goalkeeper Phumelela Mbande in the fourth minute, one of several big saves she had to make before half-time.

South Africa endured three sin-binnings in the opening quarter with Tarryn Lombard twice sent to the naughty step with Lisa-Marie Deetlefs also taking a two-minute time-out.

And it contributed to the Green Army spending the vast majority of the tie on the front foot. Into quarter two and the penalty corner chances started to ramp up, too, with Katie McKee, Caoimhe Perdue and the tireless Zara Malseed to the fore.

From the third set-piece, McKee’s injection was true and Hannah McLoughlin had time to deliver the perfect ball for Hawkshaw to dive onto and turn in. Sarah Torrans swept the next chance onto the outside of the post but there were no further additions to the tally before the big break.

Torrans was at it again immediately after the restart, stealing the South African tip-off and ending up winning a corner. This time, Upton went direct with a drag-flick hitting the bottom left of the backboard for 2-0.

Facing a big mountain to climb, the African side started to find their feet as the third quarter progressed, particularly when both Hawkshaw and Deirdre Duke spent simultaneous time in the sin-bin.

The best that came of it was a rising Lilian du Plessis shot which ended up in the side-netting. But they found the Irish defence in gritty form with Sarah McAuley and Hannah McLoughlin typefying their work-rate to limit the danger.

Four final quarter penalty corner chances were spurned to make the result safer but it proved academic as Ireland held for the win.

China will be their final opponent in Amsterdam on Tuesday at 1.30pm (Irish time) with the winner being placed ninth overall and the loser in 11th. Victory could also return Ireland to the top 12 in the rankings.

Ireland: A McFerran, M Carey, R Upton, S Hawkshaw, K Mullan, H McLoughlin, S Torrans, L Tice, N Carroll, C Perdue, E Curran

Subs: S McAuley, Z Malseed, C Beggs, K McKee, D Duke, C Hamill, L Murphy

South Africa: P Mbande, K Paton, O Zulu, L-M Deetlefs, E Christie, L du Plessis, B Coston, Q Bobbs, T Lombard. J-L du Toit, H Louw

Subs: E Molikoe, R Johnson, H Pearce, M Ramasimong, S-L Simmons, K de Waal, M Serage

Officials: I Presenqui (ARG), A Neumann (AUS)

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U18 Squad for 8-Nations Tournament in Frankfurt

From July 11th to 17th, the U18 Boys will compete in a 8-Nations in Germany. They will compete in group A alongside Austria, Germany and the Netherlands. 

11. JULY

Ireland v Netherlands – 15:30

13. JULY

Ireland v Austria – 17:00

14. JULY

Ireland v Germany – 17:30

 

Player
 Province Club School
Allen Lyons Ulster Annadale Hockey Club Royal Belfast Academical Institution
Ben Pasley Leinster Three Rock Rovers HC The High School
Ben Pollock Ulster Banbridge Hockey Club Banbridge Academy
Cian Dorgan Munster Cork C of I HC Ashton
Conor Matthews Ulster Annadale Hockey Club Sullivan Upper
Conor Murphy (GK) Leinster Avoca Hockey Club Newpark
James Evans Ulster Banbridge Hockey Club Banbridge Academy
Josh Gill Leinster Three Rock Rovers Wesley College
Mackenzie Connor Ulster Lisnagarvey Hockey Club Friends’ School Lisburn
Mark Cuddy Ulster Cookstown Hockey Club Cookstown High School
Matthew McKee Ulster Banbridge Hockey Club Banbridge Academy
Matthew Stevenson Ulster Banbridge Hockey Club Banbridge Academy
Patrick McElhinney Ulster Annadale Hockey Club Methodist College Belfast
Rhys Armah-Kwantreng Leinster Monkstown HC St Andrew’s College
Sam Dale Munster Cork Harlequins HC Bandon Grammar
Scott Hosick (GK) Ulster Lisnagarvey Hockey Club Friends’ School Lisburn
Tiarnan Gaffney Munster Catholic Institute HC Villiers School
Tommy Dobson Ulster Banbridge Hockey Club Banbridge Academy
Non-Travelling Reserves:
Alex Lynch
 Leinster Three Rock Rovers The High School
Harry Dagg Leinster Avoca Temple Carrig
Sam Chapman (GK) Leinster YMCA Wesley College
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Inclusive Hockey4All Summer Camps Launched

Hockey Ireland are set to run five Inclusive Hockey4All Camps this summer. Our aim is to provide a supportive environment for those with additional needs to learn and develop within our sport.

Camps will take place in August across three different location; St. Joseph’s Cluny (Killiney, Dublin), Cortinthians Hockey Club (St. Columba’s College, Dublin) and Garryduff Sports Centre, (Cork). 

Camps cater those aged 8-18 years of age as well as separate camps that are suitable for those over 18 years. 

Camps run for three days each and cost €35 per camp. 

For more information on all our camps click the link below:

https://irelandhockey.sportlomo.com/event-page/

Inclusive Hockey Summer Camp
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