2023 – Page 8 – Hockey Ireland

EuroHockey ID championships – Ireland Team Secure Bronze

Ireland Team Secure Bronze

Ireland secured a Championship II bronze medal at the The 2023 EuroHockey ID Championships in Mönchengladbach.

The sport is unusual in that women and men train and play in mixed teams, side by side with and for each other. For the first time in 2023 it was a requirement that at least two women must be registered per team and that one woman is always active on the pitch.

On the first day of play, Divisioning Day, the classification games took place. The games played on this day evaluated the level of each player and the whole team with the evaluation included in the overall evaluation with the results of the games. Ireland began with a game against England and it ended in a 3-0 defeat. Next up was a game against Czech Republic which Ireland won 4-0 with goals from Cameron Ward and a hat-trick for Daniel Fortune. Next up were Spain who beat Ireland 4-0 and Ireland finished their first day action with a game against France which they narrowly lost 2-1 with Cameron Ward on the scoresheet for Ireland.

This meant that Ireland would be in Championship II for the second and final day’s action in the tournament. Another game with the French which they won 2-1 and Cameron Ward was once again the goal scorer. Ireland bounced back from this set back with a 6-2 win over the Czechs. Daniel Fortune and Charlie O’Reilly got two goal each with Cameron Ward and captain Matthew Burke grabbing the other goals. That left two games for Ireland to see out the program. England beat Ireland 4-2 with Cameron Ward and Matthew Burke scoring for Ireland and a final game against Germany which the hosts won 7-1, Cameron Burke on the mark for Ireland.

With the other results going as they did Ireland ended up in a play off for bronze against France.

The winning shuttle was scored by Cameron Ward. Ireland won 1-0 in a very closely contested game against France. Conditions were hot but it didn’t stop the fighting spirit of the Irish players who battled to the bitter end. Ireland had previously lost 1-2 to France in the group stages but managed to reverse the result today. Scoring with only a couple of minutes to go Ireland were delighted with their bronze medal. A great team effort.

Team Ireland: Ben Purcell (Monkstown) Goalkeeper, Daniel Fortune (Botanic), Tony Ryan (Wicklow), Niamh Kiernan (Railway), Cameron Ward (Botanic), Matthew Burke (TTR), Joe Whelan (TRR), Ruth Ann Gallagher (Railway), Charlie O’Reilly (Monkstown), Louis Olden (Monkstown), Niamh Kiernan ( Railway) and Matthew Burke (TTR)

Head Coach: Scott Mulligan
Manager: Sharon Hutchinson·
Coach: Klaas de Vries
Coach: Aryana Nieland

23 August 2023/by Ireland Hockey

International

Game 3 IRL – 0 GER – 5 Match Report

IRL – 0 GER – 5 Match Report

Ireland took on Germany in their third and final Pool B game this evening at the Euro Hockey Championship in Monchengladbach.

Germany beat England 5-0 in their previous fixture, securing the Pool B title, which left Ireland temporarily in second place in the table ahead of England’s third group game with Scotland on goal difference. A positive result against Germany could theoretically have led to a semi-final berth for the Green Army. England beat Scotland 5-0 however, the situation was going into their match tonight a win by two or more goals and Ireland would secure the semi-final berth. An admittedly tall order given the strength of the hosts but nonetheless a potential target.

Any plans of causing an upset did not last long as Sonja Zimmermann converted a penalty corner after only seven minutes to give Germany a 1-0 lead. Ireland did manage to force a penalty corner without converting it however and it remained 1-0 at the end of quarter one.

Pauline Heinz got a second for Germany from open play in the 23rd minute the second quarter to leave the hosts leading 2-0 at half -time, despite being temporarily reduced to 10 players following a green card for Stine Kurz in the 29th minute.

Ireland had a mountain to climb at the start of quarter three, and were unable to claw back the Germans advantage. It was still 2-0 heading into the final quarter. German captain Nike Lorenz made a comeback unlikely by adding another goal in the 51st minute converting a penalty corner. Germany 3-0 ahead with less than 10 minutes remaining.

It got worse for Ireland because they conceded two further goals within two minutes. Nike Lorenz converted her second penalty corner of the game to make it 4-0 in the 52nd minute and Jette Fleschuz added a fifth from open play a minute later.

A third place finish in Pool B means a visit to Pool C now for Ireland but a 5th or 6th place finish overall would still achieve the objectives from this tournament in Ireland making the Olympic qualification tournament in January, and of course retaining Ireland’s spot in the elite Euro Hockey Championship for the next tournament in 2025.

Final score Ireland 0 Germany 5

IRELAND: Ayeisha McFerran(GK), Sarah McAuley, Elena Neill, Roisín Upton. Katie McKee, Sarah Hawkshaw, Charlotte Beggs, Katie Mullan (C), Caitlin Sherin, Deirdre Duke, Niamh Carey
SUBS: Michelle Carey, Hannah Mc Loughlin, Sarah Torrans, Naomi Carroll, Ellen Curran, Caoimhe Perdue

GERMANY: Julia Sonntag (GK), Kira Horn, Amelie Wortmann, Nike Lorenz (C), Anne Schroeder, Lena Micheel, Charlotte Stapenhorst, Sonja Zimmermann, Cecile Pieper, Viktoria Huse, Hannah Granitzki
SUBS: Selin Oruz, Lisa Nolte, Pauline Heinz, Stine Kurz, Jette Fleschuz, Linnea Weidermann

22 August 2023/by Ireland Hockey

International, Media

Images: EuroHockey Championships 2023 Ireland vs Germany

22 August 2023/by Cian Funge

International

Ireland Bounce Back In Style Against Scotland To Collect Three Points.

Sarah Torrans scores her 2nd goal.

IRL – 5 SCO – 0 Match Report

Having been beaten 0-3 in their opening fixture, Ireland looked to bounce back and collect some points in their second Pool B game against Scotland on Saturday. Scotland the lowest ranked team in Pool B, had been beaten 0-4 by Germany in their opening game and were in 4^th place in the table on goal difference as a result.

In an even first quarter Ireland were temporarily reduced to 10 players when Caoimhe Perdue was green carded but Scotland were unable to put their temporary numerical advantage to good use and both sides ended the first quarter scoreless.

Scotland were then reduced temporarily following a 17^th minute green card awarded to Bronwyn Shields. Ireland then scored two goals inside a minute. First up was Hannah McLoughlin who scored from open play in the 19^th minute to give the Green Army a 1-0 lead. A minute later Ellen Curran also from open play grabbed a goal to increase Ireland’s lead to 2-0.

It got even better for the Green Army as a Niamh Carey goal from open play in the 26^th minute meant that Ireland lead 3-0 at the half-time break. Having balanced their goal difference in the first half the question was whether Ireland could kick on in the second half and add to their tally. But Ireland found it difficult to increase their lead despite Scotland finishing the third quarter down to ten players when Elizabeth Watson was yellow carded for 5 minutes keeping her off the field until the start of quarter four.

The score remained 3-0 until late in the fourth quarter when Sarah Torrans scored from open play in the 55th minute to increase the Green Army’s lead to 4-0. Sarah Torrans grabbed her second of the game from open play in the final minute to make the final score 5-0.

Ireland get their first three points of the campaign and those targets of reaching the Olympic Qualification Pool in January next and staying in the elite level of the Euro Hockey Championships are within reach.

IRELAND: Ayeisha McFerran (GK), Sarah McAuley, Roisín Upton, Elena Neill, Sarah Hawkshaw, Katie McKee, Charlotte Beggs, Caitlin Sherin, Katie Mullan, Niamh Carey, Naomi Carroll

SUBS: Michelle Carey, Hannah McLoughlin, Sarah Torrans, Caoimhe Perdue, Ellen Curran, Deirdre Duke

SCOTLAND: Amy Gibson (GK), Jennifer Eadie, Eve Pearson, Amy Costello, Katie Robertson (C), Katie Birch, Charlotte Watson, Elizabeth Wilson, Sarah Jamieson, Jessica Ross, Fiona Burnet

SUBS: Laura Swanson, Sophie Hinds, Ruth Blaikie, Heather McEwan, Millie Steiger, Bronwyn Shields

19 August 2023/by Ireland Hockey

International, Media

Images: EuroHockey Championships 2023 Ireland vs Scotland

19 August 2023/by Cian Funge

General

Game 1 – ENG-3 IRL-0 Match Report

Ireland Women concede to England in opening game of EuroHockey Championships

Dublin August 18: Ireland began their Pool B campaign at the EuroHockey Championships in Moenchengladbach taking on old rivals England in their opening fixture.

Conceding a penalty stroke as early as the 8^th minute, Grace Balsdon made no mistake to put England 1-0 ahead. Ireland were reduced to 10 temporarily when Sarah McAuley was green carded in the 11^th minute but they did not capitalize on their numerical advantage.

England increased their lead in the second quarter when Tess Howard scored from open play in the 21^st minute. It was still 2-0 at half time.

Liz Murphy replaced Ayeisha McFerran between the posts for the second half but by the end of quarter three there had been no further scoring. England had been reduced to 10 players temporarily following Lily Walker’s green card in the 42^nd minute. Hannah Martin grabbed a third goal for England from open play in the 48^th minute which was the only goal of the fourth quarter. Goalscorer Tess Howard reduced her team to ten players for the final few minutes of the game was yellow carded. There was no jeopardy involved for England however as they ran out 3-0 winners.

ENGLAND: Sabbie Heesh (GK), Lizzie Neal, Hollie Pearne-Webb (C), Grace Balsdon, Lily Owsley, Flora Peel, Laura Roper, Sophie Hamilton, Hannah Martin, Izzy Petter, Ellie Rayer

SUBS: Olivia Hamilton, Fiona Crackles, Lily Walker, Alex Malzer, Tess Howard, Holly Hunt

IRELAND: Ayeisha Mc Ferran (GK), Sarah McAuley, Roisín Upton, Elena Neill, Naomi Carroll, Charlotte Beggs, Caitlin Sherin, Sarah Torrans, Kathryn Mullan (C), Sarah Hawkshaw, Naomi Carroll, Niamh Carey,

SUBS: Liz Murphy (GK), Deirdre Duke, Michelle Carey, Hannah McLoughlin, Ellen Curran, Caoimhe Perdue, Katie McKee

18 August 2023/by Ireland Hockey

International, Media

Images: EuroHockey Championship 2023 England vs Ireland

18 August 2023/by Cian Funge

General

Ulster teenager wins top EuroHockey youth award

Dublin August 18: Anna Pim from Ulster yesterday received The Youth Leader Award for her EuroHockey Youth Festival project at the EHF Youth Forum in Monchengladbach. Anna was nominated by Hockey Ireland as their female delegate and presented to the 35^th General Assembly of the European Hockey Federation.

The 18-year-old schoolgirl founded ‘at the Heart of the Game’, an education programme to deliver CPR and AED awareness to hockey clubs throughout Northern Ireland.

During lockdown she combined her love for hockey and her interest in St John Ambulance to create her ‘at the Heart of the Game’ initiative, educating over 300 young people in CPR and AED awareness to hockey clubs throughout Northern Ireland since.

Ulster Hockey said,

“The impact that this project is having on the Ulster Hockey family is immeasurable and has the potential to save lives within our clubs and the wider community. The feedback from clubs who have been involved is extremely positive. The demand from other clubs is high and the interest from other sports governing bodies is significant.”

Anna picked up the top EuroHockey award as she demonstrated her ability to create, plan, prepare and deliver a major project.

Lady Mary Peters, an Ambassador for ‘At the Heart of the Game’ said,

“It is a life-saving opportunity for the sports community in Northern Ireland. It is wonderful to see how sport can be harnessed as a tool through which to educate young people on important issues such as CPR and defibrillator use.”

Anna is making a huge impact in Ulster Hockey through coaching, volunteering, playing and her education programme. She is a significant role model for the youth. With the increasing number of cardiac arrests being reported within the sporting community at matches, training and in the clubhouse, Anna has empowered young people to know how to confidently help if someone has a cardiac arrest. She is teaching skills to them to unlock their full potential. No better way than to teach them something that will someday save a life of a teammate, family member or friend.

Through her partnership with Belfast City Airport and the kind donations from hockey clubs, schools, and individuals Anna has also raised enough money to provide AED trainers into St John Ambulance cadet divisions within these club areas. ‘At the Heart of the Game’ has exceeded all expectations in raising awareness of CPR and AED. The media attention has placed the importance of these lifesaving skills to the forefront of people’s minds. From BBC Newsline to Foyle Radio, front page of the Belfast Telegraph to ‘At the Heart of the Game’ Twitter and Instagram and much, much, more, Anna has been the face of this fantastic project.

18 August 2023/by Ireland Hockey

General

High expectations set for Ireland Senior Women Hockey Team

Dublin, August 16^th: High expectations have been set for the Ireland Senior Women Hockey Team as they make final preparations for their opening game of the EuroHockey Championships 2023 against England this Friday August 18th in Moenchengladbach, Germany. This is the elite level tournament for women in Europe.

Ireland (world ranking 13th) have been drawn in Pool B and will play England (world ranking 6th), Scotland (world ranking 18th) and Germany (world ranking 4th) in the first phase of the tournament. A total of eight teams will compete across two pools, with the top two in each pool qualify for the semi-finals.

Importantly, a top six finish for Ireland will secure a spot in next January’s Olympic Qualification groups in Spain or China and would also secure Ireland’s place in the 2025 European Championships in the first tier of nations.

Speaking ahead of the tournament Head coach Sean Dancer said:

“As a group we have made fantastic improvements over the past 12 months on and off the field and we have high ambitions, knowing the tough challenge of a very competitive European Championship. This year’s European’s also doubles as the first step of the Olympic Qualification process, adding extra pressure on all those involved. We will need to stay focused on ourselves and playing our attacking style of play.

Ireland captain Katie Mullan was confident that the preparations for this tournament had gone very well:

“We have played against the top 3 ranked nations in the World earlier this year, having taken on Argentina a few months ago and the Dutch a few weeks ago and we got our best result in recent years against the Netherlands. Five of the top ten highest nations in the World rankings are taking part in the tournament so it will be a real challenge for us but we feel we are ready to face that challenge. Looking at the Pool opponents themselves we also play regularly against England, Scotland and Germany either in friendlies or competitively, so we know each other well. This group of players will be ready for the challenge that we face starting on Friday.”

Ireland’s Pool B campaign begins on Friday 18^th August 2023 with an afternoon match starting at 17:00 CET (16:00 Irish Time) with an opener against England. They are back in action the following evening Saturday 19^th August against Scotland at 20:15 CET (19:15 Irish Time) and the group stages final game takes place on Tuesday 22^nd August against Germany at 19:30 CET (18:30 Irish Time). The Ireland games will all be shown online at www.eurohockeytv.org details on how to subscribe are available on the EHF website www.eurohockey.org and www.premiersportsireland.com

16 August 2023/by Ireland Hockey

General

STATSports Have Set Pen-to-Paper On a New Long-term Deal

Dublin August 15: Hockey Ireland and STATSports have set pen-to-paper on a new long-term deal that will see a continuation of the partnership that has been in place since 2018.

STATSports will provide its GPS tracking and performance monitoring technology for both Hockey Ireland Senior Men and Senior Women’s national squads.

Hockey Ireland has had unprecedented success in the last number of years with the women earning a silver medal at the 2018 London World Cup and becoming the first ever female team to represent Ireland at an Olympic games, in any sport in 2021.

Meanwhile, 2023-24 will see the senior men compete in World Hockey’s Pro League against eight top Hockey teams from around the world.

In addition to working with the national sides, the Newry-based company want to make their technology as accessible as possible for grassroots teams in Ireland and will be running educational events and discounts to engage with local clubs, players, and coaches through this partnership.

Eoin Cunniffee, Head of Athletic Performance commenting on the renewal:

“STATSports Apex GPS equipment and software play a very significant role in our performance planning, analysis, and management processes. As a result of the flexibility and user-friendly nature of the technology, it is easy to monitor the physical load of our players when they are not with the international team.”

Lisa Jacob, Hockey Ireland’s High-Performance Director, commenting on the partnership:

“STATSports is a key partnership for Hockey Ireland, enabling our senior women’s and men’s teams to maximise individual and team preparation and performance with cutting edge software and technology. This critically underpins our player and programme management while we look to qualify for Paris 2024 and become a Top 8 nation in world hockey.’

STATSports, CCO and Co-founder Sean O’Connor, added:

“We’re delighted to announce the renewal of our partnership with Ireland Hockey. At STATSports, we take immense pride in our collaboration and support of Ireland’s sporting organisations. We’re dedicated to driving the sport’s development here at home and helping the national team further their success on the global stage. This renewal underscores our commitment to this.”

15 August 2023/by Ireland Hockey

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Archive for year: 2023

Ireland Team Secure Bronze

IRL – 0 GER – 5 Match Report

IRL – 5 SCO – 0 Match Report