The Irish Women’s Senior team is back in action this weekend, and you can watch them take on Japan in the SoftCo series before they head off to Amsterdam for the World Cup.
This will be your last chance to see them —and it’s also an excellent opportunity to see some up-and-coming talent as well!
The SoftCo series will run side by side with the U23 Uniphar 5 Nations, which showcases young players from around the world. You can catch these games at UCD.
The Irish men picked up two wins and a draw from their three-game series against Italy at Lisnagarvey as they continue their summer schedule, building experience and knowledge ahead of the European Championships qualifiers in August.
Coach Mark Tumilty was “pleased with the progress” over the weekend with four new players making their international debuts amid a 2-1 win on Friday, 3-0 on Saturday and a 1-1 tie on Sunday morning.
“Friday was the one which we struggled which we need to be wary of when it comes to opening games of tournaments,” Tumilty said of the series.
“Saturday I was pleased with how we started but we need to maintain that. We grew into this one and getting that consistency is what we need to get at the minute. Can we play for the four quarters?”
It is part of a busy phase for the Irish men with an upcoming four nations tournament in Scotland with Wales and USA also featuring while Austria and Chile come to Dublin in the coming months. The main event is in Calais in late August with a ticket to next year’s European Championships the target.
Picture: Adrian Boehm
Having so many games is key for Tumilty and he was happy with how 17-year-old Charlie Rowe, Rory Patterson, Ben Johnson and Johnny Lynch performed.
“Charlie should be very pleased with his two performances but it doesn’t surprise me. He has that mentality; we didn’t give him a lot of instructions, just let him play and that is often how it should be with younger players.
“I was happy in general with the new caps and how they settled, getting good competition in the squad which is important.”
Getting that extra game time is also crucial with a young panel, many of whom still making their way in the international game after a low-key two years during the Covid-19 break.
“That was a key objective – to get 25 to 30 games in. The more players we can get from 50 to 100 caps, the better. The top nations have so many between 150 and 200 and so we have to get them that exposure. We do have a good balance of meeting higher-ranked nations and those below us who we need to win against.
“This year, it took a while to get our program in place but I am pleased with what we were able to get in place to get us through to Paris [2024 Olympic qualifiers].
“Our staff is in place and we do have an opportunity to grow physically to compete all the way through next year. I am happy where our support is – although obviously, I would like more money to compete with the big nations!”
*** Game reports ***
Friday Ireland 2 (C Empey, J McKee) Italy 1 (T Keenan)
Two goals in the 49th minute saw Ireland’s men come back to win 2-1 and continue their long unbeaten run against Italy.
It dates back to 2013 and spans 11 games now as Conor Empey and Jonny McKee scored within seconds of each other to overturn a first half Thomas Keenan effort.
Keenan – whose grandfather hails from Cork before moving to Argentina – swooped to net a penalty corner rebound which had given the 27th ranked Italians a surprise win in the first of three capped matches at Comber Road this weekend.
But the Green Machine camped in the visitors’ half for much of the second half and eventually broke through via some McKee 3D magic, unlocking the door for Sean Murray to lift the ball over Francesco Mitrotta with Empey getting the final touch.
McKee then got one of his own mere seconds after the restart to transform the result. The tie saw Rory Patterson and Johnny Lynch earn their first formal Irish caps
Saturday: Ireland 3 (J McKee 2, C Empey) Italy 0
Jonny McKee’s double helped make it two wins from two for Ireland in their three-game series against Italy at a rain-soaked Comber Road.
The Banbridge man augmented Conor Empey’s second minute opening strike with a super revese-stick strike before completing the win in the closing stages.
The tie also served as a first cap for Ben Johnson and Charlie Rowe – another Banbridge man – 17 days shy of his 18th birthday. Indeed, Rowe had captained the Irish Under-18s in a win over England and he felt he took the step up in his stride.
“It is really nice to get the first cap at my age, clean sheet and a win,” Rowe said afterwards. “It’s exciting and hopefully more to come. I wasn’t too nervous about it, just got on and played away. Once I got into it, I didn’t really worry about it too much!”
In this one, they got off to a flyer with Ben Walker slipping the ball into the path of Empey who rounded on the ball, cracking home his second goal in two games on the turn.
Goal two followed soon after with Luke Madeley’s long overhead pass finding McKee beyond the last defender. He controlled it brilliantly before flipping the ball onto his backhand and picking out the bottom corner.
Madeley could have made it three but cleared the crossbar from a penalty stroke as Ireland dominated the first 10 minutes before the Italians settled. The visitors held sway for parts of the second and third quarter on a slow pitch but found clear chances at a premium.
But Ireland closed out the contest on the up, working an excellent overload move via McKee and on to Jeremy Duncan. His first shot was parried by Roberto Broere but McKee followed up to kill off the chance.
Sunday: Ireland 1 (B Johnson) Italy 1 (M Mondo)
Ben Johnson netted his first international goal but the overall feeling was one of frustration as Ireland were unable to make the most of a plethora of chances in their closing test match against Italy at Comber Road.
The Waterford native flicked in from the right of the D in the 40th minute to cancel out Manuel Mondo’s first half drag-flick.
Mark Tumilty’s side subsequently laid siege to the visitors goal but, despite, new numerous near misses could not find the crucial touch.
Ireland did start heavily on the front foot with Jeremy Duncan, Conor Empey and Ben Johnson all forcing good saves from Francesco Mitrotta.
Italy, though, hit the front from their second attack in earnest in the 26th minute when Mondo whipped home a penalty corner.
It made it 1-0 at half-time. The second half was one-way traffic with Italy offering minimal threat, often sitting with 11 men behind the ball, as Ireland piled on the pressure.
The breakthrough came when Callum Robson’s shot was blocked by Mitrotta into the path of Johnson who scored his first international goal – in his second cap – with a composed flick.
The pattern continued through the final quarter as Italy’s goal lived a charmed life but no further goals accrued, leaving Ireland to settle for a draw.
Today, the Olympic Federation of Ireland revealed the recipients of the Paris Scholarships, as preparations are already underway for the Summer Olympic Games in Paris 2024. The scholarships aim to support the athletes in their preparation for Paris and assist in the qualification journey. Athletes were nominated by the national federations and are representative of a mix of Olympians targeting a second Games, and athletes targeting an Olympic debut.
The Senior Women’s team were awarded the team grant of $100,000 to assist with their preparations for Paris 2024. The team consists of both experienced players who competed in the Tokyo Olympics, and emerging talent looking to make their Olympic debut in Paris.
After some test games against Spain, the Senior Men will play Italy from the 10th-12th June.
Friday 10th June – Time: 19:45 – Venue: Lisnagarvey HC
Saturday 11th June – Time: 15:00 – Venue: Lisnagarvey HC
Sunday 12th June – Time: 10:00 – Venue: Lisnagarvey HC
Tickets: €10 per match (adult) and €5 (child).
Weekend ticket: €25 (adult) €10 (child).
All are available to buy here: https://irelandhockey.sportlomo.com/buy-tickets/
A week of international hockey in Dublin from June 18th to 26th will send the Green Army off to the World Cup in style
The National Hockey Stadium, UCD will host an exciting week of international hockey with Ireland’s senior women facing Japan four times in the SoftCo Series as part of final preparations for July’s World Cup.
In addition, the venue will also host the Uniphar Under-23 5 Nations tournament with Ukraine, the Netherlands, USA and India competing, making for 17 international fixtures between June 18th to 26th.
‘Uniphar is delighted to be able to support a tournament that gives talented young players the opportunity to compete at international level at a great venue like the National Hockey Stadium, UCD. We’re excited to see how the home team fares, of course, but more importantly, we’re looking forward to seeing some fast-paced world class hockey,’ said Ger Rabbette, CEO, Uniphar.
Senior women’s head coach Sean Dancer is thrilled to get top class opposition in Japan, currently 10th in the world and two places above Ireland. They bring a fast, attacking style which will make for a thrilling series.
“With all the hockey being played around the world, it has been difficult to host matches in Ireland in recent times so we are delighted to be able to play these at home,” Dancer said.
“It has been a difficult couple of years with Covid and the girls are excited to see home crowds and the legendary Irish support back out in force.”
The four senior matches are played on Saturday, June 18th (4 pm); Sunday, June 19th (4 pm); Wednesday, June 22nd (5 pm) and Thursday, June 23rd (7 pm).
The series runs in parallel with the Uniphar U23 5 Nations event, featuring junior world champions Netherlands and fourth place finishers India and the USA, Ireland and, significantly, Ukraine.
The Ukraine team will be hosted by Ireland as they were not able to attend the FIH Junior World Cup in South Africa in April.
Coach David Passmore commented: “Thanks to the support of Uniphar, this is ideal preparation as we head into the top European division in the summer and it is great to have non-European teams in India and the USA.
“We are delighted to host the Ukraine team given we should have played them in South Africa and to show our solidarity with their plight.With numerous players moving up to the senior squad and others now overage for the summer, it’s the ideal forum to assess other players in a competitive tournament environment.”
The 5 Nations will consist of round-robin matches in which three of Ireland’s matches precede senior matches and then a finals day on Sunday 26th June.
Hockey Ireland Interim CEO Richard Fahey commented: “It will be great to have full stands back to support our national teams on home soil after the difficult Covid period and this could not come at a better time for our teams heading off to the World Cup and European Championships.
“We hope the hockey community will come out in force and get behind the Green and Junior Green Armies with tickets now on sale through the Hockey Ireland website”
Tickets can be purchased at https://irelandhockey.sportlomo.com/buy-tickets/
Full event schedule:
Saturday 18 June
16:00 Soft Co Series Match 1: Ireland Seniors v Japan Seniors
Sunday 19 June
12:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Netherlands v USA
14:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Ireland v India
16:00 Soft Co Series Match 2: Ireland Seniors v Japan Seniors
Monday 20 June
14:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: USA v Ukraine
16:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Netherlands v India
Wednesday 22 June
13:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: India v Ukraine
15:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Netherlands v Ireland
17:00 Soft Co Series Match 3: Ireland Seniors v Japan Seniors
Thursday 23 June
15:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: India v USA
17:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Ireland v Ukraine
19:00 Soft Co Series Match 4: Ireland Seniors v Japan Seniors
Saturday 25 June
09:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Netherlands v Ukraine
11:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Ireland v USA
Sunday 26 June: Uniphar U23 Tournament Play-offs
10:00 5th v Ireland Development
12:00 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Bronze Play-off 4th v 3rd
14:15 Uniphar U23 5 Nations: Final: 1st v 2nd
This weekend the U21 Men are playing a two-game series against England O35s in Corinthian HC.
Saturday: Ireland U21s V England O35s at 3 pm.
Sunday Ireland U21s V England O35s at 1 pm.
The squad is as follows:
| 1 | Ben Whelan | Ben Whelan |
| 2 | Ross Clarke | Ross Clarke |
| 3 | Jack O’Meara | Jack O’Meara |
| 4 | Adam Walker | Adam Walker |
| 5 | Conor Irwin | Ian Balding |
| 6 | James Clark | Craig Mackay |
| 7 | Jake Raben | Cian Murphy |
| 8 | Xavier Finglas | Jake Raben |
| 9 | Mark Duggan | Xavier Finglas |
| 10 | Patrick Rose | Mark Duggan |
| 11 | Ross Bailey | Patrick Rose |
| 12 | Rex Dunlop | Harry Lynch |
| 13 | Mark Cowan | Jonny Lynch |
| 14 | Scott Ruttle | Mark Cowan |
| 15 | Josh Filgas | Josh Greaney |
| 16 | Evan Jennings | Josh Filgas |
| 17 | Oliver kidd | Evan Jennings |
| 18 | Harry Scott | Oliver kidd |
| Reserves | Craig Mackay | Scott Ruttle |
| Cian Murphy | Ross Bailey |
All supporters are welcome. Directions are below.
Hockey Ireland senior women’s coach Sean Dancer has named a 23 player national squad panel ahead of a busy 2022 which includes July’s World Cup and August’s EuroHockey Championship qualifiers. […]
Mark Tumilty has named a 25-strong central squad to work with for the coming months ahead of a busy summer as the squad lays the groundwork for the Road to Paris 2024.
The squad ramps up its regional training sessions next week in the wake of the Irish Senior Cup final and will have their first camp of the summer program from May 13th to 15th.
The key event during the summer will be August’s EuroHockey Championship qualifier while there is also the FIH Nations Cup scheduled for December.
It is an important phase as the Green Machine look to get into position for the Olympic qualifiers which will take place in a new, tournament-based format in early 2024.
The panel features four uncapped players with Banbridge Academy schoolboy Charlie Rowe the youngest of the group following an exceptional season for school, province and club. His twin brother Louis has also been included in the Ulster regional training group.
Three Rock Rovers player of the season Ben Johnson, Donegal man Luke Witherow – who plies his trade with Banbrdge – and Lisnagarvey’s Jonny Lynch are also fresh faces looking to make their senior debuts.
Nick Page is looking to pick up his first formal cap having played a role in a number of challenge matches last summer in green. He enjoyed a strong club season with Old Geogrians – alongside Kyle Marshall – as the club won the English Premier Division for the first time.
There are five Belgian-based players involved. Ben Walker will link up with the panel following the playoffs with Braxgata while KHC Leuven quartet Luke Madeley, Daragh Walsh, Sean Murray and Jaime Carr also had strong seasons with a club who finished fifth in the Ion League.
Conor Empey, meanwhile, has been firing in the goals in the Dutch Hoofdklasse – world hockey’s strongest club league – with eight for SCHC. It is the highest total for an Irish player in a season in the competition.
Domestic champions Lisnagarvey provide four of the central panel: James Milliken, Mark McNellis, Peter McKibbin and Lynch. Milliken will vye for the goalkeeping duties with Carr and Pembroke’s Mark Ingram.
Michael Robson is the most experienced player in the panel and the link to the 2016 Olympic squad with 123 caps. His younger brother Callum and Tim Cross make up a trio of Annadale players.
Monkstown’s Jeremy Duncan and Crefelder HTC’s Neal Glassey are two more with extensive know-how while Glenanne’s Sam O’Connor, UCD’s Kevin O’Dea and YMCA’s Sam Hyland will look to forge ever-more prominent roles with the side.
Currently, David and Conor Harte (family reasons), Lee Cole, Shane O’Donoghue and David Fitzgerald (work commitments) and Matthew Nelson (travelling) are taking a break from the program but will potentially rejoin the panel in 2022 or early 2023.
Ireland senior men’s national training panel:
Jaime Carr (KHC Leuven, 40)
James Milliken (Lisnagarvey, 6)
Mark Ingram (Pembroke, 28)
Tim Cross (Annadale, 25)
Mark McNellis (Lisnagarvey, 6)
Luke Madeley (KHC Leuven, 26)
Kyle Marshall (Old Georgians, 10)
Neil Glassey (Crefelder HTC, 70)
Peter McKibbin (Lisnagarvey, 11)
Sam O’Connor (Glenanne, 14)
Sean Murray (KHC Leuven, 88)
Daragh Walsh (KHC Leuven, 61)
Michael Robson (Annadale, 123)
Kevin O’Dea (UCD, 7)
Nick Page (Old Georgians, 0)
Luke Witherow (Banbridge, 0)
Ben Walker (Braxgata, 45)
Johnny McKee (Banbridge, 52)
Callum Robson (Annadale, 3)
Jeremy Duncan (Monkstown, 66)
Conor Empey (SCHC, 5)
Sam Hyland (YMCA, 5)
Ben Johnson (Three Rock Rovers, 0)
Charlie Rowe (Banbridge, 0)
Jonny Lynch (Lisnagarvey, 0)
The Irish underage teams had their first outings of 2022, taking in fixtures in Lilleshall for the Under-18s and in Zwolle in the Netherlands for the Under-16s.
For the Under-18 boys, they started off at a high tempo against the Netherlands. The Dutch did see a first quarter stroke saved by Conor Murphy while Charlie Rowe had a goal disallowed as the Oranje eventually went on to win 1-0.
In game two, a strong, clinical Belgian side showed their strength and experience. A first Irish goal for Ben Pollock came from play while Harry Dagg scored a penalty corner rebound with the junior Red Lions winning 4-2.
The highlight of the weekend came against England Monday when a touch from Conor Matthews put Ireland in the lead in the second quarter and they held out for the rest of the match to bag the win.
The squad featured 12 first caps from the 22 traveling players this weekend. The side is supported by Comit.ie and Emtek.co.uk.
U18 Boys
Ireland 0 Netherlands 1
Ireland 2 Belgium 4
Ireland 1 England 0
***
The Under-18 girls also had their strongest outcome in game three when they drew 0-0 with England with both sides having their chances but defences held firm.
Belgium had earlier edged Ireland out 2-1 with Darcy McGall scoring the Irish goal. The Netherlands, meanwhile, were and outstanding outfit who won out 12-1, Anna Pim scoring a brilliant corner flick in a strong second half showing.
U18 Girls
Ireland 1 Netherlands 12
Ireland 1 Belgium 2
Ireland 0 England 0
**
The Under-16 boys made strong progress over the course of the weekend in their first games at this level for two years. They started off with a tough defeat to Belgium but narrowed the gap significantly after that.
They put in a strong performance against England, only conceding a late goal in 1-0 defeat while they pushed the Netherlands in an exciting contest which ended 2-0.
Under 16 Boys
Ireland 1 Belgium 7
Ireland 0 England 1
Ireland 0 Netherlands 2
****
In what was a first international series for the Irish Under-16 girls, they fought hard through their series in Zwolle. They put in a superb effort against Belgium, conceding twice in the last eight minutes to lose 3-0.
It was the same scoreline against England and they finished off a learning experience against the Netherlands in a 4-0 result, improving game on game
Under-16 Girls
Ireland 0 Belgium 3
Ireland 0 England 3
Ireland 0 Netherlands 4
The Irish Under-16 girl’s team are travelling to Zwolle, the Netherlands, for a Four Nations tournament, taking on England, Belgium and the host country from 15th to 17th April.
“We are looking forward to travelling to Lilleshall to test ourselves against Nederlands, Belgium and England. This will be an important phase in this group’s development as we build towards our tournament in Spain in July.”
| NAME | SCHOOL | CLUB | PROVINCE |
| Aliya Davis | Holy Child Killiney | Muckross | LEINSTER |
| Amy Handcock | Kilkenny College | Naas | LEINSTER STH |
| Anna Campbell | Crescent College Comp | Crescent | MUNSTER |
| Annie Cunningham | Royal School Armagh | Lurgan Ladies | ULSTER |
| Aoife O’Meara | Muckross Park College | Pembroke | LEINSTER |
| Charlie Bowman (GK) | Wallace | Lisnagarvey | ULSTER |
| Chloe Spencer | Markethill High School | Armagh | ULSTER |
| Emilie O’Brien | St Andrew’s Collerge | Monkstown | LEINSTER |
| Grainne Molloy (GK) | Gaelcholáiste Na Mara | Wicklow | LEINSTER STH |
| Isobel Field | Loreto Foxrock | Avoca | LEINSTER |
| Katie Heron | Killicomaine JHS | Portadown | ULSTER |
| Kia McCartney | Coleraine Grammar | Coleraine | ULSTER |
| Maebh McLoughlin | Sligo Grammar | Pembroke | CONNACHT |
| Milla Fulton | Wesley College | Pembroke | LEINSTER |
| Millie Jerman | Hioly Child Killiney | Monkstown | LEINSTER |
| Orla Young Hughes | Rathdown School | Monkstown | LEINSTER |
| Rachel Lennon | Portadown College | Portadown | ULSTER |
| Rebekah Lennon | Kilcomaine Jnr High | Portadown | ULSTER |
| Sarah Byrne | Loreto Foxrock | Avoca | LEINSTER |
| Scarlet Taylor | Royal School Armagh | Armagh | ULSTER |
| Sophie English | Mount Anville | Pembroke | LEINSTER |
Watch the FIH Nations Cup here https://watch.hockey/