ENGLAND TRIO INTO QUARTER FINALS OF EUROHOCKEY LEAGUE by Antonia Richards in Rotterdam

Following East Grinstead’s convincing win and Beeston’s success yesterday, the English spotlight was on the third of its teams (Reading) to also make it through to the quarter final stage by beating Club an der Alster in the fourth match played today. 

An early field goal by Ian Mackay gave Reading the lead, and Simon Mantell slotted in one of his own at the start of the final quarter to double the score.  Reading were reduced to nine men following two yellow cards, and the continuing pressure from their opponents then allowed captain Jonathan Froschle to find the net (his shot deflected into the goal by Stephen Dick) making it 1-2. 

However, the German club’s Sebastian Biederlack received a yellow card and, with their number reduced, Andy Watts took the opportunity to strike to put Reading further ahead 1-3.  Club an der Alster replaced their goalkeeper (Tim Jessulat) with a kicking back for the final three minutes and earned a late penalty corner which they were unable to convert.  Reading’s 1-3 victory means that all three English clubs are in the quarter finals.

In the second match of the day, Dinamo Elektrostal had their chances but it was KHC Dragons who emerged the winners after sending two field goals into the Russian club’s  net.  The scorers were Matthew Cobbaert (who, towards the end of the third quarter, landed heavily after a mighty collision with the Russian goalkeeper Roman Rogov) and Felix Denayer.  Final score: 2-0.

The third match saw HTC Uhlenhorst Mulheim take on the home side.  Rotterdam stormed into an early lead which they then extended to 4-0.  But Mulheim did not give up and their determined play had  levelled the score at 4-4 by the end of seventy minutes.  With no goals in extra time, the matter had to be settled by a one-on-one penalty shoot-out, from which Rotterdam emerged the victors 9-8. 

The schedule for the quarter finals  is as follows:

Sunday 8 April 2012
12.00 CET Beeston  v UHC Hamburg       
14.30 CET Amsterdam v HC Bloemendaal       

Monday 9 April 2012
12.00 CET KHC Dragons v Reading HC        
14.30 CET HC Rotterdam v East Grinstead

EG SET GOOD EXAMPLE from Antonia Richards in Rotterdam

In somewhat damp, cloudy and chilly conditions, East Grinstead shone on the pitch and sailed calmly into the quarter finals with an 8-0 win over CA Montrouge. 

Hat-tricks from Ashley Jackson and Mark Gleghorne plus goals from Darren Cheesman and Gareth Carr gave their fans in the stands plenty to cheer about, although their celebratory jumping up and down may also have been an attempt to keep warm. 
Their opponents in the last of the quarter finals to be played on Monday will be either the hosts (Rotterdam) or Uhlenhorst Mulheim.

SETBACK FOR READING by Peter Colwill in Brussels

(Apologies for the delay in posting this report from Peter Colwill at the ING EuroHockey Women’s Club Champions Cup at Royal Wellington, Brussels, due to technical difficulties)

Reading are left with an uphill struggle after losing their first match in the Eurohockey Women’s Club Champions Cup 2-0 against Royal Wellington the host club in Brussels.

Morgane Vouche converted Wellington’s only penalty corner in the third minute with a shot from a narrow angle which hit goalkeeper Sarah Ellis but looped agonisingly into the far top corner.

Worse followed in the fourteenth minute when  a  skilful run by Wellington’s Belgium International Jill Boon resulted in a penalty stroke from which the same player scored.

Reading, who were without their seven current Great Britain players, missed out eleven minutes into the second half when Lindsey Molyneux rounded the Belgium’s international goalkeeper Nadine Khouzam only to shoot wide of an empty goal.  Neither was there any joy from four second half penalty corners although two faulty injections did not help.

           

A day off should help Reading to prepare for a must win match against Klipper from Germany.

In the opening match of this half of the tournament, the other half is 700 miles away in San Sebastion, Larensche from the Netherlands beat Ritm-Agot Grodno from Belorussia 7-0.  Grodno, who changed their goalkeeper ten minutes into the second half, had neither a shot nor a penalty corner but Larensche must be wondering how they scored only two goals from fourteen corners. 

RESULTS.

Pool D

Laensche HC (Ned) 7    HC Ritm-Azot Grodno (Blr) 9

Pool C           

Reading HC (Eng) 0 Royal Wellington THC (Bel) 2

ROUND-UP OF TODAY'S PLAY IN ROTTERDAM from Antonia Richards

Following Beeston’s opening success against Club de Campo, the second match was between UHC Hamburg and RC Polo de Barcelona (and watched keenly by Beeston to see who they would play against in the first quarter final on Sunday).  Hamburg triumphed 3-0, thanks to two field goals from Marco Miltkau and one from Moritz Falcke.

The third match between Amsterdam and Dinamo Kazan ended 6-0.  With Taeke Taekema unable to convert his many penalty corner opportunities and Floris Evers failing to score from a penalty stroke, it was left to their teammates to land six field goals to seal the comfortable victory.  Credit must go to Dinamo Kazan who played with great skill and particularly to their goalkeeper (Marat Gafarov) who made some spectacular saves.  Indeed, the spectators were quick to applaud the efforts of the Russian team who were able to penetrate to launch a few attacks on the Amsterdam goal.  

The final game of the day saw HC Bloemendaal take on Atletic Terrassa for a place in the second quarter final with Amsterdam.  After a nervous start by both sides, Bloemendaal were first on the scoreboard with a penalty corner conversion by Olmer Meijer.  The match provided an exciting and action-packed finish to the day with the score standing at 4-3 to Bloemenaal with six minutes left to play, Terrassa having nibbled away at their lead.  Bloemendaal clung on and 4-3 was the final score, which puts them into the second of the quarter finals against Amsterdam on Sunday.

Match Schedule for Saturday 7 April 2012:
0930 CET East Grinstead v CA Montrouge
1200 CET KHC Dragons v Dinamo Elektrostal
1430 CET Rotterdam v Uhlenhorst Mulheim
1700 CET Der Club an der Alster v Reading

BEESTON WIN BATTLE ROYAL from Antonia Richards in Rotterdam

The opening match was a battle royal between Beeston and Club de Campo.  The Spanish side were first to score with a field goal from Gonzalo Lasso towards the end of the second quarter.

 It was however in the fourth quarter that the game really burst into life, with a field goal from Beeston’s Ben Arnold levelling the score at 1-1.  Their opponents made a video appeal to establish whether or not the award of a free hit on the sideline which lead to the goal was a correct decision; their appeal was unsuccessful. 

With nine minutes left to play, the Spanish were reduced to ten men as Eduard Tubau received a yellow card. Beeston made the most of the opportunity and Carl Smith’s shot on goal from open play put the score at 2-1.  Club de Campo then lost Oliver Markowsky to a yellow card and for a few minutes this meant the Spanish were down to nine players. 

The excitement reached fever pitch for the crowd when Club de Campo earned a penalty corner within seconds of Eduard Tubau’s return to the field, and with just two minutes left to play, fans of both clubs held their breath.  Beeston’s video appeal against the award of the corner was unsuccessful, as was Club de Campo’s attempt to convert it, the final score of 2-1 propelling Beeston into the quarter finals.

PLAY OFFS START TO TODAY

The Championship play-offs kicked off today, along with the England Hockey League Promotion Tournament and the Relegation play-offs.

Bidding for the title of Investec League Champions and qualification for Europe, were Leicester, Canterbury, Clifton and Bowdon Hightown. At Leicester, the home side raced to a 3-0 lead within 12 minutes, thanks to goals from Crista Cullen (2) and Katie Long. Natalie Seymour responded for their opponents, Canterbury, but a late Kerry Williams goal settled the matter decisively in Leicester's favour, 4-1.

Two clubs who have enjoyed improved form this season, Clifton and Bowdon Hightown, met at Bristol with Hightown taking the lead midway through the first period with penalty corner conversions from Sally Walton and Fay Nash. Els Mansell pulled one back for Clifton in the 58^th minute, but the match ended 1-2 to Hightown.

At the other end of the table, Slough were fighting for their Premier Division existence in the promotion play-offs. A Hannah Bowe penalty corner conversion early in the second half was enough to give them a 1-0 win against North Conference champions Beeston.

West Conference Buckingham, who are trying to gain promotion at the second attempt, beat Surbiton from the East Conference 1-2.

There was one women's relegation play-off match today, which saw East Conference Horsham beat North Conference Springfields.

In the men's England Hockey League, it was a successful day for Reading and Surbiton. Reading saw the Mantell brothers, Simon and Richard, score one apiece in the first half in their match against Beeston. Martin Jones raised Beeston's hopes late in the second half, but a Jonty Clarke penalty stroke in the last minutes of the match settled the issue in Reading's favour, 1-3.

Surbiton's James Tindall (2), Phil Messent, Tim Pinnock and Fergus Dunn, were all on target in their match against Cannock. The final score was 3-5 to Surbiton, with Ross Hayward (2) and David Harris being the scorers for Cannock. Surbiton will be hoping to put behind them a dismal record for European qualification. This win will help.

Team Bath Buccaneers may have sailed through the West Conference, but they found life a little more difficult in their promotion play-off match against Canterbury. Despite a 3^rd minute Johnny Kinder goal, the match did not go their way and the final score favoured Canterbury 3-5. Exeter University played Brooklands MU, but a solitary goal from Mark Richardson was enough to give the Manchester side the win.

Bromley & Beckenham's improvement in form in their last East Conference matches continued in the relegation play-offs as they beat Barford Tigers 5-3.

FULL RESULTS AND TABLE FROM TODAY ARE ON OUR MAIN WEB SITE AT www.TalkHockeyRadio.co.uk.

SOUTHGATE CONDEMN BOWDON TO RELEGATION

Relegation issues in the men's England Hockey League were still awaiting the outcome of today's matches, with two potential candidates – Southgate and Bowdon – playing each other.

Bowdon's fate was sealed by a Dan Shingles' 46^th minute goal away at Southgate, which lifts Southgate out of the relegation area and into eighth place. Bowdon are now automatically relegated. Bowdon's result, plus a 4-3 win against Loughborough Students, means that University of Exeter live to fight another day. They will have to re-qualify for the Premiership via the play-offs. Tom Carson must be a popular man at Exeter, as it was his hat-trick that contributed to their 4-3 win, although three late goals from Loughborough made it a close run thing.

TalkHockeyRadio was at Saint Hill to see East Grinstead play Surbiton. EG were uncatchable at the top of the Premiership, and Surbiton were assured of a place in the Championships, so there was little to be gained by either side from the outcome. Despite this, after a relatively slow start, the match developed into quite a tussle. Surbiton dominated the early encounters with Fergus Dunn scoring in the 15^th minute. Barry Middleton equalised 20 minutes into the second half, but a second from Dunn put Surbiton ahead. Mark Cleghorne quickly replied for East Grinstead, but a penalty stroke converted by Tim Pinnock restored Surbiton's lead. We hardly had time to stop clapping before Danny Hall equalised again. This seemed to take the wind out of the visitors' sails and a 64^th minute penalty corner conversion from Niall Stott gave the home side a 4-3 win.

Just as a note, we noticed how well mannered Surbiton were in this match, not something we have always been able to say in the past. Keep up the good work boys!

In the midlands, a late David Harris goal for Cannock robbed their visitors, Beeston, of a win, and the match ended 2-2. It was also a 2-2 draw at Hampstead & Westminster, where they were entertaining Reading.

As a result of today's matches, the winners and losers in the Men's Premiership are:

Championship play offs: East Grinstead, Beeston, Reading, Cannock and Surbiton.
Relegation play offs: University of Exeter.
Bowdon: Relegated.

In the Conferences:

North Conference:
Promotion play-offs: Canterbury
Relegation play-offs: Bromley & Beckenham
Relegated: Harleston Magpies

North Conference:
Promotion play-offs: Brooklands
Relegation play-offs: Barford Tigers
Relegated: Deeside Ramblers

West Conference Conference:
Promotion play-offs: Team Bath Buccaneers
Relegation play-offs: Lichfield
Relegated: Bournville

IN THE INVESTEC WOMEN'S CUP SEMI FINALS Surbiton beat Clifton 1-0, with University of Birmingham winning their match against Buckingham 5-0.

IMAGES FROM THE MATCH BETWEEN EAST GRINSTEAD AND SURBITON WILL APPEAR ON OUR PICTURES SITE SOON. Go to www.HockeyImages.co.uk.

 

 

RELEGATION LOOMS FOR SLOUGH IN LAST DAY DEFEAT

That was the season that was, at least for the Investec Women's League. The men's national league plays its final games tomorrow.

A surprising number of promotion and relegation issues were left until the final week. Probably the most significant was the scrap at the bottom of the Premier Division to avoid the relegation play-offs. Slough, in their final match, had the misfortune to meet neighbours Reading, who punished them with a 1-8 win at home, which included an Alex Danson hat-trick. The result pushes Slough into ninth place.

Clifton's 6-1 win over relegated Cannock offered them an opportunity to overtake third place Canterbury, but the Kent side also scored maximum points with a 2-1 win over Bowdon Hightown. Bowdon held onto their fifth place despite this, thanks to Leicester winning 0-2 at Olton & West Warwicks.

The final positions in the Premiership mean that Reading, Leicester, Canterbury, Clifton and Bowdon Hightown will be in the Championship play-offs. Slough will be in the relegation play offs and Cannock are relegated.

RELEGATION AND PROMOTION ISSUES IN THE CONFERENCES:

East Conference:
Promotion Play offs: Surbiton
Automatic Relegation: Maidstone
Relegation Play-offs: Horsham

North Conference:
Promotion Play offs: Beeston
Automatic Relegation: Northampton Saints
Relegation Play-offs: Springfields

West Conference:
Promotion Play offs: Buckingham
Automatic Relegation: Exe
Relegation Play-offs: Team Bath Buccaneers

 

2015 EUROPEAN CUP COMING TO LONDON

The European Hockey Federation has announced that the 2015 European Championships for both men and women has been awarded to England.

The tournament will be played in the legacy facility at Eton Manor. The Riverbank Stadium, which is the venue for the Olympic Hockey Tournament, is due to be relocated after the Games to Eton Manor, which forms part of the Lee Valley Park.  The tournament will take place at the end of August 2015.

The 2013 European Championships is due to be played in Boom, Nr Antwerp in Belgium.

Pictures from today's announcement can be found on our www.HockeyImages.co.uk site.

SURBITON SECURE PLAY OFF PLACE. Roundup of today’s league and cup matches.

There was a full programme of matches in the Investec Women's Conferences today, the penultimate day of the 2011-2012 season.

In the East Surbiton's 2-0 win over Harleston Magpies means that they are four points ahead of Sevenoaks in second place, and consequently they qualify for the promotion play-offs. It's still neck and neck at the bottom of the table, with any two of three facing either automatic relegation or the relegation play-offs. Old Loughtonians lost 3-1 to St Albans and are on nine points, whilst Horsham and Mainstone are both on eight. Horsham lost away at Sevenoaks to a single goal from Cathy Gilliat-Smith, whilst Maidstone went down 0-2 at home to Ipswich.

The meeting between table topping Beeston and relegated Northampton Saints in the North Conference, was only ever going to go one way. However the margin was an unexpected 12-0 in fabvour of Beeston, with hat-tricks from Eleanor Watton and Hollie Webb. Beeston can still be caught by University of Durham, who could only draw 1-1 at home to Loughborough Students. The relegation play off spot goes to Springfields who, despite their 2-2 draw against Doncaster, are too far adrift from eighth place Liverpool Sefton to escape.

Buckingham lead the charge in the West Conference with a 0-4 win against Exe. Buckingham can still be caught by Swansea, who won their match against Staines 0-4 and are only two points behind. The automatic relegation place is still a tussle between Exe and Team Bath Buccaneers, the Buccs losing to Isca this afternoon 2-1. Exe are on 11 points and Buccaneers on 10.

Brooklands MU have qualified for the promotion play offs as a result of the only match today in the Men's North Conference. Catching up on postponed fixtures, they beat Belper 0-1 away and are now six points clear of second place Sheffield Hallam. Havant were also catching up when they played Whitchurch in the Men's West Conference. They move up to second, but they are a massive 16 points behind leaders, Bath Buccaneers.

The first of the Men's Cup semi finals were played today. Bowdon were unable to salvage anything out of what has been an awful season for them. Despite briefly taking the lead, they fell to late goals from Hampstead & Westminster's Will Naylor and Neil Hamilton. Final score 5-4. If you want the result of the other semi final, you will have to wait until the evening of Thursday 16^th April, when Beeston play Cannock.

Full results and tables can be found on our main web site at www.talkhockeyradio.co.uk

BEESTON GO ALL OUT BUT ARE TOO LATE

The fact that East Grinstead had already achieved first place in the Premier Division of the England Hockey League did not stop their nearest rivals, Beeston, going all out for a win when the two leading sides met at Saint Hill this afternoon.

Beeston's Adam Dixon found the net in the first three minutes, but East Grinstead's Ashley Jackson replied soon after. After that the two sides shared no less than 12 goals between them. At 8-5 in Beeston's favour, Nial Stott scored in the dying seconds, but the match ended 8-6 to Beeston. Four points separate the two sides but, with only one match left to play, Beeston must settle for second.

Reading are now four points behind Beeston after putting Southgate to the sword, 6-0. Fortunately for Southgate, Hampstead and Westminster beat Bowdon 4-3. Bowdon slip to bottom after University of Exeter shared the points with Surbiton in a 1-1 draw. Southgate, University of Exeter and Bowdon are on 15, 14 and 13 points respectively.

Cannock drop one place to fourth after losing 1-2 at home to Loughborough Students. Loughborough Students, in sixth place, are four points behind fifth place Surbiton, which means that East Grinstead, Beeston, Reading, Cannock and Surbiton, have all secured Championship play-off places.

TalkHockeyRadio was at Luxborough Lane to see Old Loughtonians go down 1-2 to visiting Bromley and Beckenham in the East Conference. Old Loughts were playing on their new blue and pink pitch and pictures of this match will appear on our HockeyImages web site tomorrow (Sunday). Unfortunately for them, the defeat means that they can no longer catch Canterbury in poll position, despite Canterbury losing 2-3 to Teddington this afternoon.

There was a bit of déjà vu for us this afternoon, as two years ago we were at Old Loughts when they were high in the table and they lost to a struggling Bromley and Beckenham. Despite the win, Bromley will now face a relegation play-off. On what we saw this afternoon, they deserve better. Harleston Magpies, one place below them at the bottom of the table, drew 4-4 against Indian Gymkhana but are relegated.

The top of the table clash in the North Conference ended with Sheffield Hallam going down 0-4 to Brooklands MU. Sheffield can catch Brooklands and have a better goal difference, but Brooklands have a game in hand. Issues are still to be decided at the basement end of the table, with Deeside Ramblers losing 4-5 to Belper, and Barford Tigers losing 5-4 to Doncaster. Next weekend's results will decide which is relegated and which will be in the relegation play off.

Team Bath Buccaneers secured the West Conference Championships several weeks ago, but they are ending the season with a flourish with a 3-1 over University of Birmingham in their penultimate match. Bournville are already relegated, but the relegation play off place is still to be decided. Cheltenham, currently in eighth place, could be caught by Lichfield in ninth. Lichfield recorded a 2-1 win at home to Guildford this afternoon.

There was a full set of matches played in the Investec Women's Premier Division this afternoon. Bowdon Hightown beat Sutton Coldfield 3-2, and move up into fifth place, two points ahead of Olton & West Warwicks.

The automatic relegation spot was decided some time ago, but there is a real scrap going on for the relegation play off placed. Slough, in ninth place, beat relegated Cannock 2-1, whilst eighth place University of Birmingham beat Olton & West Warwicks 4-1. Today's results leave Sutton Coldfield on 20 points and University of Birmingham and Slough on 19.

The Division winners, Reading went down 0-3 at home to Canterbury, which means that the Kent side move up to third. Second place Leicester beat Clifton 5-0.

FULL RESULTS AND TABLES FOR TODAY'S MATCHES CAN BE FOUND ON OUR MAIN WEB SITE AT www.TalkHockeyRadio.co.uk.