Kenya edges Zambia in playoff to secure Hockey5s World Cup ticket

    December 15, 2022 The national men’s five-a-side hockey team has qualified for the 2024 FIH Hockey5s World Cup that will be held in Oman. The Kenyans defeated Zambia 5-2 during the bronze medal playoff of the first ever African qualifiers of its kind held in Ismailia, Egypt. Bathuel Masambu scored a brace for Kenya with skipper Ivan Ludiali, Danstone Wabwire and Brian Ogenche adding one each. Katele Shadrick and Bwalva Gift got the consolation goals for Zambia. The Kenyans defeated Zambia 5-2 during the bronze medal playoff of the first ever African qualifiers of its kind held in Ismailia, Egypt Bathuel Masambu scored a brace for Kenya with skipper Ivan Ludiali, Danstone Wabwire and Brian Ogenche adding one each. Katele Shadrick and Bwalva Gift got the consolation goals for Zambia The result saw Kenya secure the third World Cup slot for the African continent, joining the tournament champions Egypt and Nigeria who were runners-up. Namibia won gold in the women’s competition, and along with Zambia and South Africa, qualified for the inaugural global championship. Kenya women, Blades, did not advance to medal matches after finishing bottom of the standings. African Hockey Federation (AfHF) had selected six nations; hosts Egypt, South Africa, Kenya, Zambia, Nigeria and Namibia for the qualifying games. This inaugural FIH Hockey5s World Cup will set up a pinnacle tournament in the Hockey5s format that will run as a quadrennial event. Apart from the hosts Oman, there will be 3 teams each from Africa, Asia, Europe, Pan America and Oceania. | Source: Citizen Digital

    South Africa Qualify for the 2024 FIH Hockey 5s World Cup

      December 16, 2022 The South African women’s hockey 5s have qualified for the 2024 FIH Hockey 5s World Cup in Muscat, Oman after beating Egypt in a third-place play-off on Thursday, 15 December 2022. The ladies in green and gold were the first team to qualify for the inaugural FIH Hockey 5s World Cup after beating their opponents 7-0. The team played a total of four games throughout the African qualifiers, losing to Zambia and Namibia. Namibia won gold after beating Zambia 2-1 in the final, with Zambia grabbing silver and South Africa bronze. The FIH Hockey 5s World Cup will take place in January 2024.  Results: African Qualifiers in Egypt Day 1 South Africa 4 – 5 Zambia Day 2 South Africa 2 – 3 Namibia South Africa 5 – 0 Kenya Day 4 South Africa 6 -1 Egypt Play-Offs South Africa 7 – 0 Photo 1 Caption: The South African women’s hockey 5s have qualified for the 2024 FIH Hockey 5s World Cup in Muscat, Oman after beating Egypt in a third-place play-off on Thursday, 15 December 2022. Photo: Egypt Hockey (Facebook) Source: gsport.co.za

      Namibia women and Egypt men crowned champions

        December 16, 2022 EGYPT: The 1st African Hockey5s World Cup Qualifiers 2022 came to an end today in Ismailia, Egypt as Namibia won the gold medal, and along with Zambia and South Africa, qualified for the inaugural FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024 in the women’s competition, while Egypt took gold in the men’s competition and were joined by Nigeria and Kenya in qualifying for the World Cup.  Africa Hockey5s World Cup Qualifier 2022 Women In the pool stage of the women’s competition Zambia and Namibia finished in the first two positions, each registering 3 wins and a loss in their 4 matches. South Africa finished third in the pool with 6 points from 2 wins and 2 losses. Egypt finished in the fourth spot, ahead of Kenya on goal difference, with both teams getting a singular win for 3 points. At the end of the pool stage, the top two teams, Zambia and Namibia, qualified for the gold medal match and were assured of a spot in the FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024, while South Africa and Egypt would play for the bronze medal with the winner also securing the final spot from Africa for the upcoming inaugural Hockey5s World Cup. In the medal matches played today, South Africa put in an offensive showcase, scoring 7 unanswered goals against Egypt to secure the bronze medal and World Cup qualification. Sylvia van Jaarsveldt was the standout player for South Africa, scoring a hat-trick in the bronze medal match. In the gold medal match Zambia and Namibia met in a closely-contested encounter. Namibia scored the only goal of the first half through a smashing hit scored by Jivanka Kruger. Namibia then doubled their lead in the second half as a loose ball fell to Kaela Schimming who got her angles right to put the ball beyond the keeper. Zambia managed to get a goal back with 3 minutes left on the clock, but the Namibian defense did not get breached a second time and as the clock ran out, Namibia became the champions of the 1st African Hockey5s World Cup Qualifiers.  Africa Hockey5s World Cup Qualifier 2022 Men In the pool stage of the men’s competition Egypt were the standout team, winning all 4 matches, accruing a healthy goal difference of 15! Nigeria finished in the second position with 2 wins, a draw and a solitary loss which came against Egypt. Zambia and Kenya finished third and fourth respectively, with South Africa finishing in the last position after collecting just 1 point from a draw against Zambia. At the end of the pool stage Egypt and Nigeria qualified for the gold medal match and were assured of a spot in the FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024, while Zambia and Kenya would play for the bronze medal with the winner also securing the final spot from Africa for the upcoming inaugural Hockey5s World Cup. In the medal matches played today, Kenya outclassed Zambia, winning the contest by a comfortable scoreline of 5-2, to win the bronze medal and grab the final spot available for the FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024. Bethuel Musambu was immense for Kenya scoring their second and third goal, to put the game well and truly beyond Zambia’s reach. In the gold medal match, Egypt entered as heavy favorites, having previously defeated Nigeria in their pool match, by a scoreline of 8-6! Egypt blew away the Nigerian defense once again in the finals, scoring 5 unanswered goals in the first half. Nigeria had a mountain to climb if they wanted to make a comeback in the game, but they started off well, scoring in the first minute of the second half, reducing the deficit to 4. The Egyptian team were in an unrelenting mood though, and scored within a minute of conceding, restoring their 5-goal lead. The teams exchanged one more goal apiece in the 18th minute, before Egypt tacked on 2 more goals in the final minute to register a comfortable 9-2 win to secure the gold medal. Egypt captain Amr Syed was the standout player in the finals scoring a hat-trick, while Mostafa Ragab and Hossam Ghobran scored two goals apiece.  FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024 The FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024 is a 16-team tournament that will be the first ever World Cup played in the Hockey5s format. Apart from the hosts Oman, there will be 3 teams each from Africa, Asia, Europe, Pan America and Oceania. Netherlands, Belgium and Poland have already qualified for the men’s Hockey5s World Cup, from Europe and will be joined by Egypt, Nigeria and Kenya from Africa. Zambia, Namibia and South Africa are the first teams to qualify for the Women’s World Cup. The FIH Hockey5s World Cup will be held in Muscat, Oman in January 2024. Source: Punjab News Express

        Namibia women and Egypt men crowned champions at 1st African Hockey5s World Cup Qualifier 2022

          15 December 2022 The 1st African Hockey5s World Cup Qualifiers 2022 came to an end today in Ismailia, Egypt as Namibia won the gold medal, and along with Zambia and South Africa, qualified for the inaugural FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024 in the women’s competition, while Egypt took gold in the men’s competition and were joined by Nigeria and Kenya in qualifying for the World Cup. Africa Hockey5s World Cup Qualifier 2022 Women In the pool stage of the women’s competition Zambia and Namibia finished in the first two positions, each registering 3 wins and a loss in their 4 matches. South Africa finished third in the pool with 6 points from 2 wins and 2 losses. Egypt finished in the fourth spot, ahead of Kenya on goal difference, with both teams getting a singular win for 3 points. At the end of the pool stage, the top two teams, Zambia and Namibia, qualified for the gold medal match and were assured of a spot in the FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024, while South Africa and Egypt would play for the bronze medal with the winner also securing the final spot from Africa for the upcoming inaugural Hockey5s World Cup. In the medal matches played today, South Africa put in an offensive showcase, scoring 7 unanswered goals against Egypt to secure the bronze medal and World Cup qualification. Sylvia van Jaarsveldt was the standout player for South Africa, scoring a hat-trick in the bronze medal match. In the gold medal match Zambia and Namibia met in a closely-contested encounter. Namibia scored the only goal of the first half through a smashing hit scored by Jivanka Kruger. Namibia then doubled their lead in the second half as a loose ball fell to Kaela Schimming who got her angles right to put the ball beyond the keeper. Zambia managed to get a goal back with 3 minutes left on the clock, but the Namibian defense did not get breached a second time and as the clock ran out, Namibia became the champions of the 1st African Hockey5s World Cup Qualifiers. Africa Hockey5s World Cup Qualifier 2022 Men In the pool stage of the men’s competition Egypt were the standout team, winning all 4 matches, accruing a healthy goal difference of 15! Nigeria finished in the second position with 2 wins, a draw and a solitary loss which came against Egypt. Zambia and Kenya finished third and fourth respectively, with South Africa finishing in the last position after collecting just 1 point from a draw against Zambia. At the end of the pool stage Egypt and Nigeria qualified for the gold medal match and were assured of a spot in the FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024, while Zambia and Kenya would play for the bronze medal with the winner also securing the final spot from Africa for the upcoming inaugural Hockey5s World Cup. In the medal matches played today, Kenya outclassed Zambia, winning the contest by a comfortable scoreline of 5-2, to win the bronze medal and grab the final spot available for the FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024. Bethuel Musambu was immense for Kenya scoring their second and third goal, to put the game well and truly beyond Zambia’s reach. In the gold medal match, Egypt entered as heavy favorites, having previously defeated Nigeria in their pool match, by a scoreline of 8-6! Egypt blew away the Nigerian defense once again in the finals, scoring 5 unanswered goals in the first half. Nigeria had a mountain to climb if they wanted to make a comeback in the game, but they started off well, scoring in the first minute of the second half, reducing the deficit to 4. The Egyptian team were in an unrelenting mood though, and scored within a minute of conceding, restoring their 5-goal lead. The teams exchanged one more goal apiece in the 18th minute, before Egypt tacked on 2 more goals in the final minute to register a comfortable 9-2 win to secure the gold medal. Egypt captain Amr Syed was the standout player in the finals scoring a hat-trick, while Mostafa Ragab and Hossam Ghobran scored two goals apiece. FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024 The FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024 is a 16-team tournament that will be the first ever World Cup played in the Hockey5s format. Apart from the hosts Oman, there will be 3 teams each from Africa, Asia, Europe, Pan America and Oceania. Netherlands, Belgium and Poland have already qualified for the men’s Hockey5s World Cup, from Europe and will be joined by Egypt, Nigeria and Kenya from Africa. Zambia, Namibia and South Africa are the first teams to qualify for the Women’s World Cup. The FIH Hockey5s World Cup will be held in Muscat, Oman in January 2024. This inaugural FIH Hockey5s World Cup will set up a pinnacle tournament in the Hockey5s format that will run as a quadrennial event. #Hockey5s #HockeyEquals #HockeyInvites For more information about FIH and hockey in general, please download the Watch.Hockey app or follow the FIH social media channels – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – and website.

          FIH President, Mr. Tayyab Ikram holds interactive session with captains at Hockey5s

            The International Hockey Federation (FIH) President Mr. Tayyab Ikram committed to meet in person with the captains of the participating teams of the 1st African Hockey 5s WC qualifiers. The interactive session discussions revolved around the athletes’ challenges in participation and performance sides, athletes’ welfare, career pathways, safety matters, athletes rights, mental health awareness, and the IOC Athlete365 relevant resources. Also, discussions took place around the FIH & AfHF events calendars and the Hockey 5s Rules. The captains also used the session to interact with each other in a group about their different national strategies & goals, equipment, officiating and development. The FIH President is planning further similar captains’ meetings with other teams’ captains at the different tournaments he is planning to attend. #Hockey5s #HockeyInvites #AfricaHockeyNews

            Ireland and Japan join unbeaten Spain and India in the semifinals of the FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup Spain 2022

              Ireland and Japan got the results they needed on the final day of pool games, with draws against Korea and Chile respectively, sealing their spots in the semifinals of the inaugural FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup. Ireland will now face India, while Japan will take on Spain, in the semifinals on 16 December. Ireland played in the opening fixture of the day and held a 2-0 lead against Korea with just 7 minutes to go, but a late flurry from Korea earned them a draw and Ireland had to wait for the result in the second game of the day between Spain and Italy to know their fate. Italy played a brilliant defensive game to keep Spain at bay throughout the game before trying to look for a late winner that would’ve taken them above Ireland on goal difference, but they couldn’t break the resolute Spanish defense, and the draw gave them a 3rd place finish ahead of Korea, with Ireland finishing second. India maintained their perfect record, making it 3 wins out of 3, with a dominant display against the young South African team, with defenders Deep Grace Ekka and Gurjit Kaur getting on the scoreboard through well taken penalty corner goals. The final game of the pool stages was played between Chile and Japan. Chile needed a win to overtake Japan in Pool B, while Japan needed to at least draw the game, to stay ahead of Chile on goal difference. The teams went into the half tied at 1 goal each, and the Japanese defense proved to be a fortress that Chile could not breach in the second half, with the game ending in a tie that sent Japan through to the semifinals. All teams will be back in action on 16 December following a rest day tomorrow. To see the full schedule, click here. Match 1: Ireland vs Korea 2-2 Both Ireland and Korea knew coming into the game what they needed from the last game to qualify for the semifinals. A win would guarantee progress for the Irish, but a draw would probably be enough, depending on the result in the game between Spain and Italy. For Korea, nothing but a win would be enough, and even then they would have to rely on the other result in the pool. This set up a thrilling game as both teams traded possession constantly looking for goal-scoring opportunities. The first half could have ended with each team scoring at least 3 goals, but keepers Jinmin Lee and Elizabeth Murphy were exceptional in the goals and kept opposing attackers out to keep the score level at 0-0 at half time. Ireland found the breakthrough in the second half, as an incredible double save by Lee was not enough and the rebound fell to Sarah Hawkshaw who tapped the ball in, finally breaching the Korean goal. As Korea searched for an equalizer, Ireland scored again, with an attempted kicking clearance by Lee falling to Mullan who squeezed the ball into the goal on a tight angle. With less than 7 minutes to go and 3 goals to get, Korea seemed down and out, but found a route back through penalty corners. The first one, with 3 minutes left in the game, struck an Irish defender on the line and led to a penalty stroke that was dispatched by Hyejin Cho. With 2 minutes left to go, Korea scored again, this time from a drag flick by Sujin An. Ireland managed the remaining 2 minutes very well, to end the game on a tie. The result meant Korea were out of semifinal qualification, while Ireland would qualify for the semifinals as long as Spain took at least a point out of their following game against Italy. Ireland captain Katie Mullan won her second consecutive player of the match award and said: “A bit nervy in the end with Korea being efficient with their chances in the final minutes. We will take the draw and watch the remaining games now to see how things play out.” Match 2: Spain vs Italy 0-0 Italy came into the game against Spain with a clearly defined plan to play with a low block and try to prevent Spain from scoring, while looking to benefit from counter-attacking opportunities they could create from Spanish errors/turnovers. While part one of the game plan was executed perfectly by the Italian defense, their offense could not make the best of the few opportunities that came their way through the game. The result was a highly entertaining 0-0 draw between the two teams, that brings an end to Spain’s winning streak, but also means Italy do not qualify for the semi-finals, despite earning a hugely impressive point against the in-form team of the tournament. For Italy goalkeepers Sofia Monserrat and Ines Caruso were in phenomenal form, turning away waves of Spanish attempts on the goal. Camila Machin and Ivanna Pessina too were rock solid in defense, both making goal line saves themselves to back up their keepers’ good work. For Spain, Alejandra Torres-Quevedo was once again the brightest spark creating plenty of chances for the forward line and earning them two penalty corners as well. In the Spanish defense, captain Maria Lopez played a crucial role in denying Italy a proper sniff at goal scoring opportunities. Lopez was also awarded the player of the match for her efforts and said: “I am not happy with the result. We should have scored some goals in the game. But at least we did not concede any goals, so that is something we can carry forward to the next games.” Match 3: India vs South Africa 2-0 India came into the final pool match against South Africa looking for a win to carry their forward momentum into the semifinals, and to turn around their penalty corner conversion rate, which had been a problem so far, having failed to convert any of their 15 penalty corners through the first two games. The Indian

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              Egyptian Olympic Committee shield dedicated to FIH President, Mr. Tayyab Ikram

                On the sidelines of the 1st African Hockey 5s World Cup Qualifiers (Men/Women), Captain Sherif Kamal, President of The Egyptian Hockey Federation Member of the Egyptian Olympic Committee and Al Basel Abdullah, Member of the Egyptian Olympic Committee dedicates the shield of the Egyptian Olympic Committee to Mr. Tayyab Ikram, President of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) in the presence of the members of Egychockey’s Board of Directors and Mr. Seif Ahmed, President of the African Hockey Federation. ‏#Hockey5s