Indoor Hockey Glory for the KZN Raiders

    It’s been a riveting weekend of indoor hockey in Bellville down in the Western Cape. There have been more goals than controversial statements from Donald Trump and as the weekend progressed the quality of the hockey started to experience an upsurge as well. Ultimately it was the expected KZN Raiders who did the job and emerged victorious. After the group stages were completed on Friday, the knock out stages is where the tournament truly begins and the quality of games really backed that statement up.  The Raiders continued on their relentless march in both the women’s and men’s tournament where the victims of their brutally efficient hockey was the WP Pens and Mpumalanga respectively. There was a major upset in the Quarter finals of the men’s tournament as an opening salvo of supreme pace and relentless attack saw the Southern Gauteng “B” Side, known as Wits march to an early lead against the KZN Inland side. It was a lead they would not release and they ended up victors with one of the displays of the tournament. There reward though was a match against the unstoppable Raiders in the Semi-Final where Ryan Hack’s men could not be stopped. It’s been a riveting weekend of indoor hockey in Bellville down in the Western Cape. There have been more goals than controversial statements from Donald Trump and as the weekend progressed the quality of the hockey started to experience an upsurge as well. Ultimately it was the expected KZN Raiders who did the job and emerged victorious. After the group stages were completed on Friday, the knock out stages is where the tournament truly begins and the quality of games really backed that statement up.  The Raiders continued on their relentless march in both the women’s and men’s tournament where the victims of their brutally efficient hockey was the WP Pens and Mpumalanga respectively. There was a major upset in the Quarter finals of the men’s tournament as an opening salvo of supreme pace and relentless attack saw the Southern Gauteng “B” Side, known as Wits march to an early lead against the KZN Inland side. It was a lead they would not release and they ended up victors with one of the displays of the tournament. There reward though was a match against the unstoppable Raiders in the Semi-Final where Ryan Hack’s men could not be stopped. The men’s final was an altogether different affair. Southern Gauteng were the heavy underdogs but started with a bang when Kyle Marks scored from a rebound, the Raiders fought back before a sensational goal by Brandon James gave Southerns the lead again. Raiders, not to be outdone fought back with a great team goal finished off by Greg Last.  After half time the Southerns boys started to tire and the Raiders almost looked to have more energy and raised the game to another level. After taking the lead through inspirational skipper Fairweather and another through Eustice, the Raiders employed a brand of game management that would make the All Blacks proud in seeing it out. The tournament was undoubtedly one of the best indoor IPT’s that we have seen in South Africa, although there is room for improvement. The involvement of PSi in hosting the IPT raised the tournament to a better level and it would make sense if a continued involvement was sought out for them by SA Hockey. In terms of the individual awards the top goalscorers awards were shared in the men’s by Jethro Eustice (Raiders) and Gavin Jelley (Inland), and incredibly shared in the ladies as well by Cindy Hack and Eloise Walters (both Raiders). Matthew Becker did is own national hopes no hurt, by being named keeper of the tournament while Nicole le Fleur won the award for the lady. Lastly it was to player of the tournament which was easily won by Jethro Eustice in the mens tournament. In the ladies tournament Nicole de Vries, who had received stiches on Friday when a mask hit her, was named the player of the tournament. Final Positions Men’s Indoor Inter Provincial Tournament Women’s Indoor Inter Provincial Tournament 1.  KZN Raiders 1.       KZN Raiders 2.  Southern Gauteng 2.       Western Province 3.  Western Province 3.       KZN Mynahs 4.  Wits 4.       Southern Gauteng 5.  KZN Inland 5.       North West 6.  WP Pens 6.       KZN Inland 7.  Eastern Gauteng 7.       WP Pens 8.  Mpumalanga 8.       Mpumalanga Source: SA Hockey Channel  | Date: 17 October 2016

    PHL takes SA hockey into a bright new future

      Both men’s and women’s hockey broke into new territory in Randburg in September 2016 as the inaugural Premier Hockey League began what most involved feel will be a revolution in the game in South Africa.  The Milo Maropeng Cavemen and the Nestle Pure Life Blyde River Bunters emerged triumphant on 25th September 2016 in gripping finals as the Department of Sport and Recreation backed event came to an end. Six men’s and six women’s teams, playing as franchises that are 100% owned by the South African Hockey Association (SAHA) after a draft system, played each other once in a league stage before the top four teams progressed to the semi-finals, followed by the grand finals.  “It was a definite success and something different for local hockey. To play with young and experienced players all in the same team and from all different provinces, was amazing. Nobody knew each other at first, but if you’re a top hockey player then you need to adapt. The same applies to having different coaches – a lot of our players had never played under coach Lindsey Wright before,” said the captain of the Nestle Pure Life Blyde River Bunters, Nicolene Terblanche, who is also the national women’s captain.  “The PHL was a great success, just ask any of the players and they’ll tell you they wish they were doing this for the last few years. It was well-organised and thanks to SuperSport, the players had the experience of playing on TV and being able to use the video referral system. The only time we’ve had that before has been in international hockey and not a lot of players get to do that. For 16-year-olds, this incredible tournament meant they learnt a lot,” Terblanche added.  “The first season has been really inspirational and a lot of people watched the TV coverage on SuperSport. The PHL is what hockey needs and it was exciting to see it on TV. I hope the tournament grows as it’s the foundation of our future hockey and an opportunity for the national selectors to see more players. Additionally, they got to see a lot of games at good intensity and pressure. It’s one of the best tournaments I’ve played in,” said the captain of the Milo Maropeng Cavemen, Rassie Pieterse.  The veteran Southern Gauteng goalkeeper has played all over the world and won many tournaments, but he said the sheer elation of some of the Cavemen team when they were handed their gold medals brought home another great benefit of the PHL.  “We had a good mix of experience and younger players that bring a lot of energy and that’s important too. For some of the guys from the smaller centres like Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein, Stellenbosch, Pinetown and East London, it was the first time they’ve ever won a gold medal because they play for minnows. Hopefully they can take knowledge back to their clubs because now they’ve experienced what it takes to win a tournament,” Pieterse said.  Terblanche was a compelling leader of a very young Bunters side – with an average age of just 21 – and she was similarly inspirational off the field as she handed all the money from her three player of the match awards during the tournament to the fundraising efforts of the national U21 teams as they head off for their junior world cups in India and Chile.  “I’ve been in their shoes before and know that every cent helps, so I decided to donate all my winnings,” Terblanche humbly said.  With opportunities for top competition few and far between for South Africa’s leading players, Terblanche was eager for SAHA to persevere with the exciting PHL concept.  “I really hope this happens every year now. With no major international tournaments for us in 2016, it was absolutely not a nice year for the national players, but then the PHL came along. We all looked forward to it, it was so exciting and the community really got into the swing of it as well with all the posts on Facebook and other social media. “By putting the PHL on TV, it made sure people were talking about it, whenever I went back to the office, my colleagues would ask me about the tournament. So it’s been very positive and I know the players that didn’t play this year are very jealous to miss out,” Terblanche said. Published: 03 October 2016 | Source: SA Hockey

      Double Qualification For Ghana Hockey In The Hockey World League Series

        The National Male and Female Hockey Teams of Ghana on Sunday 11th September 2016 both booked tickets to the 2nd Round of the Hockey World League Series. The Female team played Kenya in the morning of the Sunday the 9th, and needed a win to qualify, having beating Nigeria earlier in the tournament by 2 goals to nothing. As Kenya is ranked directly behind Ghana, it was sure to be a tough one, and indeed did not disappoint. The Ghanaian ladies started threatening the goal of their Kenyan counterparts early in the game and came very close on numerous occasions to scoring. The game however stayed barren for the most part, creating a very charged and restless atmosphere in the Theodosia Okoh Hockey Stadium. The ladies finally put everybody to rest when Richel Bamfo received a ball and tore past the goalkeeper and an incoming defender to guide the ball into the post in the dying minutes of the game. The ladies had one task after this; to hold on to the lead and that they did to the admiration and excitement of all. With this result, the National Women’s team secured the single slot available to the 2nd round to take place in Spain in February of 2017. In the Men’s game which was the last of the day and for the tournament, Ghana only had to manage a draw to secure their place in the 2nd round as they had beaten Namibia 7 – 1 and their arch rivals Kenya by a lone goal earlier in the tournament. This task that looked very doable in the beginning considering Ghana’s play throughout the tournament, would soon be put in doubt as Nigeria drew first blood about halfway through the first half. It was not until the dying minutes of the game that the Ghanaian team equalized through Emmanuel Ankomah (One Finger). Even though this gave the many Ghanaian supporters some kind of comfort, it was not until Shadrack Baah connected a brilliant pass from Michael Baiden, the Ghanaian International based in South Africa to secure the win, did the fans really breath a sigh of relief. Managing to secure this result meant that the male team would join their female counterparts who had qualified earlier in the day, in the 2nd round of the World League Series to take place in Bangladesh in February. We are so proud of our men and women and wish them the best in their preparations towards to the 2nd round of the competition. Signed: Daniel Kenaz Mensah Sec. Gen.

        Glasgow, Accra and Antalya play host to Round One events

          September 1, 2016 Hockey World League Round 1 continues to offer route to hockey glory The next series of Hockey World League Round 1 events are about to get underway as Glasgow (Scotland), Antalya (Turkey) and Accra (Ghana) prepare to host their respective events. Teams from across the world will be looking to make their mark over the next few weeks as they begin their quest to qualify for the Hockey World League Finals in 2017, and the Hockey World Cups in 2018. Before that their focus must be on qualifying for Round 2, thereafter the Hockey World League Semi-Finals await the top performing teams. Vital International Hockey Federation (FIH) Hero World Ranking points will also be on offer to those participating, and could prove crucial in terms of qualification for future events. In Glasgow five men’s teams will be doing battle to secure a spot in Round 2 – Wales, Portugal, Slovakia, Switzerland and the home nation, Scotland. The tournament starts at 17:00 (BST) on 6 September and takes the form of a round-robin competition. The opening match will be between Wales, who are ranked 36 in the FIH Hero World Rankings, and Portugal who sit at 41. For Welsh coach Zak Jones and his men, this event is a chance for Wales to compete on the global stage and demonstrate that the national association’s strategy 360 – taking a holistic approach to player development – is beginning to deliver results. Scotland come into the event as favourites. They are ranked at 28 and also have home advantage on their side, but they will be pushed by Switzerland, their opponents in the first game, who are ranked two places below them and have been working hard to improve upon their Hockey World League Season Two performance. Then they came fifth in their Round 2 group in South Africa in 2014. Switzerland has a new coach in Chris Fust, who was previously coach to the Czech Republic, and in the past few weeks the team, has played a three-match series against Chile, where they won two and drew the other game. Slovakia are the unknown quantity. Ranked 50 in the FIH Hero World Rankings, this is their second foray into the Hockey World League and they will be hoping the goal scoring brothers Martin and Frantisek Cernansky are on form. The Glasgow event will run from 6-11 September with the top two teams progressing to Hockey World League Round 2. Antalya is one of the other Hockey World League Round 1 events taking place in the next few weeks. The event runs from 9-11 September and is also a round-robin event. The participating teams are Austria (FIH Hero World Ranking 22), Oman (31), Qatar (68) and Turkey (45). The winning team in Antalya will secure qualification for the Hockey World League Round 2. While Austria will be out and out favourites to take the title, these are all teams who have been developing at pace in the past few years as they have embraced the ideals of the FIH Hockey Revolution, bringing higher levels of professionalism to their game. In Season Two of the Hockey World League, Austria made it all the way to the Semi-Finals in Buenos Aires, Argentina and will have the benefit of that experience to draw upon. Long serving players Michael Korper and Benjamin Stanzl will be hoping to lead their team all the way to the Hockey World League Semi-Finals again during this series. The third Hockey World League Round 1 event taking place is a joint men’s and women’s event at Accra in Ghana. This takes place from 9-11 September. Again, the winner of each event will progress to Hockey World League Round 2. Ghana, Kenya, Namibia and Nigeria are sending men’s teams to the event, with all those teams except Namibia also competing in the women’s event. If the African Hockey Championships in 2015 are anything to go by, the competition will be fierce. Ghana is a nation that has been driving hockey forwards through its involvement in the FIH West Africa Targeted Assistance Programme (TAP). The women’s team in particular benefited from spending two weeks at Bisham Abbey, working with England Hockey in 2015. But, as the continental championships demonstrated, Kenya are hard on Ghana’s heels in both the men’s and women’s game, while the hard-working Nigerians will not give up until the final whistle. In terms of FIH Hero World Rankings, the men’s teams are ranked as follows: Namibia (78), Nigeria (53), Ghana (43) and Kenya (38), while the women are ranked: Nigeria (62), Kenya (40) and Ghana (29). This is the second international event hosted in Ghana. A Hockey World League Round 1 event took place here back in 2012 and the country’s ability to host an international event is a mark of how far the country has progressed in a short while. Such global development is at the heart of the FIH 10 Year Strategy, the Hockey Revolution. To follow the events, visit: Glasgow, Scotland – Men Accra, Ghana – Men Accra, Ghana – Women Antalya, Turkey – Men #HWL2016 #MakeYourMark

          Hockey World League Officially Launched In Accra

            Set in motion, The Hockey World League Round 1, Accra 2016, on Wednesday 31st August 2016 at 11:00am was officially introduced to public with a very huge media presence. Over 40 media houses were present to witness the official outdooring of Ghana’s biggest hockey event hosted since 2012. On the day some sponsors were also spotted for the first time with a few of them partnering hockey for the first time. Notable among our sponsors are; 1. Vodafone Ghana Limited 2. Esan Loco 3. SBC Beverages (Pepsi) 4. Mohinani Group (Polytank) 5. Accra Brewery Limited Also present was the Executive Board of the Ghana Hockey Association and the Honorable Minster of Youth and Sports. Players and officials of the National Team were also officially introduced to the world for the first time in all their glory and poise to make their nation proud, led by Captains; Gertrude Inkoom and Nsalbini Salya. We have great hopes for our gallant men and women and are truly grateful to all who came and would continue to support Ghana Hockey. Special thanks to the media… We would meet again when we emerge victorious on 11th September. Tournament date: 9th to 11th September 2016.

            New executive for Hockey Association of Zimbabwe

              THE Hockey Association of Zimbabwe have set September 24 as the date for their general meeting that is expected to usher in a new executive to run the association for the next two years. As the current executive’s term of office comes to an end this month all posts will be up for grabs at the Indaba at Chispite Senior School. Humphrey Chigwedere is the incumbent president while the other members are secretary-general Sarah Bennett, treasurer Gavin Stephens, committee members; Tongai Mukwewa, Prince Mwale, William Birkett and Nicola Watson. Chigwedere, who was elected the association’s vice-president in 2014, took over when Mark Manolios resigned. “This year’s agm is an elective one and all members have been informed in terms of the current HAZ constitution. “We are supposed to be eight but we did not replace the vice-president last year. But this year we will have a full executive. All posts are up for grabs. Nominations are supposed to have started coming in and I think they should be in 14 days before the annual general meeting,” said Chigwedere. The association has also scheduled the HAZ Cup for the same weekend as well as the awards ceremony. The tournament is slated for September 24 to 25 at Arundel. The men and women’s event, which targets clubs from all provinces will see the winning teams in each section earning the ticket to represent Zimbabwe at the Club Championships early next year. “It’s a club tournament, that’s what we use to choose our representatives for the Club Championships. It’s a premier club tournament, we take the top teams from each province. “We have four provinces that are more active; Midlands, Masvingo, Harare and Bulawayo. But those that are still developing and are playing hockey they can send their teams. So we might have two extra slots this year because Mashonaland Central and Mashonaland West are likely to send teams,” said Chigwedere. The outgoing president said they will be honouring the team of the year, senior player of the year, most promising player, junior player of the year, administrator of the year and journalist of the year. “There is also the president’s award whereby the sitting president will just award someone or people based on what he thought they would have contributed,” said Chigwedere. Hippo Valley are the men’s defending champions for the annual HAZ Cup and BAC are the reigning champions in the women’s section. Source: Ellina Mhlanga : Sports Reporter (The Herald) – September 3, 2016

              Chase To Acquire Turf From Hurley Club

                Chase and Amira Sailors will by the end of the year have their own playing ground that has been donated by Hurley Club from the Netherlands and will be setup at Sikh union grounds at a cost 700,000 Euros. The ground breaking of the took place on Saturday 30th July 2016 and paves way for Raicon contractors to start the work. The turf left Netherlands beginning of July and is expected to arrive anytime this month. Chase Bank who are the sponsors for the two club have entered into a tripartite agreement with Hurley Club and Sikh Union Nairobi (Nairobi Simba) which will see the 3 clubs not only benefit from the turf donation but also exchange programs between the three clubs. Upon completion Amira Sailors, Chase Sailors and Sikh Union will now be playing their League home matches there. This will be the second turf in county in addition to the one at City Park. The one at City Park was laid 8 years and is dilapidated. KHU Chairman, retired Colonel, Nashon Randiek has welcomed the move and lauded saying it is good for the sport.