South African Women Fired up to compete at FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup

    Following a lengthy period of intense preparation, SPAR South African women’s indoor hockey coach Lennie Botha is confident that the team are ready to compete against the best in the FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup in Pretoria next month. The international event, presented by SPAR, will take place outside of Europe for the first time in its history when it is hosted at the Heartfelt Arena from February 5 to 11. South Africa are one of 12 teams in the women’s tournament and even though they have been drawn in what Botha called the “pool of death”, he is confident that the home side will be competitive.  “Success in indoor hockey is about the team making the least mistakes and then being able to take your chances,” he said. “And we all know that at a tournament anything can happen. “But the exciting thing for us is that although there is a mixture of young and old, most of the girls have played against the top countries and we have done well, so I believe we are good enough to compete.” Acknowledging that all the matches would be tough, Botha said the games against European powerhouses Netherlands, twice world champions, and Austria, fourth in 2015, would be, particularly testing. “But the goal for me is to complete the pool phases by finishing in the top eight so it would mean we have to win at least two matches,” Botha added.  “Once you get into the top eight, anything can happen and, given the tough nature of our pool, we could conceivably have a slightly easier game if we make the cross-pool playoffs.” In their other fixtures, SA will be up against Australia, New Zealand, and the US, none of whom could be taken lightly, Botha said. The team went into their final training camp in Durban on Thursday after having played a series of internationals against Namibia and Ireland in the past few months. “The one thing about a coach is that you are never completely comfortable with your preparations, but we have done everything we can, given the Covid disruptions in the last few years, to prepare as thoroughly as possible,” Botha said. “The players have been working extremely hard and I’m excited about the opportunity, not only to show what we can do, but also to showcase the sport of indoor hockey to the wider SA public.” He said he could not stress how important it was for the game to host events of this nature. “It’s great that SA Hockey has taken the bull by the horns and run with it to become the first country outside of Europe to host the World Cup “I believe it will create unbelievable exposure for the sport and this event is going to take it to another level. “For example, against Ireland in Cape Town we played in front of crowds of up 1000 people, but in Pretoria that could reach 3000, so we are extremely excited about this opportunity.” Botha also paid tribute to the role played by SPAR as the major sponsors of the World Cup and the women’s team. “Without them this would not have happened and over seven yours of sponsoring the women’s team, they have been extremely supportive. “If it wasn’t for them, we wouldn’t be where we are now.”

    Indoor Hockey: The rules of the game

      January 29, 2023 Indoor hockey started in Europe as an alternate way to practice hockey in the months of winter when it was too cold to play the sport outdoors. Over the years, the game has developed and evolved into the fast, skillful and action-packed version of hockey that it is today, with countries all over the world playing the sport throughout the year. With the FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup South Africa 2023 starting in less than a week, find out about the rules of the sport that make it so unique and popular with hockey fans all over the world.   Pitch The indoor hockey pitch is rectangular in shape, with any indoor sports hall flooring appropriate to play on. The dimensions of the World Cup pitch will be 40 meters long and 20 meters wide, and a blue, hockey specific flooring will be used to provide the best performance for the athletes and television appearance. Contrasting, yellow colored balls will be used to stand out from the colour of the pitch.. There are boards placed on the side perimeters of the pitch (but not the backline) that keep the ball in play. The scoring circle has a 9 meter radius from the center of the goal-line and the penalty spot is marked 7 meters from the center of the goal-line. Goals The size of the goals in indoor hockey are smaller compared to outdoor hockey. The width of the goal is exactly 3 meters and it has a height of 2 meters. Goal-sideboards and goal-backboards are not necessary in indoor hockey. Teams Each team in indoor hockey consists of 6 players that includes 5 outfield players and 1 goalkeeper. Teams can choose to play with 6 outfield players by not playing a goalkeeper. The total size of a squad in indoor hockey is 12 players and rolling substitutions are permitted. Length of a match An indoor hockey match is played over a course of 40 minutes, split in 4 quarters of 10 minutes each. In league matches, 3 points are awarded to the winning team, and if the result is a draw, then each team receives 1 point. During the classification stages of the Indoor World Cup, shoot-outs will be used to decide the winner. Style of play Indoor hockey requires players to possess some very similar skills to outdoor hockey, and some that are unique to the indoor format of the game. These include the ability to use the side boards to make passes and beat players, which is a crucial skill given that lifting the ball to dribble past players (the 3D skills commonly used in the outdoor game) are not permitted in indoor hockey. Lifting the ball is only permitted when a player attempts to score a goal from inside the scoring circle, by the use of a flicking motion. The flicking motion is defined as: raising the ball off the ground by placing the head of the stick under the ball and using a lifting movement. Hitting, striking or slap hitting the ball, using a swinging movement of the stick towards the ball, is not permitted anywhere on the pitch. Apart from flicking to score, the only allowed motion is pushing which is defined as moving the ball along the ground using a pushing movement of the stick after the stick has been placed close to the ball. When a push is made, both the ball and the head of the stick are in contact with the ground. The complete rules of Indoor Hockey can be found here. The sixth edition of the FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup will start on 5 February, in Pretoria. To see the complete match schedule, please click here.

      FIH President and CEO press conference in Bhubaneswar – Excerpts

        FIH President Tayyab Ikram and FIH CEO Thierry Weil addressed the media at a press conference today at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Both answered questions relating to the overall development of hockey and the 2023 FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup. “I congratulate all stakeholders involved in making this Hockey World Cup a grand success. The global hockey family is delighted that the World Cup was organised in Odisha. Our sincere gratitude to Hon’ble Chief Minister Sri Naveen Patnaik and his dynamic team as they put in one of the best platforms for our athletes to perform”, said the FIH President in his opening remarks. “We are in touch with the Odisha government to hold more tournaments here. The investment that has been done here is simply outstanding and we will make sure that we have the proper use of it,” he added. Here are some of the excerpts from the media interaction: India holding most of the FIH events: FIH President: “We are not only focusing on India. As you know, the next World Cup will be held in Belgium and the Netherlands. But India is a big market and we’re fortunate that some of our events have been held here.” Making the sport financially sustainable: FIH CEO: “Hockey hasn’t got the needed commercial value yet. Once we get it, our sport will become financially sustainable. Media and marketing play a key role to promote our sport at the highest level. We are trying hard with broadcasters and other stakeholders to make our sport reach out to a global audience.” Teams ranked on the same position (for example, two teams ranked 9th): FIH President: “We are happy with how the ranking or classification system is right now. For us, the most important thing is the players’ well-being and mental health. Also, we need to make the sport cost-effective for all teams.” Injuries: FIH President: “As per my knowledge, injuries mostly happen when a player has a very short reaction time. Therefore, it’s more about making the game safer for all and we at FIH are working on that.” India’s matches not being telecast on television: FIH CEO: “We have been working hard on how to get more viewership on television. Also, as you all know, we have launched our Watch.Hockey app where all the matches are streamed live, but it’s not available in India because of some contractual obligations. Our efforts have always been to make hockey accessible to all and probably in the next few months you won’t miss a single match where your country plays.” On new surfaces coming into play: FIH CEO: “We want to thank our partners and suppliers, who have worked hard to develop a surface where we can play hockey without water. We used it for our Hockey5s event in Lausanne last year. In the future, pitches won’t need water. For sustainability, it’s very important to save water.”

        Germany crowned World Champions at the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023

          29 January, 2023 The final day of the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 was played in the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar as Germany were crowned the champions of the world, defeating the defending champions Belgium in a thrilling finals, where they went down by 2 goals early in the first quarter but fought their way back again and took the game into a shoot-out, where they held their nerves in the sudden deaths, winning 5-4. With the win Germany also claimed the top spot in the FIH Men’s World Outdoor Rankings. Earlier in the day Netherlands and Australia went head-to-head in the bronze medal match, where Jeremy Hayward gave them an early lead, but an incredible 3-goal burst in 8 minutes in the third quarter, with captain Thierry Brinkman scoring twice, gave Netherlands the lead that they would take to the end and win the bronze medal. With the win, followed by Belgium’s loss in the finals, Netherlands move up to the second position in the FIH Men’s World Outdoor Rankings, followed by silver medalists Belgium who are now ranked third ahead of Australia, who end the tournament ranked fourth. Bronze Medal Match: Australia vs Netherlands 1-3 Netherlands started the game on the front foot, with Theijs van Dam getting a powerful shot into the circle looking for a Dutch deflection, but Hoedemakers couldn’t get on the end of the cross and Australia survived an early scare. Australia started settling into the game midway through the first quarter and a pass into the circle by Jeremy Hayward found captain Zalewski open on the right of the goal, but his shot/cross went wide off the mark with Blake Govers missing a deflection from point blank range. Australia scored the opening goal of the game through Jeremy Hayward who scored his 100th goal in his 200th appearance for Australia. It was a double blow for the Dutch who had referred the penalty corner and lost their review early in the first quarter. Netherlands won their first penalty corner of the game in the 20th minute but Jip Janssen’s powerful flick went straight as an arrow and Charter managed to pull off a comfortable save to deny Netherlands from their first big chance since the opening minute. Both teams traded opportunities to close the opening half, with big chances falling to Koen Bijen for the Dutch and Blake Govers for the Kookaburras, but both star forwards were off targets with their running shots and the teams headed into the break with Australia holding a slender one-goal advantage against Netherlands. Netherlands started the second half with a high press, which was a tactic that worked quite well for Germany in the semi-finals. The ploy seemed to work well for Netherlands as well as they earned three quick penalty corners inside the first two minutes of the second half, and with the third attempt, Jip Janssen opened his account in the game with a powerful drag to the right of Charter to bring the teams level. Two minutes later, Netherlands were in the lead as a clearance attempt by Tim Howard was blocked by Wortelboer in the circle and the resulting loose ball was put into the goal by Dutch captain Thierry Brinkman. Australia started to press higher in search for an equaliser, but it was Netherlands again who capitalised with a quick counter as van Dam’s run from the half line produced a cross that found Brinkman unmarked at the back post and he made no mistake in doubling Netherlands lead. Australia entered the final 15 minutes needing to score at least 2 goals to keep their hopes of winning a medal at the World Cup alive. Their high press gave Netherlands a lot to do in defence, but Jorrit Croon, along with Blok and Jansen, were stellar in the Dutch defensive circle, stopping waves of Australian crosses into the circle. Netherlands believed they had scored the 4th goal of the game midway through the quarter with Koen Bijen knocking the ball into the goal on the back post, but a foul in the build up reversed the goal as Australia breathed a sigh of relief. But Netherlands continued their excellent defence and as time ran out, they ran out winners, earning their third bronze medal at the men’s World Cups. Captain Thierry Brinkman was awarded player of the match and said: “We were playing quite well in the first half but couldn’t convert our chances. We didn’t change anything in the second half, we were just better at converting our opportunities and the way we have played today and through the tournament, we deserve this bronze medal.” Gold Medal Match: Germany vs Belgium 3-3 (SO: 5-4) Germany took on Belgium in the finals hoping to win their 3rd gold medal at the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cups to go level with Australia and Netherlands and one behind Pakistan who have won the event 4 times; while Belgium aimed to become just the 4th team, after Pakistan, Germany & Australia, to defend their title successfully. Belgium started the game on the front foot, creating an early circle entry, but Tom Grambusch was alert to the chance and intercepted a cross right in front of the goal and cleared the danger. Germany won a penalty corner in the 6th minute, referring the original decision which had gone against them. The resulting penalty corner was well defended by first rusher Cosyns who blocked Gonzalo Peillat’s attempted flick. Belgium opened the scoring in the 10th minute as a long corner deflected high off a German stick and fell to Florent van Aubel at the top of the circle and he took the shot on in his stride and smashed the ball into the goal before Stadler could react! Less than a minute later Belgium had doubled their lead as a cross from the left deflected off a German stick and fell to Simon Gougnard who had to get the slightest of touches to put

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          Hockey World Cup: Germany dethrone Belgium in sudden-death thriller to end 17-year wait for third title

            BHUBANESWAR: At 0-2 down in a World Cup final, comebacks need nerves of steel. Germany and Belgium took turns to show that in a test that refused to end, until Belgium died a ‘sudden death’, which gave the Germans a third Men’s Hockey World Cup title — first since 2006. It was Germany first who put the game on a knife’s edge by erasing a two-goal deficit to level it 2-2 and then go into the lead at 3-2. It was then the turn of the defending champions. They did it! The COMEBACK KINGS of #HWC2023 are crowned WORLD CHAMPIONS 💪 Insane scenes after the win #HockeyInvites #HockeyEquals #Germany #WorldCup @DHB_hockey pic.twitter.com/TSD1RGPkKo — International Hockey Federation (@FIH_Hockey) January 29, 2023   ON THE TOP OF THE WORLD 👑 Congratulate Die Homonas on their finale victory over #HWC2018 Champions @BELRedLions! FT: 🇩🇪 GER 3️⃣-3️⃣ BEL 🇧🇪(SO) 5️⃣-4️⃣#HWC2023 #GERvsBEL #HockeyComesHome #HockeyHaiDilMera pic.twitter.com/2tMHPq9hkE — Odisha Sports (@sports_odisha) January 29, 2023 The Red Lions’ refusal to give up earned them a penalty corner and Gonzalo Peillat once again came to the party to make it 3-3 and push the game into a shootout. Full Time: GER 3-3 BEL Shoot-out:BEL : ✅ ❌ ❌ ✅ ✅ ✅ ❌GER : ✅ ✅ ❌ ✅ ❌✅ ✅ GERMANY ARE THE CHAMPIONS OF THE WORLD! Germany get the better of the defending champions Belgium in the shoot-outs and win their 3rd FIH Hockey Men's World Cup title!#HWC2023 — International Hockey Federation (@FIH_Hockey) January 29, 2023   Niklas Wellen is your Player of the Match for scoring two penalties and a penalty corner to become World Champions 🌏🏆 🇩🇪 GER 3-3 BEL 🇧🇪 (SO 5-4)#HockeyIndia #HWC2023 #HockeyWorldCup #StarsBecomeLegends #GERvsBEL @CMO_Odisha @sports_odisha @IndiaSports @Media_SAI @DHB_hockey pic.twitter.com/6cdu9EJFsR — Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) January 29, 2023   But that wasn’t enough to give the 15th edition of the World Cup its winner. It remained 3-3 in the shootout as well, until Tanguy Cosyns missed for Belgium in sudden death to see the Germans, clad in black shirts, running towards goalkeeper Jean-Paul Danneberg. Had Belgium won, they would have been the fourth team to successfully defend the title after Pakistan (1978 and 1982), Germany (2002 and 2006) and Australia (2010 and 2014). The game of fine margins didn’t open that way. The Germans defended for most part of the first five minutes, until their first meaningful entry into the Belgian circle earned them a penalty corner after a video referral. But Peillat, who hit a hat-trick against Australia in the semifinal, wasn’t in his elements by then. His drag-flicks were sorted out by the Belgian rushers. It was the 10th minute when the Belgian ascendancy resulted in a goal. Tom Boon got a loose ball and went for a tomahawk, but the ball took a deflection from a German stick to go out for a long corner. Belgium didn’t waste time to restart, and Florent van Aubel managed to control a bouncing ball from Antoine Kina, which he slammed into the German post on the bounce. A minute later, Kina once again came up with an assist that turned into a goal. Cosyns placed himself beautifully at the end of Kina’s cross from inside the circle to cutely deflect the ball in behind goalkeeper Alexander Stadler to increase Belgium’s lead to 2-0.  Vanasch continued to keep the Germans at bay, coming up with brilliant saves, including a penalty stroke in the 19th minute. A push challenge from behind on Moritz Trompertz by Arthur van Doren inside the circle resulted in the referee awarding a penalty stroke. But Vanasch didn’t let Tom Grambusch’s attempt go past him. Four minutes after that, Marco Miltkau tried a cheeky deflection off a slap from the edge of the 23-yard line but it sailed harmlessly over Vanasch and the crossbar. Looking desperately for a goal before half-time, it was Niklas Wellen, who became a father during the tournament, provided that for Germany off a variation on a penalty corner. Controlling a ricochet that tapped twice on his stick, Wellen smashed it into the goal to make it 2-1. Belgium were down to 10 men in, when Nicolas de Kerpel was shown a green card in the 40th minute. The next minute the Germans took advantage and made it 2-2, with Peillat’s shot finally finding a way through on a penalty corner to sound the board.  And when Mats Grambusch pulled off a stunning goal out of nowhere from an acute angle in the 48th minute, the chants of ‘Belgium, Belgium’ from a small group of the Red Lions’ supporters were hushed. The Germans were now leading 3-2, after being down 0-2. The defending champions had no choice left than to pull out all stops, which is what they did to up the ante in the last five minutes.  Back-to-back penalty corners for Belgium put the German defence under pressure. And just when the Germans had one hand on the trophy, Boon deposited the ball into the net in the 59th minute to make it 3-3, which is what the score remained at the end of 60 minutes. The shootout extended to 14 attempts each from the customary five as the World Cup final required a sudden-death tie-breaker to find the winner.Belgian custodian Vanasch and Danneberg, who replaced Stadler in the German post for the shootouts, were now in focus and both did their job by saving two attempts each, which ended the shootout at 3-3 as well. Man-of-the-Match Wellen and Thies Prinz converted for Germany in sudden-death but only van Aubel could score for the defending champions. And when Cosyns failed to beat Danneberg, the 15th edition of the Men’s World Cup had its champion – Germany. List of Awards Fair Play Award: Team Belgium Maximum Team Goals: Netherlands Best Team Goal Celebration: Korea Fan’s Choice Award: Christopher Rühr (Germany) JSP Foundation Best Junior Player of the Tournament: Mustaphaa Cassiem (South Africa) Hero Top Scorer: Jeremy Hayward (Australia) JSW Best Goalkeeper: Vincent Vanasch (Belgium) Best Defender: Jeremy Hayward

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            Germany crowned World Champions at the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023

              The final day of the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 was played in the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar as Germany were crowned the champions of the world, defeating the defending champions Belgium in a thrilling finals, where they went down by 2 goals early in the first quarter but fought their way back again and took the game into a shoot-out, where they held their nerves in the sudden deaths, winning 5-4. With the win Germany also claimed the top spot in the FIH Men’s World Outdoor Rankings. Earlier in the day Netherlands and Australia went head-to-head in the bronze medal match, where Jeremy Hayward gave them an early lead, but an incredible 3-goal burst in 8 minutes in the third quarter, with captain Thierry Brinkman scoring twice, gave Netherlands the lead that they would take to the end and win the bronze medal. With the win, followed by Belgium’s loss in the finals, Netherlands move up to the second position in the FIH Men’s World Outdoor Rankings, followed by silver medalists Belgium who are now ranked third ahead of Australia, who end the tournament ranked fourth. Bronze Medal Match: Australia vs Netherlands 1-3 Netherlands started the game on the front foot, with Theijs van Dam getting a powerful shot into the circle looking for a Dutch deflection, but Hoedemakers couldn’t get on the end of the cross and Australia survived an early scare. Australia started settling into the game midway through the first quarter and a pass into the circle by Jeremy Hayward found captain Zalewski open on the right of the goal, but his shot/cross went wide off the mark with Blake Govers missing a deflection from point blank range. Australia scored the opening goal of the game through Jeremy Hayward who scored his 100th goal in his 200th appearance for Australia. It was a double blow for the Dutch who had referred the penalty corner and lost their review early in the first quarter. Netherlands won their first penalty corner of the game in the 20th minute but Jip Janssen’s powerful flick went straight as an arrow and Charter managed to pull off a comfortable save to deny Netherlands from their first big chance since the opening minute. Both teams traded opportunities to close the opening half, with big chances falling to Koen Bijen for the Dutch and Blake Govers for the Kookaburras, but both star forwards were off targets with their running shots and the teams headed into the break with Australia holding a slender one-goal advantage against Netherlands. Netherlands started the second half with a high press, which was a tactic that worked quite well for Germany in the semi-finals. The ploy seemed to work well for Netherlands as well as they earned three quick penalty corners inside the first two minutes of the second half, and with the third attempt, Jip Janssen opened his account in the game with a powerful drag to the right of Charter to bring the teams level. Two minutes later, Netherlands were in the lead as a clearance attempt by Tim Howard was blocked by Wortelboer in the circle and the resulting loose ball was put into the goal by Dutch captain Thierry Brinkman. Australia started to press higher in search for an equaliser, but it was Netherlands again who capitalised with a quick counter as van Dam’s run from the half line produced a cross that found Brinkman unmarked at the back post and he made no mistake in doubling Netherlands lead. Australia entered the final 15 minutes needing to score at least 2 goals to keep their hopes of winning a medal at the World Cup alive. Their high press gave Netherlands a lot to do in defence, but Jorrit Croon, along with Blok and Jansen, were stellar in the Dutch defensive circle, stopping waves of Australian crosses into the circle. Netherlands believed they had scored the 4th goal of the game midway through the quarter with Koen Bijen knocking the ball into the goal on the back post, but a foul in the build up reversed the goal as Australia breathed a sigh of relief. But Netherlands continued their excellent defence and as time ran out, they ran out winners, earning their third bronze medal at the men’s World Cups. Captain Thierry Brinkman was awarded player of the match and said: “We were playing quite well in the first half but couldn’t convert our chances. We didn’t change anything in the second half, we were just better at converting our opportunities and the way we have played today and through the tournament, we deserve this bronze medal.” Gold Medal Match: Germany vs Belgium 3-3 (SO: 5-4) Germany took on Belgium in the finals hoping to win their 3rd gold medal at the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cups to go level with Australia and Netherlands and one behind Pakistan who have won the event 4 times; while Belgium aimed to become just the 4th team, after Pakistan, Germany & Australia, to defend their title successfully. Belgium started the game on the front foot, creating an early circle entry, but Tom Grambusch was alert to the chance and intercepted a cross right in front of the goal and cleared the danger. Germany won a penalty corner in the 6th minute, referring the original decision which had gone against them. The resulting penalty corner was well defended by first rusher Cosyns who blocked Gonzalo Peillat’s attempted flick. Belgium opened the scoring in the 10th minute as a long corner deflected high off a German stick and fell to Florent van Aubel at the top of the circle and he took the shot on in his stride and smashed the ball into the goal before Stadler could react! Less than a minute later Belgium had doubled their lead as a cross from the left deflected off a German stick and fell to Simon Gougnard who had to get the slightest of touches to put it in the

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              Brinkman stars as Netherlands beat Australia 3-1 to clinch hockey World Cup bronze

                BHUBANESWAR: Captain Thierry Brinkman struck twice as Netherlands dished out a superb show of attacking hockey to beat world no.1 Australia 3-1 and clinch the bronze medal in the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup on Sunday. Brinkman struck in the 35th and 40th minutes while penalty corner expert Jip Janssen scored the other goal for Netherlands in the 33rd minute. Australia’s lone goal came from their penalty corner expert Jeremy Hayward in the 13th minute. The bronze meant that Netherlands finished on the podium for the fourth time in succession and they are also equal with Australia on the maximum number of medals won in the showpiece event. Both Netherlands and Australia have now won 10 medals each in the 15 editions of the World Cup. The Dutch finished third in 2010 and runners-up in 2014 and 2018. They have won the title in 1973, 1990 and 1998. For three-time champions Australia, this was the first time they are returning home without a medal after they finished fourth in the 1998 edition. They had won a bronze in the last edition here. Australia dominated the first quarter of the third-fourth place match between the losing semifinalists with more circle entries while the young Netherlands side relied on counter-attacks. Blake Govers had a go at the Dutch goal in the seventh minute but his shot went wide. Four minutes later, captain Aran Zalewski also missed the target from a fine pass from a Hayward pass. The Kookaburras earned two penalty corners and took the lead from the second PC two minutes before the end of the first quarter with Hayward sounding the board for his ninth goal of the tournament. Netherlands, considered the most attacking side in the tournament, began to grow from the second quarter, which did not yield any goal, and Koen Bijen’s opportunistic attempt went just wide in the 22nd minute. Australia led 1-0 at the breather but the Dutch turned up a completely different side in the second half as they pumped in three goals in the third quarter. Captain Brinkman was at his absolute best, lording the midfield play, supplying the forwards and even scoring goals himself.  After Janssen struck from Netherlands’ fourth PC of the match, Brinkman scored two brilliant field goals in the 35th and 40th minutes to give his side a 3-1 lead.  The young Netherlands side were quick on counterattacks and on many occasions, the Australian defence was caught napping by the sheer speed of the Dutchmen. Brinkman’s second goal — and Netherlands’ third — though resulted from a defensive blunder from Australia’s Tim Howard, who failed to clear the ball from inside his own circle properly. Netherlands thought they had scored another goal seven minutes before the final hooter but the video umpire ruled otherwise.   Source: TIMESOFINDIA.COM | January 29, 2023

                Hockey World Cup final: Germany, Belgium battle for glory

                  A cracker of a contest on the cards BHUBANESWAR: At the 2012 London Olympics, as the Germany hockey team celebrated their gold-medal feat, Belgium were on their way home, having finished fifth. The Red Lions went back to the drawing board. Over six years they reinforced their strengths, worked on their weaknesses and did not stop until they achieved their goal of being the best in the world. The skills. The goals. The last-minute drama. This is how we got here 🤯 The stage is set for the biggest game of all. Germany vs Belgium in the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 🇩🇪🏆🇧🇪 Watch the #HWC2023 final tomorrow at 14:30 CET on the https://t.co/igjqkvzwmV app 📲 pic.twitter.com/Kt6dx4GIlx — International Hockey Federation (@FIH_Hockey) January 28, 2023 Germany, on the other hand, are still looking for a major championship title a decade later. From a country with virtually no hockey culture, the defending champions became the most talked about with World Cup (2018), European Championship (2019) and Olympic (2020) title triumphs. Belgium’s walk of champions began at the same venue in 2018 and they will hope to win their second title in as many appearances in the final. Come Sunday night at the Kalinga stadium here, the two teams will seek to stake claim for the FIH World Cup. The golden generation of Belgian hockey will eye a final hurrah and who better than the giant-killers from Germany to stand in their way. The teams have played tough semifinal matches. While Germany snatched victory from the jaws of defeat in the last seven seconds against Australia, Belgium showed nerves of steel to eliminate Netherlands. One more sleep ⏳⌛️#HWC2023 Final | January 29 | https://t.co/jG4WwmGdQe pic.twitter.com/KjSo38jkX8 — Watch.Hockey (@watchdothockey) January 28, 2023 There are many subplots to the stirring all-European contest, age being one of them. Belgium is the oldest team in the competition with 11 players above the age of 30. Five among the Germans feature in the 30+ category, six if you count their 39-year-old coach Andre Henning. But Felix Denayer and his Belgium team are no picture of ageing legs or aching limbs. They have outpaced and outplayed younger teams time and again. The finale will be won as much on tactics and technique as it will be on mental strength. Henning is aware of what his men are up against. “At the moment, they are the best team. We respect them for what they have achieved. I have coached them at the U-18 level and they were already the strongest team in Europe at that time so I saw this coming. We would like to stop them but I don’t think they are vulnerable or have any disadvantage, so it won’t be easy,” explained the German coach. One factor that could play on the mind of the Belgians is the momentum which favours Germany. Belgium weren’t really tested up until Netherlands almost ousted them. Germany has been like instant noodles. In their previous two matches, it’s taken them just two minutes to convert their undercooked performance to match-winning shows. Here is how the teams finished at #HWC2023:9th – 🇮🇳🇦🇷11th – 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🇿🇦13th – 🇫🇷🇲🇾15th – 🇨🇱🇯🇵 More details on the classification here: https://t.co/9XCLnbCRIE (2/2)@TheHockeyIndia @ArgFieldHockey @SA_Hockey @HockeyWales @FF_Hockey @hockeymalaysia @chile_hockey @jha_hockey pic.twitter.com/bmsgiScb3L — International Hockey Federation (@FIH_Hockey) January 28, 2023 Germany’s spirit is not lost on Belgium’s coach Michel Van Den Heuvel, who knows how the slow starts can turn the match on its head in a few seconds. “As a natural character Germany are able to finish well. There is an old saying in Holland, you always win from the Germans when they are on the bus.” The match promises to be a great advertisement for hockey with the starry line-ups. Belgium’s citadel is well protected with Vincent Vanasch under the bar. Tom Boon, has been the live wire and their top-scorer while the likes of Arthur Van Doren, Victor Wegnez, John-John Dohmen and Arthur de Sloover are all match-winners. Source: TIMESOFINDIA.COM | January 29, 2023

                  FIH President Award presented to Secretary (5T) to CM Mr V K Pandian

                    Bhubaneswar, 29 January: In a ceremony held on the eve of the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela final, FIH President Tayyab Ikram presented the FIH President’s Award to Mr. V.K Pandian, Secretary (5T) to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha, for his outstanding contribution to hockey. “What we have witnessed here in Odisha in the last 2 weeks is truly exceptional! Not only the state-of-the-art facilities but also the passion showcased by the Odisha people for hockey – as much for the Indian team as for the others – has been an absolute delight to experience. Together with Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha Naveen Patnaik, Mr. Pandian has played a pivotal role in making this World Cup such a resounding success globally! I’m very honored to present him the FIH President’s Award as a mark of deep gratitude from FIH and myself for his personal support and that of the State of Odisha”, the FIH President stated. On receiving the prestigious award, Mr. Pandian said: “I am deeply honoured and humbled to receive the FIH President’s Award. I am not the recipient of this Award, I am only the representative of Team Odisha which has put its heart and soul in making this World Cup a grand success. We are inspired by the vision of Hon’ble Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik”. Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey said: “I have seen the contribution of Mr Pandian over last two decades towards the field of sports, especially hockey. Since he himself is a sports person, he understands the requirements and always strive to provide the best facilities for the sportspersons. His role is most critical in translating into reality the vision of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to make Odisha as a major sports destination”. The FIH President’s Award recognises individuals or National Associations or other organisations for valuable services to hockey, whether direct or indirect, or initiatives which have had a significant effect on hockey at international level.

                    FIH Hockey World Cup | India shows cutting edge to seal top 10 finish

                      It was a venue and crowed befitting a World Cup final as 20 000 fans packed into Rourkela to watch South Africa and India play for a top 10 spot at the global showpiece. The game marked the 200th game for Mandeep Singh, a remarkable achievement. The African Champions will be disappointed by their slow start to the game and found themselves trailing five minutes in. Abishek received the ball at the top of the circle, created space with his first touch and fired a blistering strike into the backboard. The crowd were superb in supporting every foray forward by the host nation and their players were clearly buoyed by the support. They continued to furrow forward and found themselves a penalty corner which was smashed home by Harmanpreet Singh. South Africa settled into the game and were unlucky not to pull a goal back when Bili Ntuli hit the outside of the goal post. South Africa consistently broke up play and tried their best to get a goal back, while Gowan Jones was on form whenever he was called on. South Africa had three penalty corners as they pushed the Indian defense and continued to ask questions. But despite the circle entries, the clear-cut chances were limited outside of the penalty corners as the game trudged its way to the end of the third quarter. But just before the hooter ending the third quarter Shamsher Singh peeled off the back of the defenders and tapped in unmarked on the back post. They made it 4-0 with an instinctive finish by Akashdeep Singh early in the fourth quarter before the outstanding goal of the game arrived. It was however from the stick of the South Africans. An overhead ball to Samkelo Mvimbi was brought down brilliantly and he roofed the ball superbly. South Africa continued to search for a second, but India scored on the counterattack. South Africa would have the opportunity for a last laugh as Mustapha Cassiem stood up and finished a sensational stroke. That would be that and the game would end 5-2 to the Indians who ended a disappointing World cup on a high. For the South Africans and 11th place finish, above their ranking of 14th shows the continued progress being made.   Source: SAHockey.co.za | January 28, 2023