WWC10 x DAY6 x AUS v HOL

As the day of 6 games continues we still wait for the snow to fall. It hasn’t.  It feels like it should, and really a round of applause should be had for the players out there.

Netherlands look the form team and Australia are on a roll. A draw here would make the pool exceptionally interesting considering Germany beat India 4 goals to 1 earlier.  The fight is on between these three teams.

It didn’t take long for the Dutch power play of shot corner specialties to come into play and open the scoring. Not really in the run of play either. The Australians were the ones pushing hard and keeping the ball deep in their attack. They were playing an strong and physical game and it took the team from the Netherlands some time to adjust, and were lucky not to concede an early goal to the Aussies.

But once the Dutch had the game worked out and were pushing back they were able to get their structure back into oder. Australia tried to use the wide areas again a to create space and were able to, and once again Kate Jenner was used to effect with her big hitting penetrating the Dutch lines.  The Aussies themselves leveled with a short corner but only to be nullified in the last minute of the half by Holland doing the same again.

The second half saw Australia loose their structure a little and started to try and push the ball deep into their attack. They were successful in keeping it there and the pressure on the Dutch to keep it out.

On the other hand the Dutch kept to their game plan of keeping the ball on the stick and using shorter passes and strong lines and added two more goals to close out the game winning 4 goals to 1.

It was probably the best contested hockey we have seen here so far. Especially in these conditions, it was a pleasure to witness.

Unfortunately, Teneal Attard was injured early in the game with what looked like a possible leg injury and she did not come back on.

WWC10 x GAME 2

Game 2 v India – 6-3 Win..

The weather was not nice… windy, freezing and wet would best describe it. On the pitch it was fine once you got going, but for the Aussie support crew they had to resort to dance moves and cheering to help keep them warm.

The game wasn’t played as planned, but in the end we came through with the goods and got the 3 points we were after. India gave us a good run for our money and didn’t lay down easy. The first half saw a pretty even contest and we struggled to break their defence. However the second half saw us come out much stronger and we started to get a run on which created some good goal scoring opportunities that we were able to put away.

Today was our rest day… recovery, debrief and homework has been done. Tomorrow sees us playing a powerful Dutch team that has had a couple of convincing wins in their first two matches of the tournament. They are in pretty good form and we will need to be on the top of our game to match them. It is always a good challenge playing a quality team like the Dutch, so I am looking forward to it. There is some doubt that we might not play due to the weather, but we are still preparing as we normally would. Game on!

xo T

MENS x AUSTRALIA v ARGENTINA x TEST MATCHES LIVE ONLINE x FREE

The Australian Men’s Team will play Argentina this weekend in Perth in the lead up to the Commonwealth Games. Matches are at 3pm WST Australia at the Curtin University Stadium in Bentley. If you cannot get to the ground to support the Aussie’s you can also watch these games LIVE thanks to http://www.LMSCtv.com/

Jump online to check out Gryphon star’s Fergus Kavanagh, Rob Hammond, Joel Carroll and Trent Mitton as they prepare for their assult on the Commonwealth Games in India next month.

Photo: Daniel Carson | DCIMAGES.ORG

WWC10 x DAY4 x AUS v IND

Driving rain. Gale force winds. Icy.

You ever noticed what these players actually wear to play hockey?  It’s tailored for summer, not what we have here. These girls braved the elements to play hockey for their country.

Fi Johnson would have been happy to be taking the game off in a nice warm tracksuit. Maybe some room service?

This cold made for a sluggish start without much time and space to get running, so there was low intensity on foot and the skills of both sides not quite up to standard.

Australia were trying both the short pass game and the long, but what seemed to work was the long hit, which Kate Jenner hit her target a few times causing panic in the Indian defence.

On the other side, India were looking at the short game and when it worked they made it pay and scored. A 2 to 1 lead to Australia was what we had at the break and it looked needed in this weather.

Funny enough, coming out of the change rooms in the second netted a great push in intensity and suddenly a goal fest erupted. It came from both sides but suddenly Australia took off and used run and the short pass game coupled with forward pressure and took the game on.

Finally the score was Australia 6 goals to India 3.

COMMONWEALTH GAMES 2010 x AUS SELECTION

The Australian Men’s Hockey Commonwealth Games Team has been announced today by Hockey Australia. The team see’s the inclusion of 4 Gryphon ambassadors, Rob Hammond, Fergy Kavanagh, Joel Carroll and Trent Mitton. This will be Hammond’s 2nd Commonwealth Games and while its the 1st for Carroll, Kavanagh and Mitton. Mitton will make his major tournament debut also. Gryphon’s Brent Dancer, Kiel Brown and Mark Paterson have been named as emergencies, and their experience and youth will be invaluable should they be called upon.

Notable exclusions include the tough defender Graeme Begbie (WC10, CT10, CT09) who is out for 10 months with a knee reconstruction and legendary striker Grant Schubert (CT03, OG04, CT05, CG06, CT06, WC06, CT07, CT08, OG08, CT09, WC10) who tore is groin in last weeks AHL competition.

The Australian Team has won all three previous Gold Medals at the Commonwealth Games since hockey’s inception in 1998 where they defeated Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. In 2002 they beat New Zealand in Manchester and 2006 they won over Pakistan in Melbourne, Australia.

Master Coach and Gryphon Legend Ric Charlesworth had this to say about the team and tournament:

“We have had some great results over the past 20 months or so, however I still believe we are not solid yet and still have much to do. I have full confidence in the team we have selected as it has a good amount of experience and youth, however we will not get ahead of ourselves,” said Charlesworth.

“We have great squad depth which is obviously what we are building towards, however it means that players need to make the most of their opportunities and the Commonwealth Games will give these players a chance to do that on a very big international stage,” said Charlesworth.

“We are the number 1 ranked team in the world, but I think that can give teams a bit more incentive when they face us. England are very capable of beating us as we saw at the World Cup. India and Pakistan will be at home in the Heat of Delhi and with the reduced squad sizes makes things less predictable,” said Charlesworth.

ACGA Chief Executive Officer Perry Crosswhite said, “We have high expectations for our 2010 Commonwealth Games men’s hockey team just as we have had at all three previous Games where the sport was played.

“It will not be easy but we know that if they do their best, as they did in 1998, 2002 and 2006, the 2010 Games tournament will be their hat trick for the year.”

The Delhi 2010 hockey competition will be held at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium from October 4 – 14, 2010. This is the same stadium that the Aussie’s triumphed in their World Cup Victory over Germany in February earlier this year. They have also won the 2010 Champions Trophy so a win at the Commonwealth Games will make it a clean sweep of the major’s for the Aussies in 2010.

The Australian women’s hockey team will be announced in mid-September following their World Cup campaign in Argentina

The Australian men’s hockey team Delhi 2010 schedule is:

Date	Delhi time	AEDST time	Opposition
Wednesday 6 October	8:30am	2:00pm	Scotland
Thursday 7 October	4:00pm	9:30pm	India
Saturday 9 October	10:30am	4:00pm	Pakistan
Sunday 10 October	4:30pm	10:00pm	Malaysia
Tuesday 12 October	11:00am	4:30pm	Semi Final One
	5:30pm	11:00pm	Semi Final Two
Thursday 14 October	9:00am	2:30pm	Bronze Medal Match
	11:30am	5:00pm	Gold Medal Match

WC2010 x HERE IT IS x ATTARD

World Cup 2010… here it is.

The Hockeyroos tour started with a rather long trip, from Perth Australia, across the country to Sydney, over the ditch to NZ, around the world to Santiago, over the Andes to Buenos Aires and then a 4 hour bumpy bus ride to Rosario, but we made it and we are stoked to be here.

We have spent the last week in Rosario getting used to the time difference, settling in at the hotel, practicing and playing on the turf and adjusting to the typical Argentine late nights and long sleep ins!

We have played a couple of practice matches in this time, one v South Africa and one v Argentina. The match v Argentina was a lot of fun, hockey wise and in general. We were able to experience the crowd and amazing atmosphere that the Argie locals can produce but also get up to the fast pace and skilful hockey we expect to meet with most of the teams during the World Cup. As a whole we are well prepared for the tournament and are looking forward to facing some strong competition.

The vibe in Rosario is pretty special and it was kicked off with the opening ceremony a few nights ago. We arrived, fashionably late to the ceremony with all of the other teams there and a crowd of around 4000. We were given a warm welcome by the city and the hockey world with some traditional Argentine dances followed by an awesome fireworks display.

The games then began. We were the last game of the first round and faced a frenetic Japan side. We started off a little slow with a fair few debutants, but as the game went on we found our straps and came together well. It was a tough game where we missed a few of our opportunities but came away with a 2-1 win and 3 points on the board.

It is a rest day today and we have enjoyed a sleep in and a little bit of down time. We will do some research on India this evening and prepare for the match tomorrow. Game on!

xo T.

Photos: Daniel Carson | DCIMAGES.ORG

WWC10 x DAY2 x AUS v JPN

Australia have figured in the standings for the World Cup a few tournaments in a row now, and with the men doing so well in 2010 there is a lot of expectation being built up over the Aussie team.

Their first hit-out is against a lesser-known Japan. This doesn’t mean they aren’t good, just that many of us know less about the team and unfortunately I don’t have my designated Gryphon Japanese insight machine, Yoshi, with me.

Seems that the Aussies also didn’t quite have the bottle full on the Japanese. It was Japan, who in the first ten minutes, took control of the play. Even though they looked the most dangerous early it was only a matter of time before Australia came through with something more concrete. That happened and a goal was scored.

It would be the only goal for most of the match. New kid on the block, Kate Jenner was strong in her power hitting from half back setting up deep attacks. Teneal Attard and Fi Johnson shut down the Japanese midfield and took the ball away from their sticks to control the midfield.

That’s where the game was made and played, the midfield. An arm wrestle between two Rocky Balboa’s at the same time was the gist of the tussle. Very late in the game each team scored to make the final score 2 goals Australia and 1 goal Japan.

The Japanese played very well and made the Aussies work for their win.

In a great show of respect at the top level, the Japanese team lined up infront of the Aussies after the game and as one bowed in respect.

Photos: Daniel Carson | www.dcimages.org

CT10 x DAY6 x ALL FINALS x VIDEO REPLAYS x THANKS

And so it is. The Champion has been crowned for another year, legends made and destroyed, stars born and others have faded.

The CT10 has been one of the highest scoring tournaments in the history of the game. Hockey has never looked so good, been so fast and exciting as what we just witnessed over the past 9 days. Gryphon was there every day to photograph this monumental tournament to bring you closer than ever before to one of the great major events in World Hockey. We reported on the story behind the game, the characters that give identity to the sport we love and those that represent our great brand with passion and pride.

We need to send a massive shout out to photog Daniel ‘DC’ Carson whom spent countless hours behind the lens to capture some truly great moments in time. He has befriended many of the teams and gets access to area’s that others dream to walk. Also to the crew at the Gryphon Store that were there all week welcoming the fans and showing off the best that we have to offer. They explain the product and R&D behind our weapons like no one else so hopefully the faithful, fanatical and punters alike got to experience the vibe of our brand and the movement of our company.

In the end we think this tournament has been a great success on many level’s and that Hockey has never looked so good. A final shout out needs to go to the G-Team, the Gryphon players that were out there all tournament representing themselves, their team, country and the Gryphon name. You guys are the reason the fans come and the reason they’ll return. Awesome stuff.

Finally, if you missed any of the action, you can watch the full match of your choice on demand for free courtesy of FIH and LOLA1.tv and be sure to watch out for the Gryphon crew representing and tearing it up .Click on the game of interest below, sit back, relax and enjoy!

FINAL AUSTRALIA v ENGLAND

3rd/4th NETHERLANDS v GERMANY

5th/6th SPAIN v NEW ZEALAND

Photos: Daniel Carson | dcimages.org

CT10 x DAY5 x ALL GAMES x MATCH REPLAYS ONLINE x FREE

Day 5 of the CT10 was a day where 4 teams could stand up and qualify for the final against Australia should they win. Everyone of the three matches played were effectively a semi final, pending other results and the scores of those games.

Watch the full match of your choice on demand for free courtesy of FIH and LAOLA1.tv and keep an eye out for the Gryphon crew representing and  tearing it up on Day 5 of this goal scoring festival that is the  CT10. Click on the game of interest below, sit back, relax and enjoy!

AUSTRALIA v SPAIN

NETHERLANDS v GERMANY

ENGLAND v NEW ZEALAND

Photos: Daniel Carson | dcimages.org

CT10 x DAY5 x AUS v SPN

The Aussies are on form. Beat all comers in this Tournament so far and in the Final no matter this result. Spain are safe from relegation but with Germany losing to Holland they require a win still to progress to the Final to play Australia again.

As per usual the Aussies played fast, skilled and attacking hockey. Beggers and Pato were both resting today so the team was a little down on personelle. It took a while for the goals to come, but two happened five minutes before half time, with Spain’s coming from a field goal with 3 seconds on the clock. Not what the Aussies would like to take into the change-rooms.

Supposedly the Octopus with physic powers had channelled a German fan and said Australia would score more in the second. This German also giggled like an cartoon villain  everytime the ball came to the Australian attack.

He was right and Australia took control of the game to stamp an amazing 5 straight wins in the Champions Trophy. A clean sweep! They have beaten all comers and that has to give them a lot of confidence into tomorrow’s Final against England.

Australia 3, Spain 1

Will we see Graeme Begbie tomorrow come into the defense for the Aussie’s and use his telescopic tackling powers against England’s sharp-shooter James Tindall?

Final Standings after the round robin stage see an AUS v ENG final, GER v NED for third place and ESP v NZ fighting to avoid relegation for the CT2011

Photos: Daniel Carson | www.dcimages.org

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