WWC10 x DAY7 x ARG v CHN

Tonight we had a game of hockey. Tonight was not just hockey. Tonight was what hockey can be, what hockey is. Women’s hockey has no more a safe bastion of emotion and atmosphere than here, Argentina and Rosario.

It was a night of passion.

The post card reads… “Wish you were here.”

Argentina’s home team, Las Leonas, played host to China in a hard fought game. A game that was tied at half time nil all. A game that saw both teams playing hard hockey with structure. A second half full on tactics and amazing goals. Two to Argentina and none to China.

What was the most amazing was the setting. The sunset. The packed stadium. The sea of blue and white. The chanting and songs. The unison singing of players names such as  ”Sole’, Sole’, Sole’” for Soledad Garcia. This setting, one feels can not be replicated anywhere else in the world.

One exception.

If Argentina (now booked into the finals) play in the World Cup Final, expect your TVs to have their speakers blown.

Photos: Daniel Carson | www.dcimages.org

WWC10 x DAY3 x ENG v CHN

Thunder. Lightening. Rain. All happened before the match, which was a good thing. All we had was lots of grey cloud, manageable.

The early attacking play by England. Not manageable for the Chinese. For two games in a row now, the Chinese looked out of touch early and conceded a very early goal. To cut to the chase on this game, that would be the only goal we’d see.

What happened for the rest of the match was actually a very attacking China putting the defence of England under huge pressure for pretty much the whole match. Captain, Kate Walsh and feisty half-back were up to more than what was asked. They soaked up the pressure time and time again.

The Chinese were relentless but frustration showed with no less than two green and one yellow card to them in the first half. They were intent on a win.

It didn’t come and on the back of great defensive play England win two in a row while China now lose two in a row.

Photos: Daniel Carson | www.dcimages.org

CT10 x WOMEN x FINAL

Argentina defeated The Netherlands 4-2 in Nottingham to win the Samsung FIH Champions Trophy for the third year in succession, and it was the Gryphon Girls of Carla Rebecchi, Soledad Garcia, Alejendra Gulla and Marine Russo who dominated proceedings on the day of days. Between these 4 Las Leonas stars, they make up for 769 international caps of experience and form part of a superior group of players on the World Hockey circuit.

Gryphon’s Carla Rebecchi netted one of her teams four goals with the Netherlands hitting two from the field. It was a fantastic afternoon for Las Leonas who will be hoping to take their sensational form into the World Cup, which begins next month in the Argentinean city of Rosario. Earlier in the day, England claimed the Bronze Medal with a 2-1 win over Germany, while New Zealand defeated China 4-3 to finish in fifth place. For the superstitious, Argentina have won every Champions Trophy match in which Carla has scored, 7 in total.

Soledad Garcia was dangerous throughout the match. She extended herself in her traditional role of centre striker finding herself deep in defence when her team needed composure the most. The solid paring of Alejendra Gulla and Marine Russo also ensured the ship was steadied as the spirited Dutch fought back from a 3-1 deficit in the first half to have Las Leonas under pressure when they netted their second for the match.

In the end it was a day for the flicking power of Argentine Noel Barrionuevo who netted 3 from the top, the last Argentine to score a hat-trick was her compatriot, Gryphon’s own Alejandra Gulla in the 2008 final against Germany.

The tournament will be remembered for a number of landmark moments, including a record 75 goals scored, including the 1000th in women’s Champions Trophy history.

Final Standings
1: ARGENTINA
2: The Netherlands
3: England
4: Germany
5: New Zealand
6: China

Match review: Final 1-2 Netherlands – Argentina 2-4 (Sunday 18 July)

> The six goals scored in the final brought this year’s total on 75, a record high in Samsung FIH Champions Trophy history.
> Argentina won their third consecutive Samsung FIH Champions Trophy and their fourth in total after previously having won in 2001, 2008 and 2009.
> They are the second nation to win at least three Champions Trophies in a row. Australia won five in a row from 1991 until 1999.
> They became the first team to win the CT despite not winning their first two matches of the edition.
> Argentina are now 3-2 against Holland in finals of major tournaments. They have won the 2001 and 2010 CT and the 2002 World Cup, whilst Netherlands have won the 1974 World Cup and the 2007 CT.
> Gryphon’s Marine Russo won their fourth Gold medal.
> Holland played in their ninth CT final, one short of Australia’s record of ten.
> After having won the last three CT finals they played in, the Dutch have lost a final for the first time since 2001.
> Netherlands equalled Australia with most CT matches played, 99.
> Holland have now scored 200 goals in CT history.
> Noel Barrionuevo scored a hat-trick and became top scorer of this year’s CT with a record equalling eight goals. Lim Kye-Sook (KOR) also scored eight goals in 1987.
> The last player to score a hat-trick was her compatriot Alejandra Gulla in the 2008 final against Germany.
> She scored in six consecutive CT matches, equalling the record set by Jackie Pereira in 1987-1989.
> Barrionuevo has scored a record 19 PC goals in total.
> She equalled Alejandra Gulla as Argentina’s CT top scorer with 19 goals.
> Only two players have scored more CT goals, Nadine Ernsting-Krienke (GER, 22) and Jackie Pereira (AUS, 21)
> Gryphon’s Carla Rebecchi scored her seventh CT goal and her third against Holland. Argentina have won all seven matches in which she scored.

CT10 x WOMEN DAY 5 X MENS 4NATION FINAL

CT10 x WOMEN x DAY 4

Cheers, Smithy

CT10 x WOMEN x DAY 3

Hi Crew,

Game 2 received a brief relief from the rain and wind as England took to the field against the WCT heavyweights in Germany. However the English girls once again proved that they are going to be a force at the World Cup with a sensational 2-1 victory. The girls looked impressive today and had all the answers for the German tactics. Kate Walsh was brilliant down back as she led the defence to thwart the quick and skilful german forwards. It looked as though Germany had taken the early lead when scores were locked at 0-0 through a well worked PC, only to have the English refer the goal to the Video Umpire, claiming that both of the injectors feet were in the field of play when the ball was injected. It was picky, however rules are rules, the injector must have one foot over the baseline and the goals was not allowed.

Cheers, Smithy (oh, standings at the end of day 3 are below)

Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	PTS
Netherlands	3	3	0	0	8	2	9
England	3	2	0	1	4	5	6
Argentina	3	1	1	1	7	4	4
Germany	3	1	1	1	5	5	4
China	3	1	0	2	5	5	3
NewZealand	3	0	0	3	2	10	0

CT10 x WOMEN x DAY 2

Well the glorious sunny weather England is renowned for has greeted us once again at the Womens Champions Trophy for day 2 of competition. After a fairly modest crowd on the opening day the weather has brought a few more punters through the gates today after England’s fantastic start to the tournament.

Day 2 action at Nottingham see’s China bounce back from its day 1 loss with a win over New Zealand, Holland too strong for England and Germany and Argentina sharing the points.

[follow the results live via our twitter feed]

No matter the result from the Argentina and Germany game, the Argentinian Gryphon girls were more than happy to come over to the Gryphon Stall to spend some time with us after the match. The girls although disappointed with the result have the focus well and truly on the World Cup that will be played in front of their home crowd next month in Rosario. And yes for the Argy fans out there hopefully the girls will be back on Sunday afternoon after the end of the tournament to have a few quiet drinks with us at the Gryphon Stall.

Game 2 saw England up against a determined and clinical Netherlands side that showed they are going to be the danger team both here and in the World Cup coming up. A 3-0 result to the dutch was a fair scoreline and left a dejected crowd to head to the beer tent to get the prime seats for some other match that was apparently happening in South Africa.

Unfortunately this so called sports event pulled the remaining crowd and left an empty shell for the final match between China and New Zealand. China stepped up from Day 1 with a classy performance against New Zealand for a 3-0 win. A disappointing result considering NZ put together a great outing in game one.

For all the Australian fans out there that are still not happy the Aussie Girls are missing from this event, then don’t worry because we still have some spring chickens running around the field. The Australian Womens Masters are in Nottingham this week playing a series against Scotland and England. Unfortunately game one has seen a 4-0 loss to England, however I am sure they will be turning that score around after nearly all members of the team have now upgraded to include the Gryphon G Mitt gloves in their playing attire for game 2!

Match review: New Zealand – China 1-3 (Sunday 11 July 2010)

> China beat New Zealand to collect their first win of the 2010 Samsung FIH Champions Trophy.
> This was New Zealand’s fifth CT defeat in a row. They have not won any of their last 14 CT matches.
> They have not kept a clean sheet in the last six CT matches.
> China’s last eight CT goals have all been field goals.

Match review: England – Netherlands 0-3 (Sunday 11 Jul 2010)
> Netherlands secured their second win of the 2010 Samsung FIH Champions Trophy beating England 3-0.
> The Dutch will top the table after the second match round as they are the only team with two wins.
> Netherlands have now two of their CT matches against England, drawing once and losing one time.
> Holland have not lost any of their last six competitive matches against England, since losing 1-0 at the 2003 CT.
> The Dutch beat England 5-0 in their previous competitive encounter at the EuroHockey Nations Championships in 2009.
> England lost their 14th CT match, equal to Great Britain’s total number of CT defeats between 1987 and 1997.
> Holland have scored at least three goals in each of their last three CT matches. The last time they achieved this was in 2007.

Match review: Germany – Argentina 2-2 (Sunday 11 Jul 2010)
> This was the second draw in a row between Germany and Argentina at the Samsung FIH Champions Trophy after a 0-0 in 2009.
> Germany’s last CT win over Argentina came exactly four years ago on 11 July 2006 at Amstelveen 2006 (3-1).
> Argentina have not won their first two CT matches. The last time they failed to win their first two matches was in 2000.

CT10 x WOMEN x DAY 1

Cheers, Smithy.

WCQ TWO x NEW ZEALAND VICTORIOUS

THE FINALS – DAY SIX

It’s Finals Day and that means the 2nd last spot in the WC 2010 will be decided. First up in todays matches: Austria took on Wales in a game that had five 2nd half goals.

In a less than predicted match up on Day Six China faced  Scotland in a game where Scotland would consider themselves a chance. China entered this match coming off two straight defeats at the hands of New Zealand and Malaysia.

In the Final of this Tournament, New Zealand and Malaysia played for the 11th place at the Hero Honda FIH World Cup in New Delhi, February 2010. A lot at stake, one match, one last chance…Enough said, here’s the breakdown…

Austria v Wales 3:2 (0:0)
WAL 39mn Benjamin CROXALL (FG) 0:1
WAL 41mn Matthew RUXTON (FG) 0:2
AUT 42mn Georg JELINEK (FG) 1:2
AUT 54mn Georg JELINEK (FG) 2:2
AUT 61mn Michael KORPER (FG) 3:2

China v Scotland 2:2 (3-5 aps) (1:2)
SCO 18mn Stephen DICK (FG) 0:1
CHN 20mn Yixian LIU (PC) 1:1
SCO 24mn Kenneth BAIN (FG) 1:2
CHN 38mn Fenghui LU (PC) 2:2

New Zealand v Malaysia 2:1 (0:1)
MAS 18mn Muhammad RAHIM (PC) 0:1
NZL 57mn Andy HAYWARD (PC) 1:1
NZL 60mn Andy HAYWARD (PC) 2:1

So it’s confirmed. New Zealand now join the other ten teams that have already qualified for the 2010 World Cup. The last spot will be filled by one of the teams competing in the WCQ 3 that is currently underway in Quilmes, Argentina, where Belgium and the hosts are the arguable favourites.

WC 2010 – Those that have qualified to date:

India (Host)

Canada (Champion of the 3rd Men’s Pan American Cup)

Korea (Champion of the 8th Men’s Asia Cup)

South Africa (Champion of the Africa Cup of Nations, 2009)

Australia (Champion of the 6th Men’s Oceania Cup)

England (Champion of the 12th Men’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)

Germany (Silver medalist of the 12th Men’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)

Netherlands (Bronze medalist of the 12th Men’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)

Spain (Fourth ranked team of the 12th Men’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)

Pakistan (Winner of the Men’s World Cup Qualification Tournament – No. 1)

New Zealand (Winner of the Men’s World Cup Qualification Tournament – No. 2)

1 vacancy left:

Winner of the Men’s World Cup Qualification Tournament – No. 3 – Currently underway in Quilmes, Argentina

WCQ TWO – INVERCARGILL – DAY 5

DAY FIVE

The first up in match on Day 5 was the UK derby between Scotland and Wales where no team would hold back. Wales searching for their first win of the Tournament. New Zealand was expected to beat Austria but would always be up for a tough game, in which Gryphon’s Simon Child scored a double to take his overall tally to 6 for the tournament and equal top goal scorer. In the final game of the day, doubled as an unofficial semi-final for China and Malaysia to determine who would face New Zealand in the final tomorrow.

Results Day 5: Saturday 14 November 2009

Scotland v Wales 2:1 (0:0)
SCO 37mn Stephen DICK (FG) 1:0
SCO 51mn Mark RALPH (PC) 2:0
WAL 56mn Rufus MCNAUGHT-BARRINGTON (PC) 2:1

New Zealand v Austria 4:0 (3:0)
NZL 8mn Phil BURROWS (FG) 1:0
NZL 24mn Simon CHILD (FG) 2:0
NZL 29mn Priyesh BHANA (FG) 3:0
NZL 67mn Simon CHILD (FG) 4:0

China v Malaysia 0:3 (0:0)
MAS 37mn Kevinder SINGH (FG) 0:1
MAS 38mn Tengku JALIL (FG) 0:2
MAS 51mn Nabil NOR (FG) 0:3

With the Round Robin phase now complete, we now sit back and await Day Six action. The ever-improving Austrians up against Wales who will want to finish on a high after their first win. In an unlikely match up, China will take on Scotland for 3rd place.

The Final of the BDO World Cup Qualifier in Invercargill will be played between hosts, New Zealand and Malaysia. It promises to be a tight and physical battle as we will find the eleventh nation to qualify for the Hero Honda World Cup in Delhi 2010.

Standings DAY 5: NZ 15pts, MAS 10pts, CHN 9pts, SCO 6pts, AUT 4pts, WAL 0pts

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