FIH World Cup Qualifier – Cardiff, Wales 2021
The 15th edition of the FIH Men’s World Cup will take place in January of 2023. Similarly to the women’s event there will be two host cities, but this time they will be in the same country. The Kalinga Stadium (16,000 capacity) in Bhubaneswar and the Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium (projected 20,000 capacity) in Rourkela will share the games between them of this wonderful world class tournament. There were 16 qualification spots available, from five confederations. Six of this slots have already been taken. The host nation of India is there by default, as are the top five teams from the EuroHockey Championships; the three sides who medaled and then the two next highest ranked sides.
The other confederations have yet to put forward their teams, but in the Welsh capital city of Cardiff, between the 21st and the 24th of October we will find out who will take the final two places allocated to Europe. This will involve the lowest three ranked teams from the EuroHockey Championships I Division (France, Russia and Wales), as well as the top five ranked teams from the EuroHockey Championships II Division (Austria, Italy, Ireland, Poland and Scotland). The point of this is that we now have the best of the rest type situation for this qualification event. This is a three round, straight knockout tournament. The top two teams, as in the sides who reach the final, will qualify for the Men’s 2023 World Cup. In this article we will have a look at the Scottish and Irish squads that have been announced for the tournament.
21st October – Quarter Finals
Match 1 – France vs. Poland
Match 2 – Austria vs. Scotland
Match 3 – Ireland vs. Russia
Match 4 – Wales vs. Italy
22nd October – Classification Matches (5th to 8th)
Match 5 – Loser Match 1 vs. Loser Match 2
Match 6 – Loser Match 3 vs. Loser Match 4
23rd October – Semi Finals
Match 7 – Winner Match 1 vs. Winner Match 2
Match 8 – Winner Match 3 vs. Winner Match 4
24th October
Match 9 – Loser Match 5 vs. Loser Match 6 (7th/8th Playoff)
Match 10 – Winner Match 5 vs Winner Match 6 (5th/6th Playoff)
Match 11 – Loser Semi Final 1 vs. Loser Semi Final 2 (Bronze Medal)
Match 12 – Winner Semi Final 1 vs. Winner Semi Final 2 (Gold Medal)
Ireland – FIH World Ranking 14
The second seeds in this tournament are full of talent and experience. The team has had top level EuroHockey Championship games within the last few years, as well as having played at the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2018 World Cup. The Irish also have a historical pedigree in international hockey. The first ever international hockey fixture was between Ireland and Wales (men) in Rhyl in 1895, with the Irish running out winners with three goals to nil. Ireland were also the silver medalists at the first ever hockey tournament at the 1908 Olympics, in London. More recently, Ireland came third at the 2021 EuroHockey Championships II Division, beating Poland by four goals to two, in the Bronze Medal Playoff Match. They will be looking to add to their story by booking their plane tickets to India later this month.
Goalkeepers
Jamie Carr is currently playing hockey for KHC Leuven in the Belgium leagues and is one of four of his compatriots who are club mates in Central Europe. He made his debut for his country, against France, in 2015 and has gone on to make 34 appearances, all of the more impressive being that he only took up the sport at the age of 15.
Mark Ingram is based in Ireland, with Pembroke Wanders. Having gone to school at Oatlands College, he has been playing hockey since he was seven years old. Ingram now has 27 caps for Ireland, having made his debut against France in 2014.
Captain
Sean Murray is another member of the Irish squad who plays for KHC Leuven. He has been playing international hockey for six years now, having made his debut against Argentina in 2015, earning 85 caps to date. He has said that his favourite sporting moment to date has been playing in the 2018 World Cup, against India. As a midfielder, he will be looking to take control of the game, as he leads his team to the following tournament.
Key Player
Conor Harte is the most experienced player in the squad that is travelling to Cardiff, having made his debut in 2006, against France. He has gone on to play for his country an impressive 254 times and represented Ireland at the 2016 Rio Olympics and the World Cup in 2018. Alongside his twin brother, David Harte, he has become one of the most recognisable faces in Irish hockey. Conor Harte is a centre back, who now plays in Belgium’s first division for KHC Dragons.
Scotland – FIH World Ranking 20
Scotland is a very good hockey team, that has a squad bursting with drive, talent and ambition. The men’s team won the EuroHockey Championships II Division in 2017, before coming second in the same tournament in 2021, losing out in a penalty shootout to Austria, meaning that they will play in the top grade edition in 2023. The squad that is travelling to Wales for this qualifying event, is packed with talent and experience.
Goalkeeper
Tommy Alexander was the goalkeeper in the 2017 EuroHockey Championships II Division where not only did he win the gold medal, but he also took home the Goalkeeper of the Tournament Award. Tommy started playing in the English leagues, for Indian Gymkhana and then Reading Hockey Clubs, before moving to Central Europe in search for new challenges. He was playing for UHC Hamburg, before moving to Der Club An Der Alster, where he plays with compatriot Struan Walker. Tommy Alexander has appeared on ‘Verbals from the Goalkeeper’, which is the ninth series of Half Court Press Podcast, which you can listen to here…
Star Forward
Alan Forsyth was a part of the Great Britain Olympic Team that travelled to the Tokyo Olympics, but controversially, wasn’t given a single minute of game time. He is a world class forward, who could walk into almost any international side on the globe. Currently, he plays his club hockey for HGC, in the Dutch Hoofdklasse. In the 2017 EuroHockey Championships II Division he was named Player of the Tournament and Top Goalscorer. Forsyth has also played in the top tier of European Hockey, as well as the FIH Pro-League and the Commonwealth Games.
Players to Watch
Michael Bremner, who is better known as ‘Bremmy’ to his team mates, has played at Under 21 level for Great Britain and has spent several years in the German Bundesliga. He is a strong competitor, leader, athlete and defensive minded player. Bremner is another Scotsman, based out in Central Europe, playing for Uhlenhorster Hamburg.
Andy Bull is currently playing for Old Georgians. He gained a number of caps for England and Great Britain, before being cut from the programme. He then switched to play for Scotland and is used in a type of quarterback role, looking to create the attacking moves for the team. Bull has had great success in Holland and Belgium, before moving back to the UK.
Lee Morton is another player who is involved at Old Georgians in the English leagues. Originally from Glasgow, he is an extremely skilful, fast and exciting player. His major achievements include winning seven Scottish League titles in a row. He had a brief but impressive stint with Great Britain in the FIH Pro-League and will be able to bring this experience to the Scottish team. As a forward, he will be looking to bag some goals this month.
