Pro League 2024 (London)
05.06.2024
Written by; Tao MacLeod
Day 3
Great Britain 4 (6) – (5) 4 China (Women)
Great Britain 4 – 1 Spain (Men)
USA 0 – 2 Germany (Women)
Ireland 0 – 3 Germany (Men)
What Happened Today
Great Britain 4 (6) – (5) 4 China (Women)
Team GB started positively, but it was the Chinese who opened the scoring. Yuan Meng picked the pocket of the full back, before playing the ball into the circle whereupon Ma Ning scored at the far post. China pressed well and denied the British space all over the pitch. However, in the second quarter Britain did equalise, after having moved the move from side to side several time, Tess Howard forced the ball across the face of goal. After the ball bounced about a bit, Izzy Petter tucked it away at the left hand post. They doubled their tally after Charlotte Watson carried the ball along the baseline before playing a cutback pass. She found Sophie Hamilton in space, who then hit the ball at back board level past the goalie. A well worked short corner routine from the Asian Champions saw the scores levelled just before half time, with Tan Jinzhuang getting the final touch, after receiving a slip pass at the top of the circle.
Sarah Robertson got a third for her side a minute inside the fourth period. A good bit of attacking play from the Chinese saw Yuan Meng fouled in the circle, as she was about to shot. A penalty flick was awarded and Gu Bingfeng duly converted to level the scoreline at three goals a piece. After Hannah French took a deflected block to the face the home team were awarded a short corner, from which Grace Balsdon scored a drag flick. At this point China withdrew their goalkeeper for an extra outfielder. This paid off as they won another penalty stroke. Gu Bingfeng got her second from the spot. During a short corner routine Britain are awarded an arguably soft penalty stroke, but the Chinese had lost their referral debating the initial set piece. Tess Howard hit the post with her effort. With less than a minute left goalkeeper Li Xinhuan made a double save to keep her side in the game, having been brought back on to the pitch. This meant that both teams would get a point each in the league table, but the match would go to a shoot-out for a bonus point.
In hockey shootouts teams put forward five players who have eight seconds to go one versus one against the opposition goalkeeper. It was two-two after the first the shuffles, which meant it went to sudden death. In this situation Britain, who had been taking their turns before their opponents, would now go second, with the theory that the pressure situations are shared more evenly between the two teams. The deadlock was broken on the eight attempt by the Chinese, but Sophie Hamilton equalised for a ninth attempt. On the tenth try China took the lead again, but Costello equalised. The order changed again with GB going first. China finally lost at the 12th go, after a save by Amy Tennant (who has appeared on the Half Court Press Podcast) and then the attacker struck the crossbar. Britain won the shootout 6-5.
Great Britain 4 – 1 Spain (Men)
The hosts took an early lead through a short corner, with Gareth Furlong getting the final touch. Sam Ward added a second, after a nice move that flowed into the Spanish circle. Another from Stuart Rushmere made it three goals to nil at half time. A minute into the second half Furlong got his second of the match. The Welshman has been on fire since making his debut in this mini-tournament, having scored three goals in three games. The Spanish nearly got one back in the 51st minute, after they hit the post from a set piece and then forced Mazarelo into a decent save. They did reduce the deficit in the 52nd minute through Jordi Bonastre. In the end it finished four goals to one for the Brits.
USA 0 – 2 Germany (Women)
The Germans had most of the possession, however it took until the 20th minute for them to open the scoring. Charlotte Stapenhorst was the player who put it over the line as a field goal. When going forward the Europeans were looking to create overloads in midfield through captain Nike Lorenz and Amelie Wortman acting as ball carriers. They continued their dominance in the second half, with the Americans hardly getting a sniff at the other end. In fact, Team USA struggled to keep the ball at all in their attacking half. What Germany struggled with was the creating of clear cut chances when they went forward. There was a lack of movement in attacking areas, possibly due to the fatigue that comes from having recently finished a competitive domestic Bundesliga campaign. Kira Horn has looked decent on the right, in all of the games so far, as has Sonja Zimmerman. Lorenz doubled her side’s lead in 43rd minute with a good drag flick from a short corner. In the fourth quarter the Yanks came out of their shell bait more, putting pressure on the German defenders, when they had the ball. However, their opponents proved to be good ball carriers, as well as more than able to pass and move up the pitch.
Ireland 0 – 3 Germany (Men)
Whilst in London the Irish have started their games ambitiously and then trailed off as their opponents have turned the screw. However in this match they maintained their assertiveness into the second period. They even troubled Alexander Stadler’s goal a couple of times. At half-time the match remained goalless. In the third period Ireland continued to get into the opposition circle. They also transitioned well into defence. However, after conceding a short corner in the 36th minute, the postman took a drag flick to the body and conceded a penalty stroke. This was converted by Timm Herzbruch which gave Germans a one nil lead. The Germans started to find their feet a bit more at this point and scored another from a set piece just before the break. Thies Prinz added a third just before full time, but in truth it was a flat game, where the Germans never truly got out of second gear. The momentum of the match was best summed up when I looked up to see a bit of match play on the big screen and saw an advert for some GB Hockey replica kit.
Star Player
Sonja Zimmerman (who got player of the match against the USA today) and Kira Horn are good players and I enjoy watching them play. Gareth Furlong, the freshly minted GB Men’s player, scored two goals today, which puts him in contention for this acknowledgement. However, I’m going to give it to Yuan Meng of China, who I thought did well in her match against Great Britain this morning. She forced a turnover from the British full back, which led to her side’s first goal. She also worked hard defensively and got involved in link up play when going forward for the Asian champions. She wears shirt number 52 for China.
Goal of the Day
German captain Nike Lorenz’s drag flick against the USA today was well executed. A powerful open stick shot into the top corner, up and away to the goalie’s left saw her team take a two goal lead. However, I’m going to opt for the Scotland ladies team captain today. A British attack through a slightly off set central channel in the ladies match against China saw the ball released to Sarah Robertson on the left hand side of the circle. She took a touch away from the encroaching defender and for a moment it looked like the angle had become too tight to score from. However the Scottish skipper managed to smash a reverse stick shot past the opposition goalkeeper.
Game of the Day
The best match of the day was the Great Britain versus China match this morning. It was a ding dong affair that included eight goals and the underdogs China coming back on three occasions and even taking the lead early on. The penalty shoot out that happens in the FIH Pro League in the event of draws provided one of, if not the longest, tie breaker that I’ve ever seen. It took 12 attempts for either team for us to see an outcome, with an excited crowd cheering on the home side. It was a perfect match to get the young spectators enthusiastic about hockey.
Thought of the Day
The school children who attended the Great Britain matches, in large numbers were in good voice today. It was good to see young fans inside Lee Valley enjoying themselves. They cheered, they shouted, it was all very high pitched and good natured. It’s something that hockey needs, especially in Britain. Hopefully we can see and hear more like this. The Half Court Press Magazine wrote an article on how to develop a fan base in hockey. You can read it here.
