SA hockey stars shine on world stage

Hockey never gets much of a plug in South Africa but two of our players have managed to qualify for the Men’s and women’s World All Star teams which is a fantastic achievement considering that hockey is an amateur sport in this country.

Congratulations to the SA Men’s captain Austin Smith, and joint women’s captain Marsha Marescia who were chosen by global voting on the official world hockey website.

The full teams are below:

Men’s and women’s World All Star teams

Men: Salman Akbar (PAK),Pol Amat (ESP), Simon Child (NZL), Jamie Dwyer (AUS), Moritz Furste (GER), Myung Ho Lee (KOR), Ashley Jackson (ENG), Mark Knowles (AUS), Barry Middleton (ENG), Maximilian Muller (GER), Teun de Nooijer (NED), Eddie Ockenden (AUS), Jong Ho Seo (KOR), Rob Short (CAN), Prabhjot Singh (IND), Austin Smith (RSA), Taeke Taekema (NED), Christopher Zeller (GER). Coaches: Ric Charlesworth (AUS) & Markus Weise (GER)

Women: Naomi van As (NED), Luciana Aymar (ARG), Tina Bachmann (GER), Noel Barrionuevo (ARG), Madonna Blyth (AUS). Tony Cronk (AUS), Casey Eastham (AUS), Gemma Flynn (NZL), Baorong Fu (CHN), Surinder Kaur (IND), Natascha Keller (GER), Yibo Ma (CHN), Marsha Marescia (RSA), Miyuki Nakagawa (JPN), Maartje Paumen (NED), Helen Richardson (ENG), Janneke Schopman (NED), Belen Succi (ARG), Coaches: Carlos Retegui (ARG) & Frank Murray (AUS)

Hockey Events

• The World Vintage Hockey Carnival in Barbados in October 2010 for teams of players over 35 who love hockey, playing in fantastic hockey destinations and mixing and mingling with like minded players from all over the world. Fun, friendship and competition in one of the world’s most wonderful idyllic settings. Check out the details and plan to join us for fun in the sun next October.

• The Cape Town Under 18 International Hockey Festival for schools and clubs between July 18 and 24, 2011. Time to start to put your teams together for a fabulous celebration of hockey in South Africa’s sporting capital. Check out the details and plan to join Under 18 Schools and Club teams from around the world for a truly international experience for young hockey players.

Vintage Hockey Carnival, Barbados, October 2010

The Cockspur Old Gold Roosters and their manager, Ricky Clarke will host the 1st World Vintage Hockey Carnival and you are invited to be part of this exciting addition to the Hockey Calendar.

"We are very excited to be hosting the 1st World Vintage Hockey Carnival" said Ricky Clarke manager of the Cockspur Old Gold Roosters and Carnival Director. "With the support of the Barbados Tourism Authority, the Barbados Hockey Federation and the Vintage Hockey Office we expect to put on an enjoyable week of hockey, recreation, relaxation and partying on our beautiful island".

Check out the website at www.vintage-hockey.com

Carnival Program
Sunday 17 to Sunday 24 October will be a Caribbean Celebration of Hockey. Check out the program at www.vintage-hockey.com

How Much Will It Cost?
The Carnival Organisers have arranged a good spread of Carnival accommodation with hotels in the St Lawrence Gap South Coast area. Check out the accommodation at www.vintage-hockey.com

What Do We Get for Our Money?
Plenty - Check out value for money at
www.vintage-hockey.com

Teams and Supporters
The Carnival will host Mens, Ladies and Mixed Teams in age groups and standards of playing strength. Supporters, part teams and individuals also welcomed to take a full part in the Carnival.

Register your interest by following this link and
Enter now by following this link

Cape Town, South Africa Under 18 Festival
for Schools and Clubs, 2011

Introduced in 2003, the Cape Town International Under 18 Hockey Festival is a well-established celebration of the great game of field hockey for School and Club teams, supporters, coaches and officials. An extremely valuable hockey and educational experience for all who take part, the Cape Town Under 18 Festival attracts teams from throughout the world.

The next Carnival is to be played between 18 and 24 July, 2011 on outstanding playing facilities throughout the South African sporting capital, beautiful and supportive Cape Town. The standard of hockey is excellent and competitive at all levels. Following initial games teams will compete in the Elite Competition, the Festival Section or the Plate Section so that all teams can enjoy their matches from teams from various parts of the world.

All we ask is that players are aged Under 18 on the 1st September 2010 that they enjoy playing hockey, that they enjoy mixing and mingling with people of their age group from other countries and teams and that they enjoy the wonderful opportunities sports and travel offer.

Festival Program
Hockey, sight-seeing excursions it’s all planned
Check out the program at www.under18hockey.com

How Much Will It Cost?
Costings and accommodation details are available here>>

What Do We Get For Our Money?
The inclusions in the comprehensive packages for players and supporters can be seen on the website here>>

Teams and Supporters

The Festival will host Girls and Boys Teams under the age of 18 at 1st September 2010 representing Schools or Clubs. Each team must be accompanied by two adults-coaches, staff or parents.

Supporters are welcomed.

Follow this link to register your interest or enter the Festival.

4 Nations fixtures

Tuesday 2nd June
14h00 Australia vs India
16h00 South Africa vs Argentina

Wednesday 3rd June
14h00 Argentina vs Australia
16h00 South Africa vs India

Thursday 4th June
REST DAY

Friday 5th June
14h00 India vs Argentina
16h00 South Africa vs Australia

Saturday 6th June
12h30 3rd vs 4th
15h00 1st vs 2nd

SA hockey

Leading South African hockey writer John Cook recently did a post about financial support for two players who are supposed to represent the U21 team in Singapore at the U21 World Cup.

In a nutshell - each player needs R28000 to represent their country on this tour. The South African Hockey Association (SAHA) kicks in about R10000 per player.

So get this logic - you reach the top of your game, are selected for national representation and then you're told that if you don't have R18000 you will be replaced by somebody who can afford to pay the money to go on tour...

... errr ja that sounds fair... especially when you have guys like Buthana Khompela complaining that not enough players of colour are selected.

I appreciate that there is no bottomless pit of money to support all the international teams that we roll out every year, but then government must also accept that they cannot force their political agendas onto people who can't afford to be selected.

SAHA has also known for four years that this this event was coming up - in four years you couldn't raise R250k?

I've been involved with hockey for the last six years in various administerial positions and I know for a fact we have great hockey players. One has only to remember that Marsha Marescia was selected as one of the best in the world despite our very amateurish local setup.

National Under 21 Women’s team

The South African Hockey Asspociation today announced the National Under 21 Women’s team to participate in the BDO Junior Women’s World Cup Tournament.

The tournament takes place in Boston , Massachusetts, USA from the 3rd to 16th August 2009.

TEAM:
Julia Cass (SG), Louise Coertzen (SG), Sulette Damons (NW), Celia Evans (NW), Sarah Harley (SG), Hanli Hattingh (WP), Loreen Irvine (NW), Camille Jasson (SG), Nicole Kemp (EP), Kelly Madsen (Kzn Coastals), Candice Manuel (WP), Ncedisa Magwentshu (SG), Jade Mayne (WP), Catherine McNulty (SG), Mapule Mokoena (SG), Kerry Pearton (Kzn Coastals), Philippa Rabey (WP), Nicolene Terblanche (Nor.).


NON TRAVELLING RESERVES:
Shelly Freyer (Kzn Coastals), Faye Irvine (NW), Michaela Paterson (WP), Sammy Prost (Nor), Cherie Smith (FS), Chanelle van Niekerk (EP).

MANAGEMENT:

Manager : Mrs. Bernie Thomas
Coach : Mr. Fabian Gregory
Asst. Coach : Mr. Greg Hesom
Video / Stats : Mr. Patrick Tshutshani
Physiotherapist : Miss: Fazlien Jacobs

Sports - changing world order

I believe quite strongly that a combination of the IPL and the economic (financial) crisis will fundamentally change sport across the globe. I'm probably going to say a few things that are going to be considered a little controversial but it's something I've been intrigued by for quite a while now.

Broadly speaking up until a few years ago the financial power of world sport remained in two major power centres - the US and Europe (Specifically the UK).

Even now the big money in rugby, soccer, motorsport and golf still emanates from these parts... but I don't expect that to last.

Some predictions:

• I expect in five years time that Bangladeshi cricket will have overtaken English cricket in the test and One Day International rankings
• Argentina rugby will be stronger than the European nations within seven years
• In less than a decade I don't believe that the English premiership will be regarded as the leading football league in the world
• Clubs like Manchester United, Barcelona and Chelsea will be competing with clubs from places like South America, the US and Asia in a global league in the not too distant future as opposed to the UEFA tournaments.
• Bit of a wild one but I believe that South Africa will have one competitive football team in this tournament in ten years
• I believe that the premier rugby competition - which will usurp the Super 14 - will be played out of either South Africa or Japan inside the next seven years and will work along the same lines as the IPL cricket system with either a bid or draft offering to pick sides.
• Motorsport will be dominated by Chinese and Indian manufacturers and representatives and the Middle East and mainstream Asia will host most of the glamour races
• Support for international brands such as the Springboks, All Blacks, Proteas, Wallabies etc will decline over the next ten years with cross-border franchises attracting greater support.

Obviously there are a lot of people who don't want to hear about the changing global world order but at the end of the day it is a numbers game - China, India, the rest of Asia and Brazil to some extent are growing rapidly at all levels...

1. Look at what China achieved at the last world Olympics
2. Look at the support the IPL has attracted - it's HUGE money and prestige that far outweighs what the international cricket boards can afford to pay their players.
3. F1 used to be the domain of the European manufacturers... suddenly the likes of Toyota are coming in and the Middle East is pouring money into development of tracks and teams - things are going to look very different in a few years time...

Does it sound like lunatic fringe stuff or do you think there is some merit to it all? Would love your input?

DURBAN TO HOST FOUR NATIONS

The SPAR South African Women’s hockey team has received a welcome boost with the news that a four-nations tournament against strong opposition is to be held in Durban in June.

The SPAR Cup, which will feature South Africa, Argentina, Australia and India, will form part of South Africa’s preparations for the important eight-nations Champions Challenge to be played in Cape Town in October. The Champions Challenge involves the countries ranked from seventh to 12th in the world, as well as the team that finished sixth in the previous Champions Trophy. The winner of the Challenge competes in the next Champions Trophy.

Argentina are ranked second in the world, and Australia fifth, while India are ranked 14th – two places below South Africa. The opportunity to play strong opposition in a tournament situation will provide South Africa with much-needed international experience in a tournament situation.

The Australian coach, Frank Murray , was enthusiastic about the tournament.

“Durban will be the first time our players have been together since the Olympic Games in Beijing last year,” he said. “With more than half of the Beijing Squad now retired, it will be a great opportunity for the younger ones to step on the international stage and show us that they should be part of our plans through to the Olympic Games in London in 2012. “The four teams competing cover a broad range of playing styles and it will be good for our younger players to experience this. “We are looking forward to visiting and playing in Durban - none of our players nor staff have been to Durban before,” he said.

SPAR Marketing Director Roelf Venter said the supermarket chain were delighted to be able to sponsor the tournament.

“Having supported Hockey for over 13 years, The SPAR GROUP LTD sees the importance of assisting in areas that have traditionally been overlooked by sponsors. By Inviting International teams to tour our country it provides our players with the opportunity to play with the best in the world so they can gain valuable experience. In addition to this it also gives SPAR the opportunity to create the awareness and raise the profile of not only the sport of Hockey but the players as well .We are extremely proud of our association with our national women's team and are committed to supporting women's sport in South Africa”

The tournament will be played on a round robin bases with teams finishing in position one and two on the log, toughing it out in a final played on the 6th of June. Two matches takes place on each scheduled playing day. All matches are played at the Queensmead Hockey Stadium.

Tickets available at the Queensmead Hockey Stadium on all match days.
Ticket Prices:
Adults: R20
Children (u/18): R10
Adults (for all days): R50
Children (u/18 for all days): R30

SA Men's Squad Announced

The South African Hockey Association Senior Men’s Selectors have announced the following training squad of 24 players who will be attending a National training camp in Pretoria from the 25th to 31st May 2009.

From this camp the National team will be selected to represent South Africa at the Africa Cup for Nations in Accra, Ghana in July 2009.

The Africa Cup for Nations tournament is a World Cup Qualifying tournament whereby the winner of the tournament will represent the Africa Continent at the 2010 World Cup Hockey Tournament.

TRAINING SQUAD:

GOALKEEPERS:

RASSIE PIETERSE
BRENDEN BOTES

DEFENDERS:

RHETT HALKETT
KEVIN DEMARTINIS
GARETH CARR
JUSTIN REID-ROSS
LLOYED MADSEN
ANDREW CRONJE
SHANYL BALWANTH
LANCE LOUW

MIDFIELD:

AUSTIN SMITH
TAINE PATON
WADE PATON
JONTY ROBINSON
TOMMY HAMMOND
SHAUN DAVENHILL

ATTACKERS:

LUNGILE TSOLIKELE
JULIAN HYKES
MARVIN HARPER
MIGUEL DA GRACA
CRAIG HALEY
IAN HALEY
LLOYD NORRIS JONES
THORTON MCDADE

Southern Gauteng U21 side

The following players have been selected to represent Southern Gauteng at the 2009 U21 Interprovincial to be held in Cape Town from the 26th April – 3rd May 2009.

Mark De Jager
Christiaan Schutte
Byrone Tenant
Grant Wildsmith
Charles Lesia
Brett Staverly
Chris Gilbert
Jarmaine Johnson
Lyle York
Owen Mvimbi
Sean Lansdale
Paledi Makgloane
Joshua Walter
Brandon Panther
Ryan Fensham
Mark Raines
Latabo Leoto
Matthew Povel
Craig Wiid
Tyrone Hammond
Bryn Cleak

Coach: Allistar Fredericks
Manager: Reza Rosenberg

New rules

Having looked at rugby in the Super 14 and the 6 Nations, the implementation of the new ELV's (experimental laws) - the nature of rugby has changed into far more of a kicking game again... some argue for the better of the game, while some other big name coaches have said it has moved the game backward.

It might be a bit of fun to look at hockey from both a South African and international context and try and throw out some ideas of what would be positive steps for the game.

Got any ideas? Doesn't matter how weird or wacky - let's just kick a few of them around

Looking for SA hockey news?

Hi all

I am delighted and excited at the launch of www.thecookreport.co.za

The Cook Report as per e-mail is no more.

As from now, the website www.thecookreport.co.za is the place where I hope to see and interact with you all.

Regards
Jon Cook

Hockey Zone

South African hockey has reached something of a cross-roads in its development. While the game at school level remains strong and well supported, the higher leagues are going nowhere fast...

Lack of coaches, shrinking player pool, lack of financial support and the leagues being dominated by Universities are all contributing to a weaker local game.

I thought it was quite interesting to see some local players trying to make an effort to develop the game, players and coaching talent in the country.

Check out the guys at Hockey Zone and give them your support to help develop the game....

Alan Brahmst announced as Canadian Men's Coach

As part of Field Hockey Canada’s (FHC) strategic roadmap and in consideration of achieving the near term objective of winning the Pan American Cup in March, 2008, FHC has appointed Alan Brahmst (Toronto, Ontario) as the interim coach for the Men's National Team. Alan will bring with him a proven staff with tremendous experience and varied expertise to continue the team's significant progress, which had been engineered and led by Louis Mendonca during the past 2 years.

'I feel confident in our capacities to further develop the tactical and technical capabilities necessary to continue our rise in world rankings. The coaching staff has begun to collaborate on a number of opportunities to introduce leading game strategies and has implemented new and innovative practice components. We have full confidence in our abilities to design and execute a successful tournament strategy in Santiago'. Alan further stated that 'the progress in our player development has paid dividends and with limited retirements since the Olympics, we have a strong pool of players from which to build a dangerous team'.

Alan Brahmst has been an assistant to Louis Mendonca since 2007 and was most recently part of the coaching staff at the Beijing Olympics with the responsibility to develop the tournament's tactical plan. With a 15-year career with the national team and 178 internationals, Alan was an integral part of the Canadian men’s team that ranked as high as 8th during the 90s.

Alan's appointment is in line with Field Hockey Canada's commitment to an innovative 'Made in Canada' approach for developing the sport by leveraging and building on the existing expertise of our Canadian resources.

Source: Field Hockey Canada

FIH names WorldHockey Player of the Year Award

Argentina’s Luciana Aymar and Spain’s Pol Amat were crowned as WorldHockey Players of the Year 2008 in Los Angeles, USA on Friday. Both hockey stars received their awards during a special ceremony on the occasion of the FIH Congress Dinner at Universal Studios in the Californian city.

Dutch Maartje Paumen and Australian Eddie Ockenden received the WorldHockey Young Player of the Year 2008 awards. All four hockey stars were present in Los Angeles to receive their awards.

The awards were presented by FIH President Els van Breda Vriesman during the special ‘Emmy Awards’ type of show. All players who participated at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing last August were able to vote for their favourite.

Aymar grabbed her fifth WorldHockey Player of the Year award after she won the title in 2001, 2004, 2005 and 2007. The 31 year old bronze medallist of the Beijing Olympics was excited with being the best player in the world again.

Amat became the first Spaniard to win the WorldHockey Player of the Year Award. For the silver medalist from Beijing it is the recognition for all the years he was among the best hockey players in the world. Amat took over the title from Australian Jamie Dwyer, who was again one of the nominees for the award this year.

Dutch striker Maartje Paumen was awarded as women’s WorldHockey Young Player of the Year. For Paumen this was the icing on the cake of a year she could only dream of. Paumen won with Netherlands the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics and became the top scorer of the tournament with 11 goals, a record in Olympic history.

Australian Eddie Ockenden took over the title of men’s WorldHockey Young Player of the Year from his teammate Mark Knowles. Ockenden proved to be in excellent form both at the Olympic Games and the WorldHockey Champions Trophy in 2008.

Past winners WorldHockey Player of the Year Award:

Men
1998 Stephan Veen (NED)
1999 Jay Stacy (AUS)
2000 Stephan Veen (NED)
2001 Florian Kunz (GER)
2002 Michael Green (GER)
2003 Teun de Nooijer (NED)
2004 Jamie Dwyer (AUS)
2005 Teun de Nooijer (NED)
2006 Teun de Nooijer (NED)
2007 Jamie Dwyer (AUS)
2008 Pol Amat (ESP)

Women
1998 Alyson Annan (AUS)
1999 Natascha Keller (GER)
2000 Alyson Annan (AUS)
2001 Luciana Aymar (ARG)
2002 Cecilia Rognoni (ARG)
2003 Mijntje Donners (NED)
2004 Luciana Aymar(ARG)
2005 Luciana Aymar (ARG)
2006 Minke Booij (NED)
2007 Luciana Aymar (ARG)
2008 Luciana Aymar (ARG)

Young Men
2001 Tibor Weissenborn (GER)
2002 Jamie Dwyer (AUS)
2003 Grant Schubert (AUS)
2004 Santi Freixa (ESP)
2005 Robert van der Horst (NED)
2006 Christopher Zeller (GER)
2007 Mark Knowles (AUS)
2008 Eddie Ockenden (AUS)

Young Women
2001 Angie Skirving (AUS)
2002 Soledad Garcia (ARG)
2003 Maartje Scheepstra (NED)
2004 Soledad Garcia (ARG)
2005 Maartje Goderie (NED)
2006 Mi Hyun Park (KOR)
2007 Maike Stockel (GER)
2008 Maartje Paumen (NED)

FIH names world AllStar Hockey teams for 2008

After the success of the WorldHockey All Star Teams in 2006 and 2007, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) is pleased to announce the WorldHockey All Star Teams of 2008. Only the best 18 players of the world in each gender are part of this team, which was chosen by hockey experts from all over the world.

The announcement of the WorldHockey All Star Teams was made in Los Angeles, USA on the eve of the FIH Congress and Meetings week, which starts on Sunday 23 November 2008. During the week, the FIH will also announce the 2008 Players of the Year, for which the award ceremony will take place at Universal Studios on Friday 28 November 2008.

The following players (in alphabetical order) were selected for the WorldHockey All Star Teams 2008:

Men’s WorldHockey All Stars 2008:

* Pol Amat (Spain)
* Sebastian Biederlack (Germany)
* Rehan Butt (Pakistan)
* Jamie Dwyer (Australia)
* Santi Freixa (Spain)
* Bevan George (Australia)
* Rodrigo Garza (Spain)
* Robert van der Horst (Netherlands)
* Alistair McGregor, goalkeeper (Great Britain)
* Barry Middleton (Great Britain)
* Teun de Nooijer (Netherlands)
* Eddie Ockenden (Australia)
* Jong Ho Seo (Korea)
* Eduard Tubau (Spain)
* Guus Vogels, goalkeeper (Netherlands)
* Tibor Weissenborn (Germany)
* Timo Wess (Germany)
* Matthias Witthaus (Germany)
* Maurits Hendriks, coach (Spain)
* Markus Weise, coach (Germany)

Women’s WorldHockey All Stars 2008:

* Naomi van As (Netherlands)
* Luciana Aymar (Argentina)
* Tina Bachman (Germany)
* Minke Booij (Netherlands)
* Kaori Chiba (Japan)
* Baorong Fu (China)
* Alejandra Gulla (Argentina)
* Rachel Imison, goalkeeper (Australia)
* Natascha Keller (Germany)
* Seon Ok Lee (Korea)
* Yibo Ma (China)
* Maartje Paumen (Netherlands)
* Carla Rebecchi (Argentina)
* Fanny Rinne (Germany)
* Maria Jesus Rosa, goalkeeper (Spain)
* Janneke Schopman (Netherlands)
* Qingling Song (China)
* Melanie Wells (Australia)
* Mark Lammers (Netherlands)
* Chang Back Kim, coach (China)

Congratulations

On behalf of the SAHA executive, we would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Southern Gauteng on the appointment of the following people, that will be doing National duties at the Junior World Cup in 2009.

Gareth Ewing will be representing the South Africa under 21 men at the Junior World Cup in Malaysia and Singapore as the assistant coach from 7th to 21st June 2009.

Patrick Tshutshani will be representing the South Africa under 21 ladies at the Junior World cup in Boston USA as the Video Analyst from the 3rd to the 16th of August 2009.

Yours sincerely,
South African Hockey Association

Lennie Botha
Coaching – High Performance

FIH releases Qualified Teams for 2009 Events

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) released the teams qualified for its World Level Events in 2009. The post Olympic year will see four men’s and four women’s tournaments.

The most important events next year are the Samsung Champions Trophy women (11-19 July 2009 in Sydney, Australia) and the ABN AMRO Champions Trophy men (28 November-6 December 2009 in Melbourne, Australia).

Men’s Champions Trophy – 2009 (Melbourne, Australia)
1. Australia Host and Champions Trophy Champion 2008
2. Germany Olympic Champions 2008 and World Cup Champions 2006
3. Spain 2nd ranked Olympic Games 2008
4. Netherlands 4th ranked Olympic Games 2008
5. England 5th ranked Olympic Games 2008 (Great Britain)
6. Korea 6th ranked Olympic Games 2008

Women’s Champions Trophy – 2009 (Sydney, Australia)
1. Australia Host
2. Netherlands Olympic Champions 2008, World Cup Champions 2006
3. Argentina Champions Trophy Champion 2008
4. China 2nd ranked Olympic 2008
5. Germany 4th ranked Olympics 2008
6. England 6th ranked Olympics 2008 (Great Britain)

Tornados win 1st Vietnam’s International Sixes

Tornados of Vietnam defeated the three top seeded Malaysian hockey teams to become champions of the 1st Vietnam International Hockey Sixes held in Ho Chi Minh City on 8 and 9 November, which saw 14 teams competing for the title.

Despite the fact that Tornados Vietnam was boosted by the three Vietnamese brothers Binh, Sammy and Tommy Hoang who had played competitive field hockey in the US but now pretty much retired because of business commitments, the team was never fancied to win the tournament after they only came fourth in Pool B at the end of the previous day.

God must have been smiling on the local Vietnamese hockey team on the final day when Tornados Vietnam knocked out tournament favourites Kelab Aman of Kuala Lumpur in the quarterfinals, then Kedah Veterans in the semifinals before beating another Kuala Lumpur side, “Sunday 2030” in the Final in a sudden death penalty shoot out to become champions.

As the organizers were hoping that the tournament would give the Vietnamese players exposure to international club hockey, never in their wildest dreams did they think a local Vietnam side would win the tournament especially since field hockey is hardly played in the country.

The other clubs participating from Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong certainly witnessed the birth of field hockey with this historic win by a local Vietnamese hockey team (albeit unexpectedly) as it will create tremendous interest amongst the local Vietnamese in this 100 year old Olympic sport. The Vietnam International Hockey Sixes will be an annual fixture on the fledging Vietnamese field hockey scene.

For more information about the Vietnam Hockey Festival please visit www.vietnamhockey.vn

Source: Vietnam Hockey

Paul Revington new professional coach of Ireland men's team

The Irish Hockey Association is delighted to announce the appointment of Paul Revington to the position of National Men’s Coach.

South African born Revington was appointed by the selection committee, which included representatives from both Sports Councils, a retired senior athlete, the High Performance Director, Chair of the Board and Chief Executive, after a rigorous interview process against internationally recognised coaches from around the world and Ireland.

Revington brings a wealth of experience to the role but in particular from his three years as Head Coach of the South African Men’s Team where under his reign they moved from 14th to 10th in the world rankings, qualifying and competing in both the 2004 Olympics and 2006 World Cup.

Chief Executive Angus Kirkland was clearly excited about the new appointment “On behalf of the selection committee, I am delighted to introduce Paul Revington as the new Men’s National Coach. Having coached the South African Men’s team qualifying them for the 2004 Olympics and 2006 World cup he is well placed to lead Irelands Men to the next Olympics. He will take over a team that is shaping up well for 2012, thanks in large part to the hard work Dave Passmore has put in over the last four years. Passmore becomes the High Performance Director, a role he has been doing in a dual capacity with the Head Coach. It is an exciting time for Irish Men’s Hockey as we move forward with a world class coach and for the first time a fully complemented High Performance structure.”

Revington, who will officially commence the position early in the New Year will have an opportunity to see his new team in action against Scotland later this month, commented earlier on his appointment “It is an honour for me to be appointed as the new Irish Men's Senior Hockey coach. I have watched the Irish Team and Irish Hockey grow consistently over the years and am excited to become a part this organisation. There is fantastic talent and existing strengths within Irish Men's Hockey and I look forward to creating a dynamic environment that enhances this talent and strength."

Passmore who will now have the opportunity to focus solely on his role as High Performance Director was keen to express his thanks as he know steps away from the Senior Coaching role “I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those athletes and management that have committed so much to the program since I arrived four years ago. We can look back on the fact that we have made significant progress and laid the foundations for this group to now go on and get the results we came so close to achieving. Trying to establish an elite sports environment as amateurs requires real dedication and commitment. The athletes have sacrificed so much over the past few years as have the staff, many of which are volunteers. I hope they have enjoyed the journey (the highs and lows) as much as I have, and I look forward to watching the team achieving greater success moving forward.”

Source: Irish Hockey Association

2009 IIHF men's world hockey championship tour

Come cheer for team Canada! We are the travel partner of hockey Canada and the complete fan tour package is now available on our website. Follow this link http://msat.ca/2009_iihf_world_hockey_championship.html to get all the details and download the complete itinerary.

You will be able to reserve your place for this once-in-a-lifetime experience and also check the testimonials and a picture gallery of the fan tour we did last year for the world juniors in Prague! A video montage of last year's event is also available at this adress

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vrja8WRNalE

Your 10-day WHC inclusive tour to beautiful Switzerland includes:

" Airfare (from Montreal or Toronto) (from Calgary & Vancouver*)
" 8-night deluxe accommodation
" Breakfast daily
" Five local specialty meals
" Transportation to the games
" Ticket for 8 WHC Final Round games
" Sightseeing tour of Berne and Basel
" Excursion to Alsace (France) on the wine circuit (with vineyard visit and typical Alsace meal)
" One-day excursion to Luzerne with sightseeing
" Visits and attractions
" MSAT/WHC 2009 apparel
" On-site MSAT tour guide

You can also check the website to stay updated on everything related to the events like participating teams and the official schedule.

If you need help or if you have any questions for us, please do not hesitate to contact us: ericbeaudet@msat.ca or fill the help form on the website. Please note that we also organize all kind of teams wishing to go on hockey tours so check out WWW.MSAT.CA to get to know all of our offers.