The Indian hockey team fought back from a goal down to record their first win of the tournament. The early signs looked ominous for the Blueshirts as a Kyle Good strike in the fourth minute gave the lead. However, the runners-up at the recently concluded Champions Trophy came roaring back to seal the win with goals from Talwinder Singh and Sardar Singh.
One black spot in the game for the Indians would be their inability to convert from the penalty corner with both Rupinder Singh Pal and Raghunath off-colour today. They had several more chances in the second half, first Rupinder and then Raghunath were denied from PCs. However, this was a much-needed confidence boost for Roelant Oltmans’ men after their 4-0 loss to Germany yesterday.
Speaking after the game, Chief Coach Roelant Oltmans said, “We started off slow today, much like yesterday, but quickly came back and found our rhythm. The good thing is we played strongly once we took the lead and had several chances to secure the game, an area we need to work on.”
India play New Zealand at 21:30 on June 30th.
And it’s all over as India get their first point of the tournament in the Six Nations Invitation Hockey Tournament 2016. Too many circle penetrations which is a good sign and India’s forward line has fired today.
India have yet another opportunity to score! FULL TIME!
We are three minutes away from the final whistle.
57’ – The Irish have been relentlessly running today, can they equalize and take one point from this match?The top 4 teams qualify for knockout stage.
The real test for the team will come on August 8th against Germany and on 9th against Argentina. On 11th and 12th August, India face Netherlands and Canada.
India are still leading by a solitary goal. Being the last preparatory tournament ahead of Rio, India have to up their level if they are vying for a medal.
Beginning of the final 15 minutes of play and already India are back on the attack.
Q4 is now underway!
On top of that, they qualified for the tournament, after Australia defeated New Zealand in the Oceania Cup in October.
2015 was a successful year for both David Harte and coach Craig Fulton after they were awarded the World Goalkeeper and World Coach of the Year awards.
END OF Q3.
SAVED! Scores still the same. INDIA 2-1 IRELAND, as we approach the final break.
44’ – Another penalty corner. Another chance. Rupinder, fondly called Bob by the hockey fraternity takes it.
41’ – We are four minutes away from the final break. Can Ireland equalize through Mitch Darling who has been very impressive in this match till now?
35’ – PENALTY CORNER FOR INDIA. David Harte comes up with a brilliant save. He was awarded the World Goalkeeper of the Year last year. He competes in both the Netherlands and India but he is one of the minority to play full time in the Irish team. The majority of the squad have full-time jobs despite being internationals.
India have taken a well-deserved lead in the third quarter.
GOAL! Sardar Singh scores with a lovely deflection, but what a ball from VR Raghunath. INDIA 2-1 IRELAND!
Great play between VR Raghunath and Birender Lakra, led to a quick shifting of the flanks, and Surender Kumar, operating on the left, whipped in a powerful cross into the circle. Sardar Singh was at hand, deflecting the ball in deftly to give India the lead.
Both teams have 30 minutes to win and most importantly take away much-needed psychological confidence before clashing again on August 6th.
Play resumes. Q3 IS NOW UNDERWAY!
For the first time since 1948, Ireland will be represented in a team event at this Summer's Olympic Games as the men's hockey team are set to play in Rio de Janeiro.
Ireland failed to get the better of Argentina on DAY 1 as the World No. 6 defeated the Green Machine by a solitary goal in the day's third game.
Indian hockey is in a good place, after a long, long time. They have climbed to the 5th place in word rankings.
Score: IRELAND 1-1 INDIA
With Sardar Singh, Rupinder Pal Singh and Birendra Lakra back in the squad, can India fetch their first victory in this competition.
Both teams are locked at 1-1 as the referee blows the half-time whistle.
The team will be announced for Rio on July 5th and these sixteen players would like to impress the coach. Can Talwinder Singh find a spot in the final sixteen? It might be tricky for him to find a spot in the team as he might lose out to other strikers.
Can India take the lead? We are three minutes away from the half-time whistle.
Oltmans is free to try out all sort of combinations for this. But the key should be to win as many matches in the pool stage so we find ourselves in a good position among the six nations in this tournament.
Both teams play each other on August 6th in Rio.
India are trying new tactics and making different set pieces ahead of Rio. And why not?
GOAL! It is INDIA 1-1 IRELAND after 20 minutes! Talwinder Singh taps the rebound to make it one-all. Perfect! Rupinder Pal Singh’s flick was stopped by David Harte, but Talwinder, lurking inside the circle, pounced on the rebound and slotted it into the goal.
20' - AND INDIA GETS THEIR FIRST PENALTY CORNER OF THE GAME!
India have failed to open their account so far in this tournament. Can they do it in the second quarter?
It has been Ireland’s game till now.
END OF Q1.
11’ – We are four minutes away from the break. Ireland still dominating possession. IRELAND 1-0 INDIA
Our strikers have to deliver today. We cannot count on PR Sreejesh all the time.
Can India pull one back in Q1? Remember, this is a very important game for Sardar Singh’s troops, if they are expecting a podium finish.
INDIA 0-1 IRELAND
4’ – GOAL! Ireland draw first blood with Kyle Good scoring the first goal of the tournament for them.
The Green Machine are beginning to take advantage from the start. Mikie Watt has found his rhythm and carrying the ball into the circle from both left and right.
The two teams started the game cautiously, playing the ball on the flanks and using the width to dictate play.
This is Ireland’s starting XI for today:
D Harte (C), Jackson, Gormley, Watt, Cargo, Magee, O’Donoghue, Darling, Good, Gleghorne , C Harte
The match is now underway!
India take on on Ireland on Day 2 of the Six Nations Invitational Tournament in Valencia, Spain.
Hello! Good Evening!
After crumbling under pressure against Germany in the opening encounter of the Six Nations Invitational Tournament, the Men in Blue would hope to put their campaign back on track as they square off against Ireland in Valencia, Spain.
The defending Olympic champion played well in large patches and created plenty of goal-scoring opportunities. Mats Grambusch opened the scoring in the fifth minute and doubled the lead soon after in the 10th minute. Moritz Furste scored a third in the 14th minute to take a 3-0 lead into the first break. Lukas Windfeder capitalized on another foul by the shaky Indian defence to score the 4th and final goal for Germany.
Also Read: Six Nations Invitational Hockey Tournament 2016 – Germany beat India 4-0 in the opening encounter
Speaking after the match, Chief Coach Roelant Oltmans said, “We’re not looking too hard at the result because several members of the team have been rotated. The performance though is something we will look at and analyse and better on in our subsequent games.”
Ireland started with a 1-0 defeat to World Number 6 Argentina and would hope for their first win of the tournament. Juan Gilardi earned a penalty corner in the second quarter for Argentina and dispatched the ball into the bottom left corner.
In the lead up to the Olympics, India won a silver at the 2016 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup where Australia defeated them 4-0 in the final. Despite that loss, the tournament was a good preparation for the team. The team followed it up with a historic silver at the 36th Champions Trophy in London.
This match holds immense significance as the Green Machine open the Rio Olympics 2016 campaign against India on August 6th. Argentina, Canada, Germany, and Netherlands are the other teams in the pool.
Today’s India vs Ireland, Men’s Hockey Match Time:
Play will begin at 7:30 p.m. IST.
The squad:
PR Sreejesh (VC) Vikas Dahiya, Rupinder Pal Singh, VR Raghunath, Kothajit Singh, Surender Kumar, Harmanpreet Singh, Birendra Lakra, Danish Mujtaba, Chinglensana Singh Manpreet Singh, Sardar Singh (C), SK Uthappa, Devinder Walmiki, Harjeet Singh, Talwinder Singh, SV Sunil, Akashdeep Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Nikkin Thimmaiah.
