Thursday July 19, Spain: Our Ireland U18 Boys & Girls travelled to Granada, Spain to compete alongside a lineup of topflight nations in this EuroHockey 7-Nations tournament. Among the competition were The Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Belgium, England & Scotland.
Here is how the teams faired:
IRL U18 Girls
Game 1: Ireland 1 – 1 Spain
IRL began their opening game against hosts Spain very brightly, producing two scoring opportunities but Spain soon followed creating opportunities of their own. The Spanish broke the deadlock in Q2, their swept effort from a penalty corner finding the back of the net. However, our IRL Girls responded quickly. Some excellent pressing of the ESP backline resulted in a weak pass across the circle that D. Shields pounced on. Her quick reverse shot cannoned into the roof of the net to level the score at 1-1.
The pivotal moment of the game came in Q3. In an effort to regain the lead ESP, they attacked the IRL baseline, winning a penalty stroke in the process. IRL keeper C. Bowman stepped up and produced an excellent save to keep the game level and secure a point for our IRL Girls.
IRL Scorers: D. Shields
Game 2: Ireland 2 – 1 Scotland
It was another strong start in game 2 for our IRL Girls, but it was Scotland who won the first Penalty Corner of the game which was well defended by the IRL corner team. Both sides continued to trade punches throughout the first half, but the game remained scoreless.
Our IRL Girls opened the scoring in Q3, D. Shields producing a superb run and pass to find A. Handcock who put the ball in the back of the net. Scotland, however, responded with a goal of their own. Unphased by the Scottish goal, Ireland regained the lead, this time thanks to an I. Field deflection, resulting in a 2-1 win for the girls.
IRL Scorers: A. Handcock, I. Field
Game 3: Ireland 0 – 2 Belgium
A challenging third game for the team as they faced one of the strongest sides in the competition, Belgium. The U18 Girls brought everything they had to the table putting in their most complete performance of the tournament so far, showing their quality both in and out of possession. However, Belgium managed to edge the game convert two of their scoring opportunities, resulting in a 0-2 victory in their favor.
IRL Scorers: N/A
Game 4: Ireland 0 – 4 Germany (5th / 6th Place Play-Off)
With a win, a draw, and a loss each, the U18 Girls narrowly missed a place in the 7-Nations Semi-Final. However, their final ranking was still to be determined.
The team faced a German side that had produced some mixed results within the tournament, most recently a comprehensive win against Scotland. Our IRL Girls fought throughout the game, but the Germans proved quite clinical, gradually extending their lead to 4-0 as the game went on. A tough result for the team but the spirits of our IRL Girls were not to be dampened as they returned home.
IRL Scorers: N/A
IRL U18 Boys
Game 1: Ireland 0 – 8 Netherlands
Ireland began the competition with a match up with tournament favourites and eventual winners, The Netherlands.
Our IRL Boys made a strong start, creating the first two circle penetrations of the match but neither led to the opening goal. The Dutch found their rhythm soon after scoring twice from counter attacks to open a 0-2 lead at the end of Q1.
The remaining quarters played out in a similar way. Ireland maintained good control over the game, distributing the ball well. However, the Dutch continued to make the most of every opportunity they created eventually running out 0-8 winners in the game.
IRL Scorers: N/A
Game 2: Ireland 7 – 1 Scotland
The U18 Boys went into their second game against Scotland, desperate to bounce back from their defeat to the Netherlands.
The team wasted no time putting their stamp on the game, opening the scoring after just 5 minutes through captain R. Olden. T. Archbold added a second goal just a few minutes later. The lead was extended to 4-0 in Q2, T. Archibold grabbing his second with an emphatic reverse shot, followed by a superbly finished deflection from G. Palmer.
A scrappy third quarter allowed SCO to get a foothold in the game, grabbing their first goal of the game. However, order was restored in the final quarter as IRL regained control on the game. Goals from R. Williams, a second from G. Palmer and one from O. Gavin put the game to bed, finishing 7-1.
IRL Scorers: R. Olden, T. Archbold X2, G. Palmer X2, R. Williams, O. Gavin
Game 3: Ireland 1 – 4 Belgium
With one win and one loss to their name the IRL Boys needed a victory to keep their semi-final hopes alive, with Belgium their third opposition in the tournament.
In what was one of the most entertaining and interesting halves of hockey of the entire tournament both IRL and BEL put together some exceptional passages of play. Both sides found the net leaving the scoreline locked at 1-1 going into the second half.
However, the tone of the game quickly shifted. A flurry of cards threatened to take the shine off a superb game. Both sides were forced into heroic defensive displays to keep each other at bay. However, it was BEL who would come away as the winners. 2 goals during Q3 gave them a 3-1 lead, and the victory.
IRL Scorers: B. Law
Game 4: Ireland 2 – 1 England
A game against England to determine 5th and 6th place was the U18 Boys final involvement in the 7-Nations tournament in Granada. Eager to end on a high, the team went into this game focused entirely on the task at hand.
ENG started the stronger of the teams. Goalkeeper J. Coffey was called into action in Q1 to pull off a superb save from an ENG penalty corner, keeping the game at 0-0. IRL grew into the game in Q2 and creating chances of their own. GK O. Nielsen emulated his teammate Coffey’s heroics, pulling off a triple save to keep the game level going into half-time.
The second half brought with it a huge momentum shift, with our IRL boys finding their rhythm. Strong defensive shape and attacking patterns led to scoring opportunities for the team. However, it was ENG who would break the deadlock; an excellent save from the ENG keeper led to a 90m counter-attack and a goal. This, however, only seemed to embolden the IRL spirit and determination, as the team responded immediately through M. Thompson to level the scores going into Q4.
IRL dominated the closing 15 minutes of the game, producing plenty of quality chances. With less than a minute left on the clock and the game looking destined to end in 1v1s H. St Leger stepped up with a first-time reverse stick shot to secure a 2- victory for the boys.
IRL Scorers: M. Thompson, H. St Leger
