22.08.2015, London: A full schedule of games saw the current Men’s and Women’s Champions Germany, get their campaigns underway with wins for both teams.
Day two at the Unibet EuroHockey Championships saw action from two Men’s Pool B matches and four women’s matches that gave hockey spectators a chance to see all the women’s teams in action for the first time at these championships.
Day Two results:
Women Pool A
BEL v ESP 0-0 (0-0)
NED v POL 9-0 (5-0)
Women Pool B
ENG v SCO 2-1 (2-1)
GER v ITA
Men Pool B
IRL v FRA 4-3
GER v BEL 4-0
The Women’s Unibet EuroHockey Championships got underway at the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre and was notable for the challenge laid down by the Netherlands to the rest of the competitors. Nine goals and a total demolition job on Poland signalled the intent of Maartje Paumen and her team. In the other pool matches, Belgium and Spain played out a cagey goaless draw, England ground out a 2-1 win over Scotland while Germany proved their worth as reigning champions with a 4-0 win over Italy.
The opening game in the women’s competition was a goalless affair between Belgium and Spain, with both teams playing a defensive game and cancelling out each other’s attacking intentions.
In a tremendous display of goalscoring and attacking play, the Netherlands established their dominance in their first match when they demolished Poland in a 9-0 rout. Ellen Hoog celebrated her 200th cap with a hat trick, and she was joined on the score-sheet by Eva de Goede, Paumen, Carlien Dirkse van den Heuvel, Marloes Keetels and two for Kelly Jonkers.
The third women’s match saw Kate and Helen Richardson-Walsh both score for England, but not before Scotland had taken the lead through Kareena Marshall, just two minutes into the game. This was a game that lacked class but had plenty of feisty rivalry.
The final women’s match saw the reigning champions Germany take on up and coming team Italy.
In the Men’s Pool B matches, Ireland withstood a spirited French attack to take the match 4-3, while Germany wore down the Belgium attack and took advantage of a 10 minute sin-bin for John-John Dohmen to score the breakthrough goal.
Ireland would have expected to run up a cricket score when Kyle Good opened the scoring in the first minute of the game, but the French were never going to capitulate that easily and the spectators were privy to a free-flowing and exciting hockey match that ended 4-3 to the Green Machine.
In the second men’s match, Belgium made most of the running in the early stages of the game, but determination and doggedness on the part of the reigning champions saw Germany take control and run up their biggest win over the Red Lions since 2007.
– See more at: http://eurohockey2015.co.uk/germany-play-like-reigning-champs-while-netherlands-turn-on-the-style/#sthash.EBLv3R2K.dpuf
IRL v FRA
BEL v GER
BEL v ESP
ENG v SCO
NED v POL
GER v ITA
Photograph: Germany men (EHF/Frank Uijlenbroek (c)