Scots ready to take on world’s finest in Glasgow

 

Glasgow National Hockey Centre will take centre stage this evening when the Men’s 4 Nations gets underway with home side Scotland playing Belgium (7pm) and England against Argentina (5pm).
A competition packed with top quality international players, Scotland is proud to be hosting such a prestigious event.
All three visiting nations are in preparation for the Rabobank World Cup in the Netherlands, while Scotland’s focus is on the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games this summer.
The Scots travelled to the Netherlands last week for a training camp, providing Scotland Head Coach Derek Forsyth with an opportunity to work with the players before returning to home soil for the competition.
The national side haven’t played together since last summer’s European competition in Vienna, but many of the team have had impressive league campaigns in England, Belgium, Netherlands, and of course Scotland.
The squad includes a great deal of experience in the form of cap centurions Niall Stott, Chris Nelson, Kenny Bain, Iain Scholefield, Gareth Hall and William Marshall.
Additionally, the Scots will also look to Bain, who has performed prolifically in the Hoofklasse scoring charts for Dutch side Hurley and Surbiton striker Alan Forsyth, to provide the firepower in attack, while Great Britain squad member Dan Coultas also provides a significant threat from the penalty corner set-piece.
Looking forward to the competition this week, Scotland Senior Men Head Coach Derek Forsyth said, “The players are looking forward to the competition, and the tournament will provide a great opportunity for them to test themselves against teams ranked in the world’s top ten.
“We were able to bring the squad together for training matches and preparation in Holland last week and despite some challenges in travel, the guys definitely benefitted from the opportunity to train and play as a squad. It will be a challenge for the players but this type of preparation will always be more important and valuable than training camps alone.”
Belgium have made impressive strides up the FIH World Rankings in recent years, winning the FIH World League Semi-Final event in Rotterdam and finishing 5th in the recent FIH World League Final in New Delhi. They also finished runners-up to Germany in last summer’s EuroHockey Nations Championship on home soil.
Despite eight players having surpassed the 100 international appearance mark, none of the current playing squad are currently over the age of 26, suggesting this group of players are likely to remain together for years to come.
Watch out for explosive striker Tom Boon, who is a fantastic finisher from open play and penalty corners, and the skill of experienced heads such as John-John Dohmen, Felix Denayer and Thomas Briels.
In tonight’s first match at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre, England will play Argentina at 5pm.
England Head Coach Bobby Crutchley has named a squad that sees little change from the team that beat Ireland recently in the Nations Cup in Reading.
Beeston’s Adam Dixon has been sidelined with an ankle injury which he suffered playing for his club in the Euro Hockey League last week. Crutchley has also brought Reading’s James Bailey back into the fold as reserve goalkeeper and with 10 caps already to his name Wimbledon’s Phil Roper gets a call up after continuing to impress on the training ground back at Bisham Abbey.
England captain Barry Middleton will receive his 300th combined [England & GB] cap when he steps out against Argentina tonight, a brilliant achievement for any international player.
Speaking ahead of the tournament Crutchley said, “This Four Nations tournament will give us a chance to test ourselves against other World Cup contenders [Belgium and Argentina] and will help us to gauge what progress we have made since we last played these sides.
“With the World Cup being just over five weeks away our focus is very much on that tournament however it’s also fantastic to get to play at the venue for the Commonwealth Games.”
Having finished third at the FIH World League Final earlier this year, England will certainly be aiming for the top spot in this week’s tournament.
Argentina has always produced international teams with plenty of talent, but over the past year the current men’s team has developed into a side that can challenge the best in the world.
Coach Carlos Retegui, the man who guided the Argentina women to World Cup glory in 2010, is overseeing the revolution, helping “Los Leones” (The Lions) to realise their massive potential.
Recent Pan American champions and FIH World League Semi-Final runners-up last year, they will pose a serious threat to the other three teams. Players to watch include free-scoring free-scoring attackers Matias Paredes and Facundo Callioni as well as Lucas Vila, a player who has long been considered to be one of the most naturally gifted creative players in the game. Vila has a reputation for scoring spectacular goals and always provides assists for his team-mates.

Glasgow National Hockey Centre will take centre stage this evening when the Men’s 4 Nations gets underway with home side Scotland playing Belgium (7pm) and England against Argentina (5pm).

A competition packed with top quality international players, Scotland is proud to be hosting such a prestigious event.

All three visiting nations are in preparation for the forthcoming Rabobank World Cup in the Netherlands, while Scotland’s focus is on the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games this summer.

The Scots travelled to the Netherlands last week for a training camp, providing Scotland Head Coach Derek Forsyth with an opportunity to work with the players before returning to home soil for the competition.

The national side haven’t played together since last summer’s European competition in Vienna, but many of the team have had impressive league campaigns in England, Belgium, Netherlands, and of course Scotland.

The squad includes a great deal of experience in the form of cap centurions Niall Stott, Chris Nelson, Kenny Bain, Iain Scholefield, Gareth Hall and William Marshall.

William Marshall Euros UKR

Additionally, the Scots will also look to Bain, who has performed prolifically in the Hoofklasse scoring charts for Dutch side Hurley and Surbiton striker Alan Forsyth, to provide the firepower in attack, while Great Britain squad member Dan Coultas also provides a significant threat from the penalty corner set-piece.

Kenny Bain Euros ITA

(Scotland will look to Kenny Bain [above] and Alan Forsyth [below] for goals in Glasgow.)

Alan Forsyth celebration vs. Italy

Looking forward to the competition this week, Scotland Senior Men Head Coach Derek Forsyth said, “The players are looking forward to the competition, and the tournament will provide a great opportunity for them to test themselves against teams ranked in the world’s top ten.

“We were able to bring the squad together for training matches and preparation in Holland last week and despite some challenges in travel, the guys definitely benefitted from the opportunity to train and play as a squad. It will be a challenge for the players but this type of preparation will always be more important and valuable than training camps alone.”

Belgium have made impressive strides up the FIH World Rankings in recent years, winning the FIH World League Semi-Final event in Rotterdam and finishing 5th in the recent FIH World League Final in New Delhi. They also finished runners-up to Germany in last summer’s EuroHockey Nations Championship on home soil.

DSC_9420450

(Photo Credit: hockeynews.be)

Despite eight players having surpassed the 100 international appearance mark, none of the current playing squad are currently over the age of 26, suggesting this group of players are likely to remain together for years to come.

Watch out for explosive striker Tom Boon, who is a fantastic finisher from open play and penalty corners, and the skill of experienced heads such as John-John Dohmen, Felix Denayer and Thomas Briels.

In tonight’s first match at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre, England will play Argentina at 5pm.

England Head Coach Bobby Crutchley has named a squad that sees little change from the team that beat Ireland recently in the Nations Cup in Reading.

Senior Men England

Beeston’s Adam Dixon has been sidelined with an ankle injury which he suffered playing for his club in the Euro Hockey League last week. Crutchley has also brought Reading’s James Bailey back into the fold as reserve goalkeeper and with 10 caps already to his name Wimbledon’s Phil Roper gets a call up after continuing to impress on the training ground back at Bisham Abbey.

England captain Barry Middleton will receive his 300th combined [England & GB] cap when he steps out against Argentina tonight, a brilliant achievement for any international player.

Speaking ahead of the tournament Crutchley said, “This Four Nations tournament will give us a chance to test ourselves against other World Cup contenders [Belgium and Argentina] and will help us to gauge what progress we have made since we last played these sides.

“With the World Cup being just over five weeks away our focus is very much on that tournament however it’s also fantastic to get to play at the venue for the Commonwealth Games.”

Having finished third at the FIH World League Final earlier this year, England will certainly be aiming for the top spot in this week’s tournament.

Argentina has always produced international teams with plenty of talent, but over the past year the current men’s team has developed into a side that can challenge the best in the world.

Photo - Argentina Hockey Team

Coach Carlos Retegui, the man who guided the Argentina women to World Cup glory in 2010, is overseeing the revolution, helping “Los Leones” (The Lions) to realise their massive potential.

Recent Pan American champions and FIH World League Semi-Final runners-up last year, they will pose a serious threat to the other three teams. Players to watch include free-scoring free-scoring attackers Matias Paredes and Facundo Callioni as well as Lucas Vila, a player who has long been considered to be one of the most naturally gifted creative players in the game. Vila has a reputation for scoring spectacular goals and always provides assists for his team-mates.

TICKETS: Pre-Order your tickets via EventBrite up to midnight before each competition day or pay at the gate on the day. £10 Adults £5 Concessions (16 years and under, Senior Citizens)

COMPETITION SCHEDULE:

Friday 25 April

17.00 England v Argentina

19.00 Scotland v Belgium

Saturday 26 April

15.00 Scotland v England

17.00 Belgium v Argentina

Monday 28 April

09.00 Scotland v Argentina

11.00 England v Belgium

Tuesday 29 April

09.00 1st Pool v 2nd Pool

11.00 3rd Pool v 4th Pool

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