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EuroHockey Youth Nations Trophy 2007 - U18 BOYS

Milan (ITA), 9-14 July 2007

POOL A
Spain
Switzerland
Czech Rep
Belarus

POOL B
Poland
Wales
Italy
Austria

 

Match Schedule

 

Day 1: Monday 9 July 2007

09.30	A	Spain	9	Belarus	0
11.30	A	Switzerland	4	Czech Republic	1
16.30	B	Poland	5	Austria	3
18.30	B	Wales	3	Italy	1

Wales 3-1 Italy
After 3 days in Milan eagerly anticipating the start of the tournament the Welsh boys were ready and raring to go. Playing at 18:30 meant that the temperature had dropped a little and the two teams were therefore starting on a level playing field.

From the 1st whistle Nick Rees & Mark Duxbury played the ball straight through the heart of the Italian team and were finally stopped just as they entered the 25.

In the 9th minute the Welsh team were awarded their 1st and only penalty corner, which was dragged just wide. The Italians soon countered and it was Sean Whitehouse who cleared the ball off the line. This was followed by James Hughes also clearing a ball off the line from an Italian penalty corner. Wales had several scoring opportunities but the Italian defence held strong and it was the Italians who opened the scoring after being awarded a penalty corner in the 27th minute and scoring with a drag flick. Wales finished the half strongly with Mark Duxbury’s reverse shot going just wide.

Wales hadn’t found third gear in the 1st half and this was turned on its head at the start of the 2nd half when in the 2nd minute Owain Dolan-Gray passed to Nick Rees who sent the ball to Mark Duxbury, then on to Lloyd Francis who passed the ball across the goal for Chris Fido to slot the ball home at the far post. Score 1-1.

The next 10 minutes were a little unsettled with Rees being shown a yellow card, Nils Lloyd-Penny receiving a blow to the head and an Italian player also being shown a yellow card. Thankfully Wales came out of this patch the stronger and Wales’ 2nd goal came from a flowing move started by Lewis Prosser and finished by Lloyd Francis with help from Josh Williams striking the post with the ball along the way.
Soon after the Italians were shown their 2nd yellow card for a rash tackle. The Welsh corner defence was able to stand their ground and the Italians penalty corner in the 24th minute was cleared. Nick Rees had another opportunity to score towards the end of the half and there was so much power in his shot that the keeper ended up on the floor. Wales’ final goal was scored by Mark Duxbury taking on two players at the top of the D and striking a reverse shot into the bottom corner. Wales held strong from then on and the 3rd goal gave the Welsh team the cushion needed to run the clock down. Final score Wales 3-1 Italy.

Head Coach Mark Hopkins said: "to come out of the first match against the hosts with three points was very pleasing. The first match is always a battle of nerves and the performance was just enough to get the result. The boys showed great belief in their ability and deserved the win. We realize we have to significantly improve if we are to achieve our goal but gladly take these three points".

 

Day 2: Tuesday 10 July 2007

09.30	A	Spain	10	Czech Republic	4
11.30	A	Switzerland	2	Belarus	3
16.30	B	Poland	6	Italy	2
18.30	B	Wales	2	Austria	2

Wales 2-2 Austria
Wales found it hard going to top yesterday’s result. Despite looking evenly matched early on in the match, the Welsh looked to penetrate the Austrian 23m at every opportunity and were therefore disappointed when the Austrians opened the scoring in the 25th minute. Both of Wales’ penalty corners were saved but the Welsh corner defence also denied Austria from scoring a 2nd goal.

The 2nd half needed Wales to show the pride and passion that brought them the win against Italy the previous day. Before they had chance Wales were down to 10 men and the Austrians had 2 penalty corners. The 2nd of which they converted via a drag flick. Thankfully rather than letting their heads drop, the Welsh boys fought back and scored 2 minutes later when Ben Carless cleared from defence to set Chris Fido off on a run, a one two with Josh Williams brought Fido the chance to shoot and he scored to bring the score to 1-2. Two minutes later the Welsh leveled the score when Lewis Prosser took a hit outside the D for Nils Lloyd-Penny to deflect in. With 20 minutes of the half remaining, the 3 points were there for the taking. Nick Rees had to leave the field after a ball to the arm and Chris Fido’s head injury left the team striving for the win. It wasn’t until the 70th minute and the final whistle that Wales had to settle for the draw. The result leaves the Welsh team on 4 points and 2nd in the table. Tomorrow the Welsh take on the Polish where a point will take them through to the promotion pool. With over 50 penetrations into the opposition’s 23, the Welsh had to be disappointed not to take their chances and seal the 3 points.

Coach Mark Hopkins said "the performance warranted a win however if you don’t take your chances then you don’t deserve to take the three points. The belief in the team to come from 2 goals down shows the character in the team but we need to take our chances to have a chance of promotion. We are confident of putting a 70 minute performance together tomorrow and giving ourselves a chance of fulfilling what we have set out for".

Day 3: Wednesday 11 July 2007

09.30	A	Belarus	2	Czech Republic	4
11.30	A	Spain	3	Switzerland	2
16.30	B	Poland	2	Wales	3
18.30	B	Italy	6	Austria	4

Wales 3-2 Poland
With Wales aiming to top the group, today’s match against Poland was the decider. After having dominated yesterday’s play but not taking their chances Wales were keen to make all their hard work pay off by gaining the 3 points to take them into the promotion pool.

During the early play both teams were sussing out the opposition and guarding against silly mistakes. It was the Polish who took first blood when awarded a penalty corner in the 12th minute. Adam Williams saved the drag but 4 minutes later the Polish team opened the scoring with a goal in open play following a Welsh mistake. The Welsh played their way back into the game and in the 22nd minute drew the score level when James Hughes’ strike off a short corner was deflected in by Mark Duxbury on the right post, textbook! The half time score remained 1-1.

With honours even and both teams wanting the win to guarantee taking 3 points into the next pool, Wales were dealt a blow when the Polish team scored from a free hit outside the D following a Welsh lapse in concentration. The Polish team went down to 10 players following a bad tackle and Wales made the power play count by gaining a penalty corner and then 2 minutes later levelling the score again when Lewis Prosser took a hit outside the D which the keeper blocked back to Josh Williams who in turn passed to Nick Rees who slotted the ball home. Within 60 seconds Wales had another penalty corner, which Prosser struck to Duxbury on the right post who again deflected it in.

With 20 minutes remaining the game hung in the balance and Wales held strong denying the Polish possession. Adam Williams and James Hughes patrolled the Welsh D and the forwards gained another penalty corner 5 minutes from the end. As the clock ran down the Welsh team and supporters were counting every second.

Coach Mark Hopkins said: "The result is a massive boost for us, however, we will have to dramatically improve our performance if we are to beat the Swiss. The boys didn’t follow the game plan but the belief we have developed during the preparation phase saw us home. It was really pleasing to finally get our set pieces functioning and convert our chances. We are all looking to recharge our batteries over the rest day and then prepare for the final push".

Wales now go into the promotion pool with 3 points to count. After the rest day they’ll play at 16:30 on Friday against Switzerland. And then the final match on Saturday sees the Welsh take on the Spanish.

 

Day 4: Thursday 12 July 2007 - REST DAY

 

Day 5: Friday 13 July 2007

09.30	D	Belarus	3	Italy	4
11.30	D	Czech Republic	2	Austria	4
16.30	C	Switzerland	3	Wales	0
18.30	C	Spain	2	Poland	1

Wales 0-3 Switzerland
With everything to play for and a day’s rest in their legs the Welsh team were ready to add another three points to their win over Poland on Wednesday. Two year’s ago Wales played Switzerland in the promotion pool and the game resulted in a draw! Having analysed the previous Swiss matches, Wales were convinced that if they played to their potential then the victory would be theirs.

As it happened the Swiss came out of the blocks guns blazing and in the 4th minute slack Welsh marking gifted the Swiss the opening goal. Wales had a couple of attacking moves but play fizzled out when balls were passed astray and/or movement was lacking. In the 13th minute the Swiss were awarded a penalty corner and as they had relied on their drag flicker in several games it wasn’t too surprising that he converted the chance and doubled the lead. Wales were able to defend a further 2 penalty corners and then they were awarded one of their own but it wasn’t converted.
With a result imperative, Wales needed to show the passion and commitment that they did against Poland. There were moments when players showed that they can follow a plan but the nerves were evident and heads began to drop. Despite all the efforts of the supporters, management and the captain, Nick Rees, the Swiss pressed forward knowing that if they held their nerve and stayed out of trouble then they would have 3 points to take them towards promotion. The Welsh team also had to play with 10 men for a time and when the 4th Swiss penalty corner of the half was converted the 3-0 scoreline left the Welsh team wondering what if...

The Spanish continued on their run with a 2-1 victory over the Polish team. For Wales to be in with a shout of promotion they have to get at least a point from tomorrows game against the Spanish and hope that the Polish beat the Swiss.

Coach Mark Hopkins said: "I am bitterly disappointed with the result and the performance. The players were unable to follow the game plan and individual errors proved costly. Luckily through a good week so far we are still in with a chance of promotion. Hopefully we can get things back on track tomorrow".

Day 6: Saturday 14 July 2007

09.30	D	Belarus	2	Austria	4
11.30	D	Czech Republic	2	Italy	3
16.30	C	Switzerland	1	Poland	6
18.30	C	Spain	7	Wales	0

Wales 0 – 7 Spain
Two year’s work and everything was resting on the final day’s games. Poland beat the Swiss in the 16:30 game so in order to clinch the 2nd promotion spot Wales needed to take a point from the game. The entire Welsh camp were up for the game, with the largest group of supporters willing them on. The team hit the ground running and were awarded their first penalty corner just 6 minutes into the game. The shot was saved and Adam Williams in goal kept the score 0-0 when he stopped the ball off a Spanish counter attack 3 minutes later. One lapse in concentration in the 18th minute and the Spanish had taken the lead 0-1. Immediately from the restart Wales pressed and gained their 2nd penalty corner. The well worked move almost drew the score level but the ball went just passed the post! The next 10 minutes remained fairly level until the Spanish stepped up a gear, sucked in the Welsh players, counter attacked down the left and put in their 2nd goal.
As the 2nd half started the Welsh boys believed that they could get the 2 goals back. Again their early pressure resulted in a penalty corner being awarded but they were unable to convert it. Spain replied by scoring their 3rd! James Hughes saved off the line only for Spain to have another penalty corner that they scored, 0-4. With pride at stake and a point to prove, Wales looked to claw one back in the 20th minute when a rash Spanish tackle led to Wales being awarded a penalty flick. With luck not on their side the ball hit the post! Again Spain countered and put away their 5th. Having patiently waited in the wings, Craig Simms entered the field to immediately face a Spanish penalty corner but the defence held strong. With time running out and the Welsh players desperate to get a consolation goal it was like rubbing salt into the wound when the Spanish countered the entire length of the pitch and finished with a lob over the keeper, 0-6. The final nail was put in the coffin in the last minute when Spain’s drag flick went into the top right of the goal, 0-7.
The result left all feeling numb. The Spanish were worthy of the win and having won all 5 of their games, deserved to take the title and promotion back to the Championship division. The Polish team also got promoted back to the Championship division as although they had the same points as Wales and Switzerland they had a better goal difference. Wales finished 4th. The Polish had their poor game against us but they bounced back with their game against Switzerland. The Welsh on the other hand should have beaten the Swiss to clinch 2nd spot.
On reflection, the two years have to be classed as a success with 3 wins over Scotland, a win over the Irish in Ireland and beating the Polish. The players, management and supporters have all gone from strength to strength and it was a bitter disappointment not to finish on a high.
The players and management would all like to thank everyone who’s helped along the way. Without the support the team have received over the past two years since Rakovnik we wouldn’t have been in with a shout of getting promotion.
Onwards and upwards, and we all wish the players moving up the U21 the best of luck and for the U17 moving to U18 they know how to lead the way.
 

Positions:
1st     Spain (Promoted)
2nd    Poland (Promoted)
3rd     Switzerland
4th     Wales
5th     Italy
6th     Austria
7th     Czech Republic (Relegated)
8th     Belarus (Relegated)

 

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