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England can stun in World Cup

2010-03-11 19:03:00

Dark horses England can and should be able to take a shot at the FIH World Cup Hockey title in New Delhi on Saturday.

They can systematically dismantle the Black and White fortress in the semifinal on Thursday.

This they will have to do without their ace deep defender and penalty corner specialist Richard Mantell who was injured during their classy Group B win against Pakistan last week.

But they have in their 26-year-old skipper Barry John Middleton, a player with immense midfield skills and a lethal touch in the D.

The Olympian at the Athens and Beijing Games and nicknamed Bazza and Borry Piddleton, Middleton is one of the leading contenders for the Player of the Tournament honour this time.

He has donned the Rose Red Jersey in the previous World Cup, four European Cups and at the last Commonwealth Games.

The German machine, gunning for their third straight success in the tournament after out-thinking the brilliant Aussies in the finals of the previous two chapters, meet the most improved side in international hockey, England.

Germany have set their sights on completing a hat-trick of titles and remained on course after beating New Zealand 5-2 in their final Group A outing at Major Dyan Chan National Stadium to go through to their eleventh consecutive World Cup semifinal. A remarkable record indeed.

Last summer saw the European championship final go 5-3 England’s way for a historic triumph.

England look the most composed side in the Delhi chapter and their opening game 3-2 upset of the Kookaburas (Australia) in Group B showed their talent and great skills.

England came to the Delhi event without two of their best players and now in the tourney proper have lost two more players — Matt Daly and Mantell.

England played well below par against Spain in their final group B outing for a 1-2 loss and this cut their previously unbeaten run in the Group for the Aussies to leapfrog them.

Germany, with an eye for the future have come boldly to India with many youngsters. They have eight players from their Olympic side and only three from the side which beat Australia in the World Cup final in Monchengladbach four years ago.

The Germans, as always, will be disciplined, patient and potentially lethal at penalty corners. Their form here has not been particularly impressive but German teams are famous for always producing their best when it is most needed just as their colleagues in the national soccer team.

Netherlands v Australia

Going by the record of the past performances of hockey teams, the Netherlands – the former world champions, have won the premier hockey championship thrice – the maximum number of victories by a European nation. The Netherlands are the strongest proponents of robust hockey. They are also known for having the best penalty corner conversion experts and veteran Taekema, playing his fourth world event has a battery support as well. Total hockey is their specialty and the clash against Australia, the most attractive and talented side in the world should turn out to be an explosive encounter.

The men from Down Under are currently the winners of Champions Trophy. They lost narrowly to Germany in 2002 and 2006 in the world cup championship. Undoubtedly, they are the most the formidable side and are fully capable of winning the world cup championship for they have the best off the ball players who create opening after opening relentlessly for 70 minutes.

Asian Challenge

South Korea showed us why they are rated the most consistent team when it comes to maintaining world standards in Asia as far as hockey is concerned.

In New Delhi, the fast running South Koreans edged the Netherlands 2-1 in the final round of Group A matches on Tuesday to finish on par with the second placed Dutch in the section.

The Dutch with a two-goal superior advantage pipped the plucky South Koreans for a semis slot where they meet the event favourites Australia.

India play the familiar sky blue and white stripes from Argentina for the seventh and eight spots while South Africa run into the Black Sticks (New Zealand) for the 9-10 places battle.

Delighted with his low ranked side’s performance, Argentina coach Pablo Lombi, a former goalscoring legend said, the Latin American team’s improved performance in the mega event would open up doors of opportunities for the development of the game back home.

Cash strapped Argentina, where the economic struggle is perennial, have one of the smallest player bases in the world.

South Korea, where financial backup is not as difficult to come by for the game also have a small player base and, they basically depend on just two universities and a couple of the top clubs for the buildups.

The 14th ranked Argentina on Tuesday defeated Canada 4-2 in their last group match to finish fourth in Group A above New Zealand and qualify for the seventh-eighth play-off match against India on Friday.

For the first time ever in their history, Pakistan will be trying to ward off the last spot (12th) by trying to outwit Canada, the weakest side so far in the tournament.

According to TV reports and after match analyses, it’s a sellout for the semis and the finals.

Knockout schedule for the final phase of the tournament:

Wednesday: Rest Day

Thursday (Indian Standard Time):

1535 — 11-12 places: Pakistan v Canada

1805: Semifinal: Germany v England

2035: Semifnal: Australia v Netherlands

Friday:

1535: 9-10 places: New Zealand v South Africa

1805: 7-8 places: India v Argentina

2035: 5-6 places: South Korea v Spain

Saturday:

1535: 3rd Place Match

1805: Final

moni@khaleejtimes.com

Source Khaleejtimes