- Great Britain’s men earn second victory over Germany in the space of two days; England’s Griffiths, Scotland’s Forsyth and Wales’ Shipperley score in 3-1 win
- Women see off Germany 2-0 in later game; Anna Toman and Susannah Townsend on target
- Both teams are back in FIH Hockey Pro League action across weekend of 22/23 May
Women’s Match Details:
The opening quarter was a cagey affair on a chilly evening on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, with a handful of circle entries but no chances of note.
The deadlock was broken in the second quarter after an incredible sequence of seven penalty corners for GB; Anna Toman netting with the aid of a deflection from a German player. And then right on half time Mark Hager’s side doubled their advantage, Susannah Townsend cracking an effort in from ten yards after good work down the right hand side.
Sarah Evans was closest to a goal in the third quarter, producing a very smart turn and strike from the top of the D, only to see it well saved by Nathalie Kubalski in the German goal.
Then early in the fourth quarter it was Surbiton’s Evans who again almost scored, stealing possession before Kubalski produced a diving stop. In the other goal Maddie Hinch showed her concentration levels by keeping out a strong German shot at her near post. The game was opening up a little in the final ten minutes and Izzy Petter was almost on the end of a cross but a German stick denied her.
Britain comfortably saw out the last few moments to take a very welcome victory and exact revenge for a defeat 24 hours earlier.
Susannah Townsend reaction
Englishwoman Susannah Townsend was pleased to see Britain’s resilience come through in this victory, commenting, “It’s been a tough block of games, we were disappointed to lose yesterday but this is a step in the right direction.
“It’s my mum’s birthday today and she messaged me asking for a birthday goal so that one is for her! It’s something I’ve been working on, to be on the end of things. But most of all it’s three points for the team.
“We’ve not had a lot of matches recently so it’s good to put in a good performance today. We’ve been on the pitch almost every day fine tuning things, we’ve got the Europeans as England coming up, then the Olympics as GB so hopefully we’ll perform as well as we can.
“We’ve really missed playing here, this is my home city so it’s a dream to be on this pitch, and even more so when our fans are eventually able to return as well.”
Great Britain 2 (2)
Toman (22’ PC); Townsend (29′ FG)
Germany 0 (0)
Starting XI: Hinch (GK), Pearne-Webb (c), Costello, Ansley, Unsworth, Evans, Crackles, Townsend, McCallin, Rayer, Petter
Subs (Used): Wilkinson, Petter, Balsdon, Owsley, Jones, Robertson, Toman
Subs (Unused): Heesh (GK)
Men’s Match Details:
Defences were on top in the opening quarter; Rupert Shipperley coming closest for the hosts, while ‘keeper Ollie Payne also made a smart save in the GB goal.
Into the second period and GB began to open up the visitors’ backline, Roper seeing an effort smothered on 22 minutes. Two minutes later though and Danny Kerry’s side had the lead; David Ames’ super pass allowing Chris Griffiths to score via a David Goodfield assist. Germany were close to a quick equaliser as a cross flashed across the D, but it was Britain who got the second goal just before the interval; Jacob Draper’s clever dummy allowing Sam Ward to find fellow forward Alan Forsyth; the Scot making no mistake from close range.
Germany upped the ante in the second half, hitting the crossbar from a penalty corner as they exerted some pressure on the home goal. There was then a break in play as Roper went over and hurt himself as he and the German ‘keeper went for the ball, the Englishman having to be helped off the pitch by physios.
The visitors’ hopes of a way back into the game were crushed with six minutes left to play as GB scored a great counter-attacking goal. Ames stepped in to release Liam Ansell, and he combined expertly with Zach Wallace to release Shipperley for 3-0. Christopher Kutter was close for the Germans a moment later but his effort was narrowly wide of the upright. The visitors did get a deserved consolation with two minutes to play, Niklas Wellen cutting in from the left to find the net. But it was to be Britain’s night.
Griffiths reaction
Goalscorer Chris Griffiths was very pleased to help his side earn a second win in the space of two days, saying, “These games have been a long time coming, so to win two on the bounce is brilliant and testament to the work we’ve been putting in at Bisham. We’ve won and are building momentum at a good time. There’s a lot of hockey to be played but it’s nice to get the wins.
“Personally, getting through the games is very pleasing and I’m delighted to be playing. As a team we’ve not played a lot of official games since February of last year. We’re feeling good, there’s a bite in training which I love, and we’re looking forward to the next few months.”
Great Britain 3 (1)
Griffiths (24’ FG); Forsyth (29′ FG); Shipperley (54′ FG)
Germany 1 (0)
Wellen (58’ FG);
Starting XI: Payne (GK), Dixon (c), Creed, Ames, Sorsby, Martin, Wallace, Roper, Griffith, Goodfield, Ansell
Subs (Used): Sanford, Shipperley, Ward, Weir, Forsyth, Draper
Subs (Unused): Gibson
Courtesy of GB Hockey
