2014 06 13 Rabobank Hockey World Cup: Kirkham's View BELGIUM... NETHERLANDS

2014 Rabobank Hockey World Cup Views and Analysis

By Glenn Kirkham of East Grinstead Hockey Club

Glenn Kirkham made 223 appearances for England and Great Britain and retired from international hockey at the age of 31 in 2013.  Glenn competed in the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games in Beijing and London respectively as well as Commonwealth Games, World Cups, European Nations and Champions Trophy competitions.  Glenn won the European Nations in 2009 with England, defeating Germany 5:3 in the final and is considered to have been one of the most consistent performers to have graced the England and Great Britain sides.

What are your initial impressions of England v Belgium ?

A much improved performance from the Australia game, not only in defence but particularly in our attacking playing; much more considered and appropriate use of the ball.

Any specifics; would you care to call out anything in particular ?

Our individual defending in the circle and tightness of marking was excellent and showed that there was a real focus on this area of our game. Belgium played well and England contained them for long periods and when chances were created George Pinner and our corner defence were very strong.

How do you think the group did as a team ?

It was a real team effort but I thought all of our big players stood up and put in committed performances. Ashley's goal showed how desperate he was to make another semi final - a 65 yard sprint to tap in on the goal line. George made some good saves at crucial times. Nick Catlin had his best game of the tournament so far. Barry took the ball under considerable pressure and started a number of attacks by playing through the press. Lewers was fantastic, and my man of the match, not only in his defence and communication at the back but to take a stroke under such pressure and flick it in the roof of the net demonstrated what a class act he is.

Friday June 13th is the semi-final against Netherlands.  What are your thought ?

What a fantastic experience that will be for the squad. Playing Holland in Holland in front of a 20,000 strong crowd will be incredible and should push England on to an even better performance. There's no getting away from it Holland have been in very good form and look to be playing with a real freedom, spurred on by the home crowd. England do have a strong defensive game (albeit with a slight blip against Australia) and I feel they are in a good position to go a long way to containing the Dutch attack. We have some dangerous players of our own and again I'm positive that the boys can pull off a famous victory and get to a World Cup final!

Glenn can be seen offering commentary and expert analysis on SkySports throughout the Rabobank World Cup.

2014 06 06 Rabobank Hockey World Cup: Kirkham's View AUSTRALIA

2014 Rabobank Hockey World Cup Views and Analysis

By Glenn Kirkham of East Grinstead Hockey Club

Glenn Kirkham made 223 appearances for England and Great Britain and retired from international hockey at the age of 31 in 2013.  Glenn competed in the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games in Beijing and London respectively as well as Commonwealth Games, World Cups, European Nations and Champions Trophy competitions.  Glenn won the European Nations in 2009 with England, defeating Germany 5:3 in the final and is considered to have been one of the most consistent performers to have graced the England and Great Britain sides.

Great result against Malaysia; what do you think were the positives other than the result ?

It was a really good result and one that the team couldnt afford to let slip. Result aside, I again felt that we were strong defensively (highlighted by a clean sheet) and I was also impressed with how many chances we created and had it not been for the heroics, and good fortune on occasion, by the Malaysian keeper it could well have been more. A number of those less experienced players in the squad are starting to look more comfortable and the older heads are playing well.

Two big games coming; what do we need to make it through to the semis in terms of outcomes against Australia and Belgium ?

Given the result between the two sides, a win against Belgium puts us in with a really good chance. The Australia and Belgium match was a high class game played at a ferocious intensity and really set the standard for the group. That said, England have been so strong defensively and so well organised that I believe they are going to be a real match for both teams. In recent years we've done well against both teams in major competitions and hopefully this will continue.

Australia - as ever - have been setting the pace in our group; do you think their position at the top is a fair reflection of their performance and capability…?

I think so. Its the pace and physical nature of their game that is the difference between themselves and the rest at the moment. I do feel that England are the team to be able to match them in these two departments and so I feel we can definitely get a positive result.

Jamie Dwyer has been one of the top rated players in the world for many years now; however his name has not been hitting headlines as much as in previous times.  Who are the danger players in the Australia side we might not be so familiar with ?

Jamie is quite rightly regarded as one of the best players to have played the game and his pace, skill and finishing ability made him a diificult proposition for opposing teams. I believe it's more a case that the strength in depth of the Australian squad means that they don't need to rely on him to be the match winner and therefore he doesn't necessarily stand out quite so much as he did a few years back.

The likes of Knowles, Ockendon, Orchard and Kavanagh have been impressive players for Australia for a lengthy spell now but the really exciting talent for me is Jake Whetton. He's quick, makes intelligent runs and is a natural in front of goal. I feel that he's the player that the English team need to make sure doesn't get a sniff.

The England team has had to manage a lot of complications during this tournament; Iain Lewers has just started to play after his dead leg, Dan Fox suffered quite a major blow on the leg and of course Ashley has been nursing his shoulder.  Can you recall another tournament when England had to deal with all these challenges and how do you think the management team and squad are handling them ?

We used to have tournaments on the continent where illness would be an issue but I'm not sure I can quite remember a tournament where injuries have been such a common occurrence.  It's great to see Lewers back on the pitch, he brings so much to the team not only in his technical skills and work rate but also in leading and organising and it's crucial to have him available for the Australia and Belgium games. With regards to Ashley, as long as he is able to get onto the pitch you know he'll give you absolutley everything he can. With all that said, I've been really impressed with the whole squad effort and I absolutely believe we are in a good position to take on the Aussies.

2014 06 05 Rabobank Hockey World Cup: Kirkham's View MALAYSIA

2014 Rabobank Hockey World Cup Views and Analysis

By Glenn Kirkham of East Grinstead Hockey Club

Glenn Kirkham made 223 appearances for England and Great Britain and retired from international hockey at the age of 31 in 2013.  Glenn competed in the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games in Beijing and London respectively as well as Commonwealth Games, World Cups, European Nations and Champions Trophy competitions.  Glenn won the European Nations in 2009 with England, defeating Germany 5:3 in the final and is considered to have been one of the most consistent performers to have graced the England and Great Britain sides.

Great result against India; how did it feel for you watching - especially the last few minutes…?!

A tense last few minutes thats for sure and it's much easier playing in those types of games then watching from on TV. I'm really pleased for Simon Mantell, who missed the last World Cup through injury, scoring a fantastic winning goal - a really difficult skill playing a bouncing ball on your back hand. It was one of those matches where getting a win was absolutely vital to ensure that they kept on the right path to the semi finals. 

Looks great to see so many players threatening to score; Mark Gleghorne, Simon Mantell, David Condon, Ali Brogden, Barry Middleton and Tom Carson.  Your thoughts on our attack ?

I think Bobby and the rest of the coaching staff will be pretty pleased with the number of open play chances the team are creating and its now a case of taking those chances more regularly. I think I've been really impressed with some of the link up play through the midfield areas with Barry and Ashley showing such a strong understanding of each others game.

England’s défense yesterday had a lot to do.  Dan Fox put in a heroic performance including his injury and they held it together well… and Iain Lewers is still to return to the defensive unit.  Were you impressed ?

I think only letting in two goals in two games against teams who pose a real goalscoring threat is a good start. You don't see too many clean sheets in international hockey anymore so I feel the defense should be pretty confident going in to the Malaysia game. I've been impressed with the back line as a whole but in particularly Mikey Hoare and Dan Fox have been an assured presence together in the absence of Iain Lewers.

We seem to have an array of options at corners; without giving any tactics away how do you feel our corner threat is evolving ?

It was good to see the boys put a couple of corners away yesterday, after struggling somewhat against Spain, it definitely eases the pressure on the team when you know your corners are firing. A number of teams have been struggling with their injection and trap so it may be that it's just a difficult pitch for these skills to be executed perfectly. Mark Gleghorne has been flicking really well for us (East Grinstead) all season and the power he put into his flick against India would have left most keepers flapping. We do have a good number of options at corners but it's clear to see that our main threat in Ashley is still struggling with his shoulder and hopefully a few days recovery will allow him to flick more in the remaining matches.

Malaysia tomorrow for the Men.  Not a side many watching will know much about; what can you tell us ?

Malaysia are a side who are always dangerous at home but then haven't necessarily fared so well on their travels. They play a similar style to Korea and have a fit team with a number of quality players. Their key player is Faizal who is still only 23 but has been a mainstay in the team for a number of years now. He's very quick, skillful and particularly dangerous on the back hand - definitely one for the England defence to keep an eye on.

How do you think the group is progressing ahead of those all important matches against Belgium and Australia ?

I think it's pretty much going to script at the moment. Todays match between Belgium and Australia will be a really interesting one and give a really good indicator of how far this Belgian team have progressed, they certainly looked good against Malaysia. For England it's about making sure that they get maximum points out of todays game against Malaysia and then picking up at least a win against one of Belgium and Australia in the final two matches.

2014 06 02 Rabobank Hockey World Cup: Kirkham's Views / INDIA

2014 Rabobank Hockey World Cup Views and Analysis

By Glenn Kirkham of East Grinstead Hockey Club

Glenn Kirkham made 223 appearances for England and Great Britain and retired from international hockey at the age of 31 in 2013.  Glenn competed in the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games in Beijing and London respectively as well as Commonwealth Games, World Cups, European Nations and Champions Trophy competitions.  Glenn won the European Nations in 2009 with England, defeating Germany 5:3 in the final and is considered to have been one of the most consistent performers to have graced the England and Great Britain sides.

We seemed to dominate Spain for large spells in the first half; what do you think happened ?  Did they work us out or were we a little unlucky with our chances ?

On the whole I was pretty impressed with the England performance, particularly with the number of chances and circle entries against a notoriously difficult side to break down. I feel it was down to a combination of Spain stepping up their game in the second half and England not putting more of their chances away earlier on. A little hard luck in hitting the post twice but some disappointing work in front of goal as well.

Who would you call out as having particularly good games against Spain ?

I think it was obvious that Ali Brogdon had a very good game and not only took his goal very well but looked dangerous and energetic whenever he got the ball. I was also impressed with Michael Hoare at the back who looked very composed on the ball and assured in his performance despite still being relatively inexperienced at this level.

Having seen a few matches now, what are your thoughts on how the Netherlands have put on the spectacle ?

The main stadium looks incredible and a fantastic atmosphere to play in. It's been great to see the stadiums so full as well and I really think it's giving a great setting for the sport.

Looking ahead to India, what are your reflections of having played them on several occasions ?

A side with fantastic individual skill but doesn't always have that team cohesion. They can match any team in the world on their day and for them it's a case of finding some consistency. They've been very strong at home over recent years and it will be interesting to see how they perform in Europe.

Based on the India / Belgium game, was there anything that struck you as dangerous that England should worry about in the India team / play ?

I thought India played pretty well against a strong Belgium team. No real changes in style but they did look like they were playing much more as a team. They are always a threat from short corners and have a number of good drag flickers. Their talisman is Sardar Singh who is an incredibly skilful player with good vision who at times can look quite lethargic but then suddenly bursts in to life with explosive pace.

What would you like to see from England on Monday ?

I thought the performance against Spain was decent start to the tournament against a strong experienced team. That said, at times I felt we held on to the ball for too long individually and we were a little slow to transfer through the attacking third. Hopefully we'll have a little more success from penalty corners as well. The India game really is a must win game if we're to make the semi finals.