England have to pay Pieper
NOT even an inspired Maddie Hinch could save England women from a 1-0 defeat against Germany at the Rabo EuroHockey Championships last night.
Instead, it was the Rio hero’s opposite number Julia Ciupka, Cecile Pieper’s early goal and an Englishman acting as Germany’s temporary assistant coach, who conspired to beat England, the defending European champions.
They must now beat Scotland to progress to the semi-finals. A likely meeting against the Netherlands also looms. “We are massively disappointed with the result,” said Dave Ralph, the England coach. “We were in and around the circle a lot but goalscoring is the toughest thing to do sometimes.”
It was left to Hinch to conjure a superb diving save from close range to deny Germany in a key period after the break.
England’s high press produced a hatful of chances but they could not convert when it mattered. That was in part down to Ciupka’s brilliance between the posts after Germany opened the scoring through Pieper after six minutes.
Jami Mulders, Ralph’s German counterpart, credited the work of former England player Brett Garrard for his work during the tournament. Mulders said: “His knowledge has been fantastic, so let’s just say he had an impact.”
England men’s coach Bobby Crutchley berated his side for “being a bit thick”, despite winning 6-0 over Poland.
Ireland opened up England’s pool after a deserved 1-1 draw with Germany, who England now play tonight.