Pakistan, Netherlands and India Tickets All On Sale Now!
Following the matches against Australia in Nottingham earlier this month, Jason Lee's team will take on the three times Olympic champions Pakistan in a three match Test series between Tuesday 30 June and Friday 3 July at Cannock Hockey Club's Chase Park ground in Staffordshire.
David Linford, Ken Bedford and Ian McPherson of Cannock HC Prepare to Welcome Pakistan. They should certainly prove to be excitingly close encounters with Pakistan having recently leapfrogged England into sixth in world rankings as a result of their second place finish at the Asia Cup. England are ranked seventh.
England's last competitive clash with Pakistan came in the fifth place playoff at the 2006 BDO World Cup in Mönchengladbach, Germany, when a 67th minute goal from Martin Jones proved decisive, netting England fifth place.
As well as the terrific hockey action, there will be a marquee with catering and the Hockey Centre will be in attendance, selling top quality sticks, shoes, kit and more. Don't forget to visit the England Hockey stand in the marquee to get the latest hockey information, England Hockey merchandise and to pick up the summer edition of EH News magazine.
Sandwiched between the Asian matches, on Sunday 19 July, the Netherlands are England's opponents at Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre in Buckinghamshire. Hockey fans can see the reigning European Champions, currently ranked fourth in the world, take on England at 11:00am with tickets on sale priced at £10 for adults and £8 for concessions.
Ten days later, part two of the Asian master class takes place at the University of Birmingham as India come to town.
The three matches between Wednesday 29 July and Sunday 2 August take place as England's preparation for the EuroHockey Nations Championships comes to a climax.
India are currently 12th in the world rankings and will see the matches against England as critical in their quest to get back on track after missing out on a place at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games at the hands of Great Britain.
Their last competitive meeting with England came during the 2007 BDO Champions Challenge in Boom, Belgium, when a 4-3 victory secured the Indians the bronze medal at England's expense.
Once again, the marquee will be packed full with plenty of hockey goodies on sale from the Hockey Centre and the England Hockey stand. Tickets for the matches are on sale now, starting at just £8 for concessions and £10 for adults. There are special deals for all members of the England Hockey membership scheme, who will receive a £3 discount on tickets, plus a free programme at the England Hockey stand (please show your membership card).
Group discounts are also available. See below for ticketing information.
England v Pakistan Cannock HC, Chase Park, Hatherton, Cannock, WS11 1RR
Fixtures: Tuesday 30 June - 19:00 Thursday 2 July - 19:00 Friday 3 July - 19:00
Ticket Prices: Adults: £10 (standing), £12 (seated) Concessions: £8 (standing), £10 (seated) ~ Booking Fee of £2 per match applies ~ Concessions: Under 18s and Students
England Hockey is grateful for the support of Cannock HC and the considerable backing of Staffordshire County Council in staging these matches.
England v Netherlands Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre, Near Marlow, Buckinghamshire, SL7 1RR
Fixture: Sunday 19 July - 11:00
Tickets: Adults: £10 (standing) Concessions: £8 (standing) ~ Booking Fee of £2 per match applies ~ Concessions: Under 18s and Students
England v India Bournbrook Pitches, University South Gate, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, B15 2TT
Fixtures: Wednesday 29 July - 18:30 Friday 31 July - 18:30 Sunday 2 August - 11:00
Ticket Prices: Adults: £10 (standing only) Concessions: £8 (standing only) ~ Booking Fee of £2 per match applies ~ Concessions: Under 18s and Students
England Hockey would like to express its gratitude to the University of Birmingham and Birmingham City Council for their significant assistance in arranging these matches.
England Hockey Membership Scheme Members: England Hockey Members will receive a discount of £3 on the ticket prices above (one ticket per member). To find out more about joining England Hockey's membership scheme, visit www.englandhockey.co.uk/membership.
To take advantage of the Membership offer simply select 'England Hockey Members' when buying your tickets. Membership identification will be checked.
Group Bookings If you wish to buy tickets for any of these matches for your friends and family, your club or a school then make sure you take advantage of our "Buy 10, get the 11th ticket free" offer.
Payment for the full order of tickets must be made at time of purchase. To claim a refund for the 'buy 10 get the 11th free' offer, please e-mail michael.baker@englandhockey.org with details of the booking. A refund for the relevant amount will then be made.
To buy your tickets online click on the link below.
I would very much appreciate it if you could please pass on the details of our two Hooked on Hockey residential summer courses to any players that you may think will be interested.
We ran our first residential course last year as it proved so popular and we had such good feedback we thought we had better run two this year.
All the details can be found on our website www.hookedonhockey.co.uk then click on courses.
But in brief summary:
The course is designed to replicate the demands of an Junior International camp - so we ask all applicants to be at least county standard in order that they cope with the demands both physically and mentally.
The first is to be held at Culford School, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, 10-14th August 2009.
The second is to be held at the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, 25th-29th August 2009.
Places will be treated on a strictly first come first serve basis and are filling fast so any interested players need to get their applications complete.
The course includes the following:
at least 4 hours on the hockey pitch spread over the course of the day.
2 or 3 classroom based seminars per day looking at video of themselves playing and comparing themselves to international players, presentations about how to look after their bodies, sports psychology and time management.
Social time in the evening getting to know one another and the coaches on the course.
I thank you in advance for signposting any young players to our course.
Kind regards,
Lisa Wooding BSc (hons) (Partner in HOH) England & Great Britain Olympian.
Posted by webmaster on Friday 03 April 2009 - 11:41:42
