[img_assist|nid=3520|title=|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=0|height=0]MELBOURNE, August 27 – The match schedule for the men’s hockey Champions Trophy to be played in Melbourne, Australia from December 1-9, 2012 has been anounced.
England have been drawn in pool A alongside Olympic champions Germany, New Zealand and India.Home side Australia will kick off their Champions Trophy defence by taking on 2011 Champions Challenge winners Belgium in the opening Pool B round match on December 1 at Melbourne’s State Netball and Hockey Centre.
The Kookaburras are looking to create history on home soil by winning a record five straight men’s Champions Trophies. Along with Belgium, Australia will be joined by the Netherlands and Pakistan in Pool B.
This year’s tournament will be the first time that the cross-over quarterfinal format is used at a men’s Champions Trophy.
“We have an extremely competitive collection of teams and an exciting quarterfinal format. When you add to the mix that we will be in a great hockey country watching the top men’s team from the last cycle looking to defend its title, we are in for a great nine days.” said International Hockey Federation (FIH) president Leandro Negre.
The top five finishers from the 2011 Men’s Champions Trophy earned automatic places in this year’s event. Unfortunately, Spain ceded its place for the Melbourne event due to financial constraints in the hard-hit European nation. England was therefore invited to take the place of Spain as the next highest-ranked team not automatically qualified.
The final three places were reserved for the winner of the 2011 Champions Challenge 1, Belgium, and two invitation places assigned by the FIH executive board. Following meetings during the London Olympic Games those two spots were awarded to Pakistan and India.
The preliminary round group play will take place from December 1-4 over three competition days. Germany and New Zealand kick off the action on December 1.
Following the round matches, teams will move into a cross over quarterfinal with the top finishing teams meeting the lowest teams in the opposite pool and the second and third place finishers also face off in the knock out quarterfinal. From there the winners move onto semi-finals and medal games, while the losers will play for placement.
With the introduction of the FIH World League, Melbourne will mark the last annual edition of the tournament, converting to a biennial event from 2014.
Full Match Schedule:
Men’s Hockey Champions Trophy Melbourne 2012
Pool A: Germany, England, New Zealand & India
Pool B: Australia, Netherlands, Belgium & Pakistan
Saturday 1 December
1 A 10:30 Germany v New Zealand
2 A 12:30 England v India
3 B 14:30 Australia v Belgium
4 B 16:30 Netherlands v Pakistan
Sunday 2 December
5 A 10:30 England v Germany
6 A 12:30 New Zealand v India
7 B 14:30 Belgium v Pakistan
8 B 16:30 Netherlands v Australia
MONDAY 3 DECEMBER – REST DAY
Tuesday 4 December
9 A 13:30 Germany v India
10 A 15:30 New Zealand v England
11 B 17:30 Belgium v Netherlands
12 B 19:30 Australia v Pakistan
WEDNESDAY 5 DECEMBER – REST DAY
Thursday 6 December
13 QF* 12:30 1st Pool A v 4th Pool B
14 QF* 15:00 2nd Pool B v 3rd Pool A
15 QF* 17:30 2nd Pool A v 3rd Pool B
16 QF* 20:00 1st Pool B v 4th Pool A
FRIDAY 7 DECEMBER – REST DAY
Saturday 8 December
17 5 / 8** 08:30 Loser Match 13 v Loser Match 14
18 5 / 8 ** 11:00 Loser Match 15 v Loser Match 16
19 SF** 13:30 Winner Match 13 v Winner Match 14
20 SF** 16:00 Winner Match 15 v Winner Match 16
Sunday 9 December
21 7 / 8 08:30 Loser Match 17 v Loser Match 18
22 5 / 6 11:00 Winner Match 17 v Winner Match 18
23 3 / 4 13:30 Loser Match 19 v Loser Match 20
24 Final 16:00 Winner Match 19 v Winner Match 20
