Scotland coach Derek Forsyth today revealed his squad for the Men’s Four Nations hockey tournament at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre from April 23-29
Featuring Argentina, Belgium and England, the Scots will face high quality opposition as the squad’s preparations for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games heightens in intensity.
The most recent world rankings place England fourth, Belgium fifth and Argentina 12th in the standings and all three visiting nations are preparing for participation in the Hockey World Cup in the Netherlands next month.
Forsyth said: “The players are looking forward to the competition, and the tournament will provide a great opportunity for them to test themselves against teams ranked in the world’s top ten.
“We were able to bring the squad together for training matches and preparation in Holland last week and despite some challenges in travel, the guys definitely benefited from the opportunity to train and play as a squad. It will be a challenge for the players but this type of preparation will always be more important and valuable than training camps alone.”
Forsyth was sweating on a number of players coming through fitness tests, but is now in a position to name a full squad, which includes a great deal of experience in the form of cap centurions Niall Stott, Chris Nelson, Kenny Bain, Iain Scholefield, Gareth Hall and William Marshall.
Additionally, the Scots will also look to Bain, who has performed prolifically in the Hoofklasse scoring charts for Dutch side Hurley and Surbiton striker Alan Forsyth, to provide the firepower in attack, while Great Britain squad member Dan Coultas also provides a significant threat from the penalty corner set-piece.
“It’s important to have everyone available for the tournament and barring any last minute fitness concerns, we should be ready for the challenge that the three other nations will bring”, said Forsyth.
Scotland senior men: Jamie Cachia (Sheffield), Gareth Hall (Beeston), Michael Bremner (Kelburne), Dan Coultas (Holcombe), Alan Forsyth (Surbiton), Chris Grassick (Surbiton), Ian Moodie (Edinburgh University), Ross Stott (East Grinstead), Chris Nelson (Kelburne), Kenny Bain (Hurley), William Marshall (Sheffield), Iain Scholefield (Qui Vive), Niall Stott (East Grinstead), Chris Duncan (Edinburgh University), Wei Adams (Canterbury), David Forsyth (Qui Vive), Nick Parkes (Surbiton), Gavin Byers (Sheffield), Russell Anderson (Cannock), Michael Ross (Grove Menzieshill), David Forrester (Old Loughtonians), Gary Cameron (Grange), Gavin Sommerville (Western Wildcats), Ross McIntyre (Kelburne).
The full match scedule for the Champions Challenge and men’s Four Nations is below:
FIH Champions Challenge I (W):
Sunday April 27
10:00 Pool B USA v Spain
12:00 Pool B South Africa v Ireland
14:30 Pool A Belgium v Scotland
16:30 Pool A Korea v India
Monday April 28
14:00 Pool B South Africa v USA
16:00 Pool B Spain v Ireland
19:00 Pool A India v Scotland
21:00 Pool A Belgium v Korea
Wednesday April 30
09:30 Pool B Spain v South Africa
11:30 Pool B USA v Ireland
14:00 Pool A Korea v Scotland
16:00 Pool A India v Belgium
Thursday May 1
13:00 Quarter-Final 1st Pool A v 4th Pool B
15:15 Quarter-Final 2nd Pool B v 3rd Pool A
18:00 Quarter-Final 2nd Pool A v 3rd Pool B
20:15 Quarter-Final 1st Pool B v 4th Pool A
Saturday May 3
09:00 Classfication Match
11:15 Classfication Match
14:00 Semi-Final Winner QF1 v Winner QF2
16.15 Semi-Final Winner QF3 v Winner QF4
Sunday May 4
10:30 Classfication Match
12:45 Classfication Match
15:30 3rd/4th Place
17:45 Final
Four Nations (M):
Wednesday April 23
17.00 Scotland v Ireland (Women, Friendly)
19.00 Scotland v Argentina (Friendly)
Friday April 25
17.00 England v Argentina
19.00 Scotland v Belgium
Saturday April 26
15.00 Scotland v England
17.00 Belgium v Argentina
Monday April 28
09.00 Scotland v Argentina
11.00 England v Belgium
Tuesday April 29
09.00 1st Pool v 2nd Pool
11.00 3rd Pool v 4th Pool
See http://www.scottish-hockey.org.uk/fih-champions-challenge–4-nations.aspx
