Mens Senior International
Ireland 4 - Belgium 1
Grange Road, Dublin
02 March 2005
Ireland defeated Belgium in the first of their series of Senior Internationals at Grange Road Dublin yesterday (02/03/2005).
4 Quins players participated in the game with Jason Black being honoured with the captaincy. They were Jason Black, Mark Black Wesley Bateman and Sean Nicholson.
Both Jason and Wesley ran Justin Sherriff very close for the man of the match award.
Irelands goal scorers were Justin Sheriff(2), David Hobbs and Stephen Butler.
Report courtesy of www.hockey.ie
Ireland Senior men opened their 2005 international season in Dublin with a 4
goals to 1 victory over Belgium in a game which also marked Dave Passmore's
first competitive match in charge of the Irish lads.
Ireland captain Paddy Brown failed to recover from his recent injury and was
unable to play enabling Aer Lingus's David Bane to step in and make his
International Debut for Ireland.
David Hobbs opened the scoring on 16 minutes after a neat inter change with
Stephen Butler allowed the Cork man to slip the ball past the Belgium keeper
to score his first goal for Ireland. It was Butler who added the second from
a penalty corner which he dragged low into the bottom corner and his Antwerp
Dragons team mate Justin Sherriff added a third late on in the half as his
reverse stick shot went in from an acute angle.
Despite being three nil down at half time Belgium came out firing in the
second half and scored early as Charles Vandeweghe reduced arrears, Belgium
had Ireland firmly on the back foot and had several other good chances in
the first ten minutes with Wes Bateman kept Ireland's two goal advantage
intact.
After Ireland had weathered the Belgium storm it was man of the match Justin
Sherriff who put the result beyond doubt as he cracked in the fourth of the
night continuing his fantastic international scoring record with 36th Irish
goals in 55 matches.
The remainder of the second half was much more open with play being
stretched and both sides having several good opportunities to add to the
scoring but it finished Ireland 4 Belgium 1 much to the approval of the
large crowd enjoying the game at Grange Road.
Sherriff sets sights on half century
By Graham Hamilton
Belfast Telegraph - 03 March 2005
Justin Sherriff has set himself a 50-goal international target before the end of the European campaign in September.
Last night the Belgian-based Irish striker took his tally to 36 from 55 caps with two of the sweetest goals he has scored ... against the Belgium team whom he had travelled over to Dublin with earlier in the day.
It was particularly satisfying for Sherriff, and indeed new coach David Passmore who could hardly have asked for a better start to his tenure.
A 4-1 success over a team ranked nine places higher than us in the world augurs well
Sherriff will have over 20 games between now and the end of the Europeans to score the 14 he needs to hit the half century target.
Juding by the way the Sherriff rifled in his two last night, it seems a realistic target.
David Hobbs opened the scoring in 16 minutes when his close stickwork gave him the opportunity to flick home, after receiving from Timmy Cockram.
Sherriff then got his first, pouncing on a defensive error and hammering home a shot to the far corner on the reverse stick.
On the half hour Stephen Butler made it three, converting a penalty corner, and although the Belgians pulled one back four minutes after the break through Charles van Deweghe, Sherriff ran 40 yards diagonally across the pitch before crashing another past the Belgian keeper on the reverse.
Naturally Sherriff won the man of the match award but was pushed by Jason Black who captained the side in the absence of injured Patrick Brown, and goalkeeper Wes Bateman who pulled off four breathtaking saves to deny the Belgians.
Cockram, winning his fifth cap, grew in stature as the game went on and indeed is included in a much-changed squad for a repeat game at Grange Road next Wednesay evening.
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