7 Leinster players included in Irish Squad for Europeans
August 08, 2017
Congratulations to all the LHA players selected for the Men's Squad for the EuroHockey Nations Championships later this month -
Mark Ingram, Kirk Shimmins, Alan Sothern (Pembroke Wanderers HC), Lee Cole (Monkstown HC), Shane O'Donoghue (Glenanne HC), Daragh Walsh & Ben Walker (Three Rock Rovers HC).
The Rabo Eurohockey Championships will see the Green Machine return as defending bronze medallists following their triumph in London 2 years ago. The current side looks slightly different to the one of 2015 but plenty of key players remain with the likes of David Harte, Shane O’Donoghue and Paul Gleghorne remaining constant. Fulton’s side were unlucky at World League in South Africa when both Johnny McKee and Eugene Magee picked up injuries. But as a result, slots have opened up for the young Three Rock duo of Daragh Walsh and Ben Walker to make their senior tournament debuts. Michael Robson makes a welcome return from injury while Kirk Shimmins steps back into the side, with both offering serious pace in the midfield and forward lines.
Ahead of the tournament the side will travel to Belgium to play uncapped training matches against Australian and Dutch underage sides while also facing a talented Belgian side on August 14th in Beerschot.
Speaking about the tournament and squad Fulton said “The Euros selection leads to 6 changes from WL3 in Johannesburg. The squad is again a blend of youth and experience, and we are very keen to build on the momentum created in qualifying for the World Cup in Johannesburg. The European Championships is a special tournament and we want to do as well as we possibly can against the top teams in Europe.
Our Pool consists of Germany, Poland and England, and all teams will ask different questions of us. We are confident one game at a time we will be ready for the different challenges ahead”.
Squad:
| Name | Club |
| David Harte | Kampong |
| Mark Ingram | Pembroke |
| Stuart Loughrey | Hampstead & Westminster |
| Jonathan Bell | Lisnagarvey |
| Matthew Bell | Banbridge |
| Paul Gleghorne | Lisnagarvey |
| Lee Cole | Monkstown |
| John Jackson | Bath Buccs |
| Conor Harte | Racing |
| Sean Murray | Lisnagarvey |
| Kirk Shimmins | Pembroke |
| Shane O’Donoghue | Glenanne |
| Daragh Walsh | Three Rock Rovers |
| Michael Robson | Lisnagarvey |
| Neal Glassey | Lisnagarvey |
| Ben Walker | Three Rock Rovers |
| Alan Sothern | Pembroke |
| Matthew Nelson | Lisnagarvey |
Eurohockey Schedule:
August 20th 15:30- Ireland vs Germany
August 21st 14:45- Ireland vs Poland
August 23rd 14:45- Ireland vs England
Crossover/classification matches to be played on 25th & 27th
NB. All match times listed are local
Full tournament schedule - Click Here
Source Hockey Ireland
