Women’s EuroHockey Championship II (Gniezno, Poland) – day two round-up
Wales have secured their place in the semi-finals of the women’s EuroHockey Championship II in Gniezno as their remarkable second half performance against Czechia saw them through.
Otherwise, there is a huge amount of permutations after Switzerland beat Lithuania, Austria defeated Croatia and Italy edged out Poland.
** Watch each game back on www.eurohockeytv.org
Pool A
Austria 3 Croatia 0
Austria got a result which ultimately saw them move top of Pool A going into the final series of group games on Wednesday thanks to goals from Philippa Proksch, Johanna Czech and Marianne Pultar.
Proksch got the first, a delicious backhand scoop, shooting early to give the goalkeeper no time to get set. Czech doubled the advantage from a reverse-stick shot from the top of the circle after a corner move had broken down and the Pultar tipped in from Katharina Bauer’s assist from close range.
The Red Foxes know a draw in their final group match on Wednesday against Poland will be enough to see them advance to the final four.
Poland 0 Italy 1
Maria Lunghi’s single goal saw Italy jump up to four points, level with Austria, as Poland now face a big battle to keep their title hopes alive.
Poland had the slight edge of the first corner as Italy sat deep before the visitors cranked up the pressure in Q2 with a string of corners and while they yielded no goal, Lunghi’s remarkable bit of ball juggling in the 20th minute produced the goal.
The second half saw Poland pile on the pressure with nine corners yielding no goal, the closest of which saw Marlena Rybacha’s shot saved off the line by Ailin Oviedo.
Pool B
Czechia 1 Wales 5
Wales became the first side to advance to the semi-finals as their brilliant second half performance saw them pick up their second win of the week in Gniezno.
It was 0-0 at half-time but the game burst into life in Q3 when feverish pressing led to Beth Peers bursting through and firing in a backhand shot for the opening goal. Millie Holme pounced next on a loose ball in the D, a clean strike off her back foot moving away from goal.
Lucie Duchková halved the gap from a corner hit with 12 minutes to go but Wales resisted their attempts to get level in emphatic style. It took less than a minute with Rebecca Daniel getting the final touch after Holme’s mazy run. Beth Bingham added a stroke and then Betsan Thomas added an extra boost to their goal difference, a beautiful piece of individual skill.
Switzerland 4 Lithuania 0
Early goals from Sofie Stomps and Maya Flury set Switzerland up for a vital win over Lithuania, a result which gives them the edge over Czechia on goal difference going into their key final group game on Wednesday.
Stomps scored with a low corner push with just 43 seconds played to make the breakthrough and Flury swept in on her backhand soon after, following up a Sarah Zepf shot.
Flury was then fouled in the 16th minute for a penalty stroke which Stomps scored and it gave the Swiss team a huge lead. And Flury’s quick skills were once again key for their fourth when she was fouled on the baseline for a second stroke, Tamara Trösch this time doing the honours from the spot.
Pool B
| Rank | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wales | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 6 |
| 2 | Switzerland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 |
| 3 | Czechia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 3 |
| 4 | Lithuania | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 0 |
Wednesday schedule
