HAM

With a full programme of three matches, the hockey National League got off to an interesting start. In the opening fixture, played on Saturday under floodlights, outgoing Champions Punch & Judy Rabat started their defence of the title with an emphatic 5-1 victory over The George Pub. In Sunday's two matches Sliema Hs got off to a positive start when they came back from a goal down to beat newcomers Celtics YS 3-1 and The Hunter Tower Rest. (YS) responded to Punch & Judy with a 2-0 defeat of Pasta Poiatti Qormi.

National League

Rabat's defence of the title got off with a bang when they got the better of The George Pub with a 5-1 victory. The task for The George Pub would have been difficult under normal circumstances but with the absence of Simon Agius, Patrick Meli, Mario Falzon, Dejan Mihajlovic and Branko Radojevic the chances of them getting anything out of this game were practically impossible. Punch & Judy took a 2-0 half-time and one more before The George Pub pull one back through Luke Busutill Leaver. By the end of the match however Punch & Judy had notched up two further goals. For the record Rabat's goals came courtesy of a Josef Antonelli hat-trick, Kevin Micallef and Jason Vella.

In Sunday's first match Sliema Hs started their league commitments with a 3-1 victory over newcomers Celtics YS, who couldn't have asked for a better start when captain Frankie Bugeja shot them ahead after barely ten minutes. However they could not hang to this lead for long as Sliema were soon back on level terms when five minutes later Liam Pace deflected a cross from the right into the Celtics goal. The same Pace put Sliema into the lead before half time when he finished off a short corner move. Twenty minutes into the second half Michael Caruana Smith put the game beyond Celtics when he scored an excellent solo goal.

In the second game The Hunter's Tower Rest. (YS) fresh from their triumph in the Challenge Cup, took up the gauntlet thrown by Punch & Judy Rabat, and responded with an important 2-0 victory over Pasta Poiatti Qormi. As usual Pasta Poiatti conceded very little and the game was tightly fought in midfield. The first half ended goalless. The Hunter's Tower then scored twice in the second half in almost identical fashion as they caught Pasta Poiatti on the break. First it was Joseph Dalli and then Edward Hughes who concluded in similar fashion after some good work by their team mates down the right hand side.

Hockey competitions will now stop for the Christmas break and the League will resume with another full programme after the New Year. On Saturday 3rd January 2004 The Hunter's Tower Rest. will face Sliema Hs. On Sunday 4th January Pasta Poiatti Qormi face Punch & Judy Rabat while Celtics YS take on The George Pub.

Training Camp

At the moment the Hockey Association is organising a National training Camp with the help of the International Hockey Federation (FIH). Mr John Shaw, who was a member of the England side that reached the final of the 1986 World Cup, is in Malta to coordinate the HAM's efforts in building a Juniors National Side. At the same time Mr Shaw's visit will expose local coaches to the latest coaching methods.

This visit is a further attempt by the local Association to upgrade the standard of local hockey and was possible only after the installation of the artificial surface. Mr Shaw, who was capped 207 times for England and Great Britain, has played in two Olympic Games and two World Cups. He is an FIH approved coach and has been Head Coach of Southgate H.C. Juniors since its inception in 1998. Under his charge Southgate Juniors has grown from just nine children to 250 and now the Club participates with six league teams and six cup competition sides.

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