qualified by finishing 2nd at the Edinburgh Qualifier in July 2001, losing 4-5 to Argentina in the final

another team that had to deal with problems in their preparations: after late cancellations reduced the traditional four team Three Kings tournament in January to a three team test series with England and Poland, they cancelled their trip to Cuba planned for January 2002 due to Cuba’s late withdrawal from the San Isidro tournament in May 2001 and planned to travel to Argentina instead, a tour that had to be cancelled as well due to the political and economic crisis. Spain hosted Belgium, Poland and Germany instead for friendlies in Madrid and Barcelona.

The Game

 seen by many as the most artistic European side, with some of the most skillful European players

biggest weakness is inconsistency – Spain often draws or even defeats a higher ranked team one day and loses to a team they should have no trouble winning against the next day

strength is precise man-to-man marking

has been criticized in the past for not being able to make use of penalty corners, for example at the 1998 World Cup, where only 3 out of 19 goals scored by Spain came from penalty corners. The 2001 World Cup Qualifier saw none of that though, with more than half of Spain’s goals resulting from penalty corners.

The Team

three players changed from World Cup Qualifier squad: Ramón Alegre, Victor Sojo and Eduardo Aguilar replace Santi Freixa, Felipe Moreno and Iker Antolín

four players participated in last year’s Junior World Cup, where Spain finished 5^th

eleven players competed in the Sidney Olympic Games

Players to Watch

Juan Escarre is one of the team’s playmakers, an immensely skilled dribbler, and quick as a lightning despite his 30 years. But most of all he is a goalkeeper’s nightmare, scoring the most unexpected goals, from impossible angles, quite often match winners.

Team captain Xavi Arnau is the team’s is created a big stir in the Spanish hockey community, when he signed a three year contract with Real Club Polo in 2000, becoming Spain’s first professional hockey player.

Jordi Quintana executed most of Spain’s penalty corners at the Edinburgh World Cup Qualifier, scoring many goals with his incredibly precise and powerful hits.

Eduard Tubau is Spain’s most talented young player, was Spain’s top goal scorer at last year’s Junior World Cup and is nominated for the FIH Young Player of the Year award.

Recent International Matches

Feb. 21, 2002, Kuala Lumpur: Spain vs. Japan 3-2

Feb. 11, 2002, Madrid: Spain vs. Poland 3-0

Feb. 10, 2002, Madrid: Spain vs. Belgium 3-0

Feb. 9, 2002, Madrid: Spain vs. Poland 4-0

Feb. 3, 2002, Barcelona: Spain vs. Germany 1-4

Feb. 1, 2002, Barcelona: Spain vs. Germany 0-1

Jan. 18, 2002, Barcelona: Spain vs. Belgium 4-0

Jan. 17, 2002, Barcelona: Spain vs. Belgium 5-1

Jan. 5, 2002, Barcelona (Three Kings Tournament): Spain vs. England 1-2

Jan. 3, 2002, Barcelona (Three Kings Tournament): Spain vs. Poland 4-1

July 29, 2001, Edinburgh (World Cup Qualifier): Spain vs. Argentina 4-5

Quotes

Indian coach Cedric D’souza: “They are a team with skills and artistry seldom seen in European teams. ... the Spaniards are good man-to-man markers. They have the capacity to soak pressure for long periods without crumbling and then attack.” (rediff.com)

Team captain Xavi Arnau: “We know we are in a difficult group with top teams like Holland, Germany and Pakistan but for now, we are aiming at making the semifinals, and we will see what happens from there on.” (The New Straits Times)