EuroHockey Championships 2023-Newsletter
This is the Men's Group B
15. March 2023
Group B: Germany, Netherlands, France and Wales. A tough group awaits the Honamas at the EuroHockey Championships 2023 in Mönchengladbach. The world ranking is currently led by the Netherlands. Germany follows in third place, France in twelfth and Wales in 15th. Right from the start, it will be "do or die" for all nations in this group, which also existed at the European Championship 2021.
Germany
WORLD CHAMPIONS - this reputation currently precedes the German men's national team. But winning the title in India at the end of January will not buy the team of national coach André Henning anything at the EuroHockey Championships 2023 in their own country. On the contrary: already in the group phase, all teams will try to beat the great world champion.
Most recently, the Honamas played India twice and Australia twice in the FIH Pro League in India. The squad was slightly changed compared to the World Cup and the team did not cover itself with glory in four matches. Germany lost three of the four matches and it was noticeable to some players that the World Cup and the two trips to India within a good month were still in their legs. In the remaining preparation for the home European Championship, it will be important for the team to concentrate fully on the tournament in August and to implement content quickly.
At the last World Cup, the German national team met France in a crossover match. Germany last played against the Netherlands in the FIH Pro League season 21/22 in Hamburg. In two matches, they lost once with 1:3 and won once with 4:1. Wales is a rather unknown team to the German team.
Netherlands
The Dutch team currently leads the world rankings. They lead the table ahead of Belgium and Germany. At the last World Cup in India, the Dutch caused a positive surprise. They clearly dominated the other nations in their group and went straight into the quarter-finals with 22:0 goals. There they defeated South Korea 5-1 before coach Jeroen Delmee's team was defeated by Belgium. In the match for third place, Australia was defeated 3-1. The average age of the squad at this tournament was 25.75 years, which means that this or a similar squad can also be expected at the 2023c European Championships and the 2024 Olympic Games. A squad that can definitely win titles.
After all, the Dutch are the reigning European champions. At the last European Championship in 2021 in their own country, they defeated Germany 4:1 in the final after a penalty shootout. It is all the more exciting that these two teams will meet in the group phase of the upcoming European Championship in Mönchengladbach and fight for the group victory in Group B.
France
"Only" 13th place at the last World Cup in India in 2023. Nevertheless, the French hockey team is a force not to be underestimated. They will try to make life difficult for the group favourites Germany and the Netherlands and, with a bit of luck, perhaps reach the semi-finals of the European Championship. The team lost 5-1 to Germany in the crossover match at World Cup23, so the French will try to settle their score with the Honamas in their group match on 23 August at 7.30pm.
At the last European Championship in 2021 in the Netherlands, it was an early end for the team. It quickly became clear for France that they would not make it to the semi-finals. In the same group constellation as at the European Championship 2023 in Mönchengladbach, the French lost all three group matches. At least a win against Wales should be possible at the next EuroHockey Championships.
Wales
The Welsh national team may go into the EuroHockey Championships 2023 as underdogs, but overall Wales is on the up. After 20 years without participating in a European Hockey Championship, Mönchengladbach 2023 will be the third European Championship in a row.
The team will also have been pleased with their eleventh-place finish at the 2023 World Cup in India. Indeed, the World Cup in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela was Wales' first World Cup in the history of the federation. The team will certainly not fancy their chances of reaching the semi-finals, but it could be exciting to see whether they can upset the big nations from the Netherlands and Germany.