Ireland will look to patch up their short corner defence as they bid to get their World League semi-final campaign back on track against a new-look Netherlands tonight (7pm).
Not all of the green machine’s cogs functioned properly as they fell to a subdued 4-2 defeat to New Zealand on Saturday morning, following Thursday’s 4-4 draw with India.
It means they need a result against the Dutch – who are without a number of top stars due to injury and retirement – in Rotterdam to avoid finishing bottom of their pool and getting an unwanted quarter-final against the winners of Pool B.
Top of their priorities will be shoring up their penalty corner defence; both India and New Zealand have successfully targeted goalkeeper David Harte’s glove side with neither John Jackson nor Ronan Gormley having much luck as the post man on that side either.
Andrew Meredith’s charges had the better of a turgid first half against the world number six Blacksticks, taking the lead from the penalty spot through Alan Sothern after his drag-flick had hit a Kiwi defender on the line.
New Zealand equalised midway through the half when Jonathan Bell inadvertently diverted past his own goalkeeper when diving to stop Phil Burrows connecting with a well-place crash ball.
Otherwise Ireland struggled to outlet possession in the face an aggressive Blacksticks press, and also a more compact half-court press when they were reduced to 10 men for 10 minutes after Arun Panchia was sin-binned for striking Andy McConnell in the face with his stick.
Nick Haig was the first to expose Ireland’s corner defence when his drag went in off Jackson early in the second half, but Mikey Watt equalised immediately for Ireland with a stunning squeeze shot that found the top corner.
But a poor defensive turnover saw the Blacksticks outnumber Ireland on the counter and setup a tap-in for Blair Hilton, while Andy Hayward rattled home another glove-side corner to seal it.
Harte did once again make his usual quotient of top-drawer saves from play while Gormley, Conor Harte and Paul Gleghorne put in some crucial tackles.
But without Eugene Magee, John Jermyn and Geoff McCabe Ireland look light on rotation cover in midfield, a problem compounded by an injury to Chris Cargo when he and Gleghorne ran into each other attempting to claim the same aerial ball.
Coach Meredith lamented the inconsistencies in his side’s performance, and didn’t spare his most experienced performers in his post-match analysis.
“The result, while deserved, was disappointing on a number of levels,” the Australian said. “The performance was far too inconsistent over the 70 minutes, we were ineffective in critical offensive areas, and probably most disappointing was the contribution from some of the more senior experienced players, who made far too many errors in regards to executing our game plan.
“Obviously due to the fact that we only have one point after two games, it is important that we return to the core elements of our process, and look at how we can execute better in the coming matches.”
Andrew Meredith’s charges had the better of a turgid first half against the world number six Blacksticks, taking the lead from the penalty spot through Alan Sothern after his drag-flick had hit a Kiwi defender on the line.
New Zealand equalised midway through the half when Jonathan Bell inadvertently diverted past his own goalkeeper when diving to stop Phil Burrows connecting with a well-place crash ball.
Otherwise Ireland struggled to outlet possession in the face an aggressive Blacksticks press, and also a more compact half-court press when they were reduced to 10 men for 10 minutes after Arun Panchia was sin-binned for striking Andy McConnell in the face with his stick.
Nick Haig was the first to expose Ireland’s corner defence when his drag went in off Jackson early in the second half, but Mikey Watt equalised immediately for Ireland with a stunning squeeze shot that found the top corner.
But a poor defensive turnover saw the Blacksticks outnumber Ireland on the counter and setup a tap-in for Blair Hilton, while Andy Hayward rattled home another glove-side corner to seal it.
Harte did once again make his usual quotient of top-drawer saves from play while Gormley, Conor Harte and Paul Gleghorne put in some crucial tackles.
But without Eugene Magee, John Jermyn and Geoff McCabe Ireland look light on rotation cover in midfield, a problem compounded by an injury to Chris Cargo when he and Gleghorne ran into each other attempting to claim the same aerial ball.
Coach Meredith lamented the inconsistencies in his side’s performance, and didn’t spare his most experienced performers in his post-match analysis.
“The result, while deserved, was disappointing on a number of levels,” the Australian said. “The performance was far too inconsistent over the 70 minutes, we were ineffective in critical offensive areas, and probably most disappointing was the contribution from some of the more senior experienced players, who made far too many errors in regards to executing our game plan.
“Obviously due to the fact that we only have one point after two games, it is important that we return to the core elements of our process, and look at how we can execute better in the coming matches.”