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NEWS
The opportunity to participate at an event like the IIHF World Championships is a dream - 16 countries compete for the title to be the best and to determine who is the most skilled in this fast and exciting team sport. We shared the group with Great Britain, Japan and Argentina. Our aim to automatically qualify Namibia for 2007 has been achieved!
All this is only possible with the help of our supporters.
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Final Placements 2006
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USA |
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Great Britain |
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Sweden |
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Hungary |
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Finland |
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Brazil |
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Germany |
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Japan |
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Czech Republic |
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Namibia |
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Slovakia |
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Australia |
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Slovenia |
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Croatia |
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Austria |
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Argentina |
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MVP award: Daniel Wessner (SWE) |
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MVP award: John Dolan (GBR) |
Saturday 15 July 2006: Australia - Namibia
The Inline hockey World Championships came to an end for Namibia on Saturday, a day earlier than hoped for.
Today’s game was all about getting a notch up on the IIHF standings. The opponent: Australia - the same as 2005.
Namibia took the lead in the 14th minute when Cello Bass scored, assisted by Arne Rodenwoldt. Two minutes later Namibia scored again with Francois Jacobs putting the puck into the net assisted by Arne Rodenwoldt and Marco Debortoli.
Australia came back and scored a goal in the 19th minute. Namibia scored their third goal when Cello Bass increased the lead for Team Namibia.
Australia - as we have seen during the World Championship games with their ‘never say die’ attitude - scored their second goal in the 23rd minute.
Half time score 3 to 2 for Namibia. The team knew that this game would get tougher from here on.
Australia came back in the third quarter three minutes into the game to score the equalizer. Both teams tried to turn the game in their favour, but the scores held and into overtime we went.
A goal in the 3rd minute by Timo Giersch assisted by Vincent van Biljon pushed Namibia into rank 13th in the World according to IIHF.
Mario Troha, the assistant coach, said: "Our Team played with head and heart.”
Congratulations to our players for their performance. A big thank you also to the crowd and all supporters.
Best player: Francois Jacobs
Penalties: 8 Penalties (3 Namibia)
Final Score: Australia 3: Namibia 4 overtime (0:0, 2:3, 1:0, 0:0, 0:1)
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Friday 14 July 2006: Brazil - Namibia
It did only take 1:24 for Brazil to score their first goal against Namibia. Then, 2:31 minutes later the second goal for the first quarter.
As if in a replay of the first quarter only 1:13 min into the second period and Brazil had scored again. Although it took them longer to score their forth goal.
In 31:27 minutes Arne Rodenwoldt finally put in that one goal for Team Namibia unassisted. 2 minutes before the end of this quarter Team Namibia took a 10 minute penalty. The following three goals were score while Namibia had four or then only 3 players on the rink.
Best player: Riyaan Ely
Penalties: 10 Penalties (7 Namibia)
Final Score: Brazil 7: Namibia 1 (2:0, 2:0, 1:1, 2:0)
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Thursday 13th July 2006
Today's qualification games between Austria and Hungary as well as Slovenia versus Great Britain will determine whether the teams from top division will move into division one and vice versa.
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Team Namibia has a write-up (every day two teams of this year's IIHF World Championships 2006 get introduced in the news section) in today's report. http://www.inline2006.hu/eng/index.php .
Wednesday 12th July 2006: Namibia - Argentina
ok. Now that our team and the supporters have come to grips with yesterdays loss, we can focus on the task ahead. I know that our team has worked hard to be at the World Championships 2006 and I can only guess how much it takes to stay positive and keep on working at a better game.
So, the game has started at 12:00 Namibian time on schedule. Again penalties seem to set the scene. Argentina get one for interference only 29 seconds into the game. Then Marco Debortoli is penalised for "use of elbow" - I guess one needs to make a point... Then at 8:27minutes Cello Baas scores the first goal of the game unassisted.
The next 12 minutes begin with a goal by Argentina only 23 seconds into the quarter. 18:41min Argentina gets a penalty for body-checking and takes time-out. Then two goals by Team Namibia within 38 seconds scored by Vincent van Biljon assisted by Basti Faber during power play and another by Cello Baas assisted by Timo Giersch and Oliver Lohmeier.
26:59 min and Argentina score their second goal. Then things get a bit hectic with one player from each side cooling off. Two minutes later Vincent van Biljon assisted by Arne Rodenwoldt score our fourth goal.
The last quarter has Argentina come within 1 goal while we have a player on ice and manage to tie within two minutes.
The score takes the teams into overtime with the sudden death rule. Namibia scores this goal at 52:59 to bring home their first win during the World Championships. This goal was scored by the captain, Riyaan Ely, assisted by Basti Faber.
Best player: Cello Baas
Penalties: 11 Penalties (5 Namibia)
Final Score: Namibia 5: Argentina 4 overtime (1:0, 2:1, 1:1, 0:2, 1:0)
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Looking at the statistics after two games, Namibia presently stands tied for sixth out of eight teams in Division 1. The lead is shared by Hungary, Brazil, and Great Britain who all still remain undefeated after two games. Tomorrow's game is pivotal to our placement in Division 1, as we are playing against Argentina, who presently is ahead of us due to the point they accrued through their overtime loss to Japan.
Tuesday 11th July 2006: Japan - Namibia
Statistics on the official IIHF 2006 website indicate a difficult game for our team. Only 11seconds after the start of the game Japan was penalised for hooking. 1.35min later Japan scored their first goal. Two more goals were scored by Japan in the first 12 minutes. 5 penalties were given (two for Team Namibia) in this quarter.
2.28min into the second quarter and Oliver Lohmeier reduced the advantage of Japan. This first goal for our team was assisted by Jörg Güther and Basti Faber. In this quarter 6 penalties were given - two for Team Namibia.
2 minutes played in the third quarter and Cello Baas scored our second goal unassisted. Japan managed to increase their goals to four goals.
The last quarter saw Japan add three more goals to give the final score.
Penalties: 9 for Japan, 7 for Namibia.
Final score: Japan 7 : Namibia 2 (3:0,0:1,1:1,3:0).
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Monday 10th July 2006: Great Britain - Namibia
Temperature in Budapest today is sultry. This first game was exciting. Team Namibia played well. The first goal of the World Championships 2006 was scored by Great Britain's number 17 (Chris Colegate) assisted by Andrew Sillitoe. No goals were scored in the second quarter. In the third quarter Namibia managed to tie. During the final quarter Great Britain scored two goals whereas Team Namibia managed to add 1 goal. *Our goals were scored by Cello Baas assisted by Arne Rodenwoldt and Basti Faber assisted by Riyaan Ely and Harald Keil.
Number 37 (Richard Hargreaves) and number 11 (Kristopher Hendy) from Great Britain were penalized for interference during this game. Kristopher Hendy then was penalised for charging and finally for Great Britain Mark Corfield got 2min for slashing.
Namibia's Timo Giersch (22) was penalized for hooking. and hi-sticking and Arne Rodenwoldt for body-checking.
*There were some slight inconsistencies between the SMS received and the final game sheet as to who assisted.
Best player: Erik Rodenwoldt.
Final score: Great Britain 3 : Namibia 2 (1:0-0:0-0:1-2:1)
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Team Namibia will play the first game in the 2006 Inline Hockey World Championships against Great Britain. Great Britain won the Bronze medal last year. On Tuesday our team will have to face Japan and on Wednesday Argentina. Ideally our young squad will win at least two of their games to ensure Namibia's automatic qualification for 2007 in Germany.
Thursday 6th July 2006: Team Namibia versus Black Hawks (Deggendorf)
This was the last preparation game in Deggendorf. The Deggendorf
Team had the German Captain Jan Schinkenköthe
on their squad as well as the ex German player Thomas Greileinger and reserve
Thomas Kulzer.
The match was evenly matched and no quarter was given on either side. A match of
Team Namibia's speed and fitness against Germany's experience.
The Namibia Squad showed discipline and did not give away any penalties. The
first two quarters were evenly matched which was reflected in the score at half
time: 3 all.
The third quarter was dominated by Team Namibia which was rewarded by2 goals to
Namibia against 1 by the Rolling Wanderers.
Although the Namibians defended well, Deggendorf managed to score the equalising
goal in the dying minutes of the game.
It went to penalty shoot out which was yet another learning curve for the young
Namibian team (average age 19.5). They managed to win the penalty shoot out by 3
to 2.
The goal scorers for the Namibian team in normal time were Arne Rodenwoldt,
Riyaan Ely, Basti Faber, Alex Courtney-Clarke and Vincent von Biljon. Penalty
goals where shot by Cello Bass, Marco Debortoli and Arne Rodenwoldt .
The Namibian team played their best hockey ever and coach Phil Boudreault said
the following: "It is the first time since I have been coaching them that I have
seen them take their time and use the space and play like a team."
The team is now in Budapest and anxiously awaiting their first game against
Great Britain at 13:00 hours European time. The Team finds themselves in good
spirits and are all fit. The supports group is in full strength 15 in all and
help where they can.
The team has cut their budget to the tooth and are still in need of about 50,000
Nam Dollars. Every Dollar will help!
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Tuesday 4th July 2006: Rolling Wanderers from Germering
Several of the Namibian players were sick and had to stay in bed. That being
said it was a challenging game although our team managed to put in four goals.
Final score: Rolling Wanderers 8 : Team Namibia 4. Goals were scored by: Arne Rodenwolt, Vincent van Biljon, Cello Bass und Marco Debortoli.
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Sunday 2nd July 2006: Team Namibia versus Black Hawk (Bayern Open Team)
(goalie: Erik Rodenwoldt)
Today we played against the Bayern Open Team. It was clear from the start that
this game wouldn't be the same as yesterdays.
In this game the physical advantage of the German Open Team was apparent. These
players were built stronger than the players from the U18 team.
In the first quarter the German Team managed to score three goals against one goal from
Namibia scored by Zaid Ely.
In the second quarter the German Team scored two more goals, while the Namibian
Team did their best to defend and help Erik Rodenwoldt protect the goal.
Vincent van Biljon scored the second goal which was assisted by Arne Rodenwoldt.
A few minutes later Jörg Güther scored the third goal for Namibia.
The game ended with a final score of 8:3 for Germany.
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Saturday 1st July 2006: Team Namibia versus U18 National Team Germany
(goalie: Rene Werner)
The Namibian Inline Hockey Team today played against the U18 National Team from
Germany. Within five minutes into the game the German National Team scored the first goal.
It was clearly visible how nervous the players from Team Namibia were. Two minutes later Arne
Rodenwoldt scored the first goal for the Namibian National Team. The atmosphere
was really amazing!
With another goal by Arne Rodenwoldt the score increased to 2:1 for the
Namibian Team.
The second quarter started off with Zaid Ely scoring the third goal for Namibia, a few minutes later Jörg Güther scored the fourth goal.
In the 4th quarter the Germans scored their second goal.
The end result of 4:2 for Namibia gave our players some confidence.
While most Namibians were looking forward to a long weekend and days of fun and relaxation with family and friends, Namibia´s national inline hockey squad thronged to Swakopmund, not for a jolly sojourn in this popular holiday resort, but to congregate at the SFC Sports Club to embark on an adventure of a different kind. The IIHF Inline Hockey World Championships is but a breath away (8 - 16 July) and Head Coach, Phil Boudreault, Assistant Coach, Mario Troha and Team Manager, Ulrike Rodenwoldt still had plenty of Easter surprises for the squad up their sleeves. Beep-tests, strenuous endurance tests, skill exercises and mental preparation were compacted into Phil´s Easter weekend extravaganza.
Instead of gorging on easter bunnies, sweat coated pores, hard work replaced glimpses of beaches filled with holiday revellers. The SFC Hall was a battlefield of physicality, determination, dedication and the dreams of young men united in their desire to do their country proud in Budapest, Hungary. With the departure for the World Championships looming at the end of June, every member of the squad was only too aware of the fact that only maximum commitment would secure them a place on the final team. In fact, according to Phil, commitment and hard work, are two key words of his rigorous preparatory training programme, a fact the faint-hearted soon realised: international inline hockey in the men´s division is not a game for sissies.
A healthy sports ethic, team work and sportsmanship, too, helped separate the men from the boys. So while the rest of the population settled down to attack the Easter roast, Riyaan Ely (Captain), Marco Debortoli (Assistant Captain), Timo Giersch (Assistant Captain), Bastian Faber, Arne Rodenwoldt, Vincent van Biljon, Jörg Güther, Harald Keil, Francois Jacobs, Erik Rodenwoldt (Goalie), Rene Werner (Goalie), Robert Roxin, Cello Baas, Oliver Lohmeier, Zaid Ely, Alex Courtney-Clarke and, sated themselves on the knowledge that each one of them had slain the proverbial dragon and made it to the top. Phil was right: hard work and commitment reap just rewards: a place on the Namibian Team.
Inline hockey has become far removed from its humble beginnings and has instead opted for an ambience of fierce and stiff competition. At present, Namibia hosts 5 self-sustaining hockey clubs with a standard of expertise that would definitely rival many on this continent. On numerous occasions, Namibian teams have participated in national South African tournaments on both club and national level - with a record that boasts an impressive resume of wins and respect. This resume extends further than the borders to the south however, as Namibia, for the first time took part in the IIHF Inline Hockey World Championship held in Finland last year. Many countries that took part had never even heard of Namibia, let alone a national inline hockey team coming from it.
Despite marginal losses against teams that have frequently participated on such international standards of professionalism, the National team has certainly shown that it will be a force to be reckoned with in the near future. With a win in the bag by clenching victory over Chinese Taipei, Namibia has automatically qualified for this year's World Championship to be held in Hungary between 10 and 16 July 2006. With the experience gained and knowledge obtained from their first world Championship, the National Inline Hockey team is more driven and compelled to succeed and could possibly fortify several wins against first world countries who have unlimited access to the best sporting resources available. Though the only dilemma resides in a problem that we are all too familiar with: financial restraint. Is this an uphill battle on a rocky terrain? It most certainly is. Amidst the rigorous training camps being held, the National team has and will be hosting various fund raising events in order to represent our exquisite country in the international realm.
With your help we can pave a road that would allow Namibia's finest inline hockey players and staff the opportunity to show the world what Namibia has to offer and so together we can raise our beautiful flag upon the hill laden with dedication and pride.
The following fundraising activities are planned:
The players participating in the trials for the WC 2006 were working flat out at the second set of trials in a six month selection process which began in October 2005. By April 2006, the trials will have produced the team to represent Namibia at the 2006 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Inline Hockey World Championships in Budapest.
Aged between 16 and 25, the best of Namibia's inline talent, drawn from clubs in Otjiwarongo, Windhoek and Swakopmund were put through their paces by Namibian national team head coach Philippe Boudreault and his assistant Roman Marx, under the watchful eye of Ben Naobeb for the Namibian Sports commission.
The third trial in the series took place in Swakopmund from January 6th - 8th. Like the others, it tested stamina, skills, teamwork, match sense and commitment. Subsequent training camps will be held in Windhoek and at the coast and the world championship squad will have been finalised by April.
The demanding training and selection schedule, which has been designed by Boudreault, also incorporates a specialised biokinetic programme. Several participants have already fallen by the wayside, while some others are hanging on by the skin of their teeth as the going gets tougher.
After the trials, team manager Ulrike Rodenwoldt said she was well satisfied by the high standards set by both coach and players. "It was particularly pleasing to see the keen interest taken by Mr Naobeb of the Sports Commission. He attended every day of the trials and said he was most impressed by the way they had been handled."
The Budapest world championships in July will mark Namibia's second appearance at the prestigious IIHF tournament. Team Namibia's debut performance in 2005 was good enough to requalify for 2006, won the tournament's Fair Play trophy, and earned international respect for the high standard of inline hockey in Namibia.
This year, the team hopes to improve on its 2005 standings. "We can draw on the experience we gained in 2005," said Boudreault, who was a finalist in this year's Namibia Sports Awards 'Coach of the Year' competition. "Many players from last year's squad will be in the team again, plus we have some very good new talent. Every year we take part in the World Championships, Namibian inline hockey as a whole will benefit," he said.
Training in Swakopmund for the National squad resumed on 3 January at the SFC Hall.