The first day of Round 1.1 of the Euro Hockey League has taken place at RC de Polo de Barcelona, with a large crowd witnessing a stunning day of action.
The opening match of the day saw England’s Reading defeat CA Montrouge of France 4-3, with Euro Hockey Nations Gold medallist Richard Mantell scoring a brace for his club. That match was followed by Germany’s UHC Hamburg against Glenanne of Ireland. German Olympic Gold medallist Moritz Fürste and teenage striker Florian Fuchs scored two goals each in UHC’s 4-1 win over the Irishmen. Pembroke Wanderers needed just 15 seconds to open the scoring against Scotland’s Kelburne HC, with Alan Sothern hitting the first of four individual strikes is a 4-2 triumph. It was an impressive individual effort from Sothern, but he was to be outshone by RC Polo striker Pau Quemada, who hit five in his team’s 7-2 triumph against Dinamo Kazan of Russia.
The action continues on Saturday when Spanish giants Atlétic Terrassa take on CA Montrouge of France, with Montrouge needing a victory to keep alive their chances of qualifying for Round 2 of the event. Poland’s WKS Grunwald Poznan play their first fixture of the 2009-10 EHL season against Ireland’s Glenanne, who like Montrouge are in need of a win if they are to stay in the competition. Kelburne HC need to produce a shock result if they are to keep alive their hopes of a place at KO16 when they face the all stars of H.C. Rotterdam. The final match of the day sees Belgium’s Waterloo Ducks playing their first match of the competition against Dinamo Kazan, with a Ducks’ victory meaning the end of Kazan’s Euro Hockey League journey for this season.
For more information, please visit www.ehlhockey.tv, the official website of the Euro Hockey League.
