Sidmouth and Ottery hockey coach Gus Mcvey has followed his Four Nations success with a bronze medal at the European Master’s Championships held in Nottingham.
The tournament consisted of teams from Netherlands, Spain, Wales, Germany, Italy, France, Scotland, and home nation England.
England were placed in pool B with, Wales, Spain and Germany, beating both Wales and Spain before drawing with Germany putting them at the top of the pool. The draw came out and England had to play Wales to reach the semi-finals.
The game was hard fought with England dominating the final quarter scoring three quick goals to win 7-1. The semi-finals saw them play Spain, the game started well with England scoring in the first quarter but then in the third and fourth quarters Spain managed to score goals on the counter.
From then on, England were on the back foot and unable to score hitting the post twice. This sent Spain through to the final, where they were to meet the Netherlands who beat France in the other semi-final.
This meant England had to play Germany once again for the third and fourth playoff spots. As with the first game, it was a close affair with a 4-3 finish to England giving them the Bronze. Spain went on to beat the Netherlands in the final, giving them the gold.
“This has been a fantastic tournament, being asked to be involved and represent my Country and team in the opening ceremony was very special,” said Gus. “We had a chance to win!
“Tournament events are always hard as they are so unpredictable, and you must take every chance you can. I am very proud of my team. We won a medal, which was the plan, so I’m very happy.”
While in Nottingham, the Coach was invited onto Notts radio by team-mate Andrew Richards and Hockey legend Simon Mason and tournament organiser to talk about and promote the importance Masters hockey, the benefits of continuing to play competitive hockey at an older age and what it is like representing your country.
What is next for Gus? A few weeks break and back to work at Sidmouth pool before the he starts preparing the Sidmouth an Ottery Ladies team for the upcoming 2023/24 league season.
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