S2H Team

Great Britain men will attempt to keep up their new-found form in their FIH Pro League double header against Spain at the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre in London on Saturday.

GB beat Germany in their double header convincingly 10 days ago with 5-3 and 3-1 victories that saw them climb from bottom of the nine-nation league to sixth spot. The hosts have played 10 matches, have collected 11 points and have recorded a percentage success of 36.67, a number that may determine final standings should the league fail to be played out in its entirety because of the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact.

Spain are languishing at the bottom, having played 10 matches as well but earning only seven points at a percentage success of 23.33. The ravaged schedule that saw a spate of postponements has meant that Spanish haven’t played a match since February 6 when they lost to Belgium 0-2 in their second encounter, having lost 2-3 the day before.

Belgium, the World Cup and European champions, lead the table with 32 points from 19 matches at 82.05%. Germany are second with 19 from 10 at 63.33.

The first match will be held at 1730 IST and the second, on Sunday, at 1630 IST.

The GB women play the USA later on the same days. Curiously, the teams are identically placed on the table as in the men’s encounters. GB are sixth while the US are at the bottom of the nine-nation league. GB, the Olympic champions, have 14 points from 10 matches at 46.67%. The Americans have drawn a blank from eight matches.

The first match will be played at 2000 IST on Saturday, the second at 1900 IST, Sunday.