President's Christmas Message

Dear Fellow Tornados, Family and Friends of Tornados,

The last couple of years have seen Tornados Hockey Club grow from one team to three men’s and a ladies team. This indeed speaks volumes of your participation and continuous support in the various activities, carnivals, tours and social activities.

Thank you all the team captains, team officials, family and friends for being on hand to see our teams participate in various events. A big thank you to the coaches who have contributed their expertise and time to bring success to the club. The Social committee has added more excitement and activities. Thanking our partners and sponsors for the support. Thank you all.

Like to extend a very warm welcome to all new members, players and their families. For members who have returned home, our sincere appreciation and bon voyage. Your contributions and support have been very encouraging. We wish you all success and look forward to you joining us again when you are back in Singapore.

The coming years will be more challenging times as we work towards achieving more success and more activities for all. The success of our activities and participation will I believe leave a lasting legacy for Tornados Hockey Singapore and for future generations of administrators and players to build on. Lets all continue to work collectively and in the spirit of the warm friendship and camaraderie, which we enjoy to ensure this lasting legacy.

May I wish all of you, your families and loved ones the blessings and good tidings of Christmas and everything you wish for yourselves in the New Year especially Peace, Good Health, Happiness and many good sporting years ahead.

Ps.Team captains/officials, could you please forward to all who I may have missed in above list.

        

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.     

A very big Thank you and best regards,

Jerry Jernayal Singh.

Tornados Hockey Club, Singapore.

Awards Night - Fri 10 Dec 2010

Tornados Hockey Club Awards Night

Friday 10th December 2010, 7:30pm

Upstairs at Harry's Bar, Boat Quay

Entrance is SGD 35 in advance or SGD 40 on the door, which includes buffet food and happy hour prices all night. 
Full details and sign up here: http://tornadosawards2010.eventbrite.com/ 

It is that time of year again folks!

Get on your finest going-out clobber and join all of your Tornados friends for The Tornados Hockey Club end-of-year Awards Night!

Please join us at Harry's Boat Quay for a night full of fun and entertainment! Highlights include 'Team of the Year', 'Player of the Year' and 'Personality of the Year' Who will win?!? Come down and find out!

Tornados Hockey Club nights out are always ones to be remembered! Tornados teams have lit-up Singapore Hockey this year and we feel it is time to celebrate in true style!

Ticket prices include good quality buffet grub as well as the usual fun found at a Tornados social event! 

Casual dress. Partners Welcome!

SEE YOU THERE FOLKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Regards,
The Social Committee

Chix: Fantastic Four!!!

Still reeling from their exploits in Vietnam, the Chix could muster only four brave souls for their game against Jensonites in the Singapore Indoor League.

And so Gemma, Chris, Lauren and Lou gingerly, and somewhat lethargically, stepped onto the pitch to play against a full compliment of 10 young things including a keeper.

The Chix started brightly and were 1-0 up within seconds thanks to a link up between Chris and Gemma, started by Lauren.

Lou, Player of the Match, was superb in defence and kept the entire Jensonites front line at bay for most of the first half. The Chix conceded a penalty goal and 2 short corners but with Gemma's 2 additional field goals the half time score was 3-3.

Some canny tactics, combined with a team spirit still fizzing from the weekend and buoyed by determined support from Lauren and Chris, enabled Gemma to sneak 2 more in a tight second half without reply.

All four players were outstanding and they thoroughly deserved their 5-3 victory.

1s Make Hard Work of C&C Win

The Rhinos kept their charge to the playoffs on track but made hard work of a 4-3 win over 10 man and second-placed C&C.

THC were a goal up within 2 minutes, thanks to some determined play from Neil, battling into the oppo circle. The new-look formation clicked together smoothly from the start as the Tornados continued to build a 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Adam and Barney.

As the rain and drizzle continued to fall, and the unpenalised stick tackles continued to fly from C&C, the Tornados lost their shape and let their opponents back into the game. They were soon struggling with a 3-3 scoreline, despite an outstanding performance from Paddy, Joran and John in front of an impressive Gary in goal.

Barney, Passan and Kamran had been linking up beautifully all through the game and THC had them to thank for all 3 points as Kam jinked his way along the back line, played the ball with precision across the goal to Barney who, with just 8 minutes to go, dinked the ball cheekily between his legs for his second and THC's fourth.

The Rhinos then hung on to collect all 3 points, stake a strong claim for 3rd place in the league and make a statement of intent about the playoffs.

Kiwis win inaugral Agro Cup

Picture this: sunday afternoon, Hockey Village awash with players, supporters and families, the BBQ sizzliong away and some high quality hockey from within the club. Well, if you were there, that picture would be imbedded in your mind right now!

Sunday 31st Oct was time for the inaugral Agro Cup, and event put together by the social committee in order to honour a leaving legand, Stephen "Agro" Whitton. Agro heads back to New Zealand in order to see just how green his fingers are, and drags Mrs Agro and Agro Boy and Agro Girl along with him. Agro has been a stalwart of the club for many years now, and helped move the club to the position it is in now: mens teams in 3 divisions, Ladies Champions in 2010, a second ladies team joining in 2011, and a great mix of expat and local covering the most time zones in the world.

With that in mind, the Agro Cup was formulated in order to show that aspect of the club. Teams from England, New Zealand, the Celts, Europe and Asia (including Australia) competed in a 6-a-side round robin competition over a few hours at Hockey Village. The spirit of the day was exciting hockey, and that spirit held through until late int eh evening.

The games were never one-sided, some close games throughout. The fantastic atmosphere brought together some players throughout the leagues. A big hand to the goalies who jumped, saved and showed what a depth of goal keeping talent we have in Tornados.

The final between the top two teams ended up with New Zealand versus England, for which the kiwis came away 2-1 winners.

The day was ended with a sausage sizzle by Dr Bob, speaches from President Jerry, Agro and Fishy, and a comemorative No 11 jersey was handed over to Agro for his potting shed. The day must have been hot, there was a lot of sweat running around during those speahes and the farewells!

A great family day yet again at Hockey Village, and a big thanks to all that made it possible: Fishy and Kirsten and the rest fo the social committe for getting the day together, Richard for orgnaising the teams and play order, Dr Bob for the sausage sizzle, Vear for the pitch and bar work and all that came along to show their repects to Agro.

The Agro Cup is now planned as an annual event. See you next year - or next tournament!

1s Rue Missed Chances

The 1st XI battled through a tough fixture against SRC, but failed to take advantage of their opportunities as umpiring errors flattered the RECS with a 6-1 scoreline.

The 1s were denied a goal for a 'dangerous' ball a few inches off the ground at the start of the second half, SRC were allowed to play the ball over the back line to score their 3rd goal and stick-tackles from the opposition proved to be an effective and unpunished way of preventing THC attacks. The 5-meter rule has evidently yet to reach Seng Kang.

Despite this, the Tornados looked quite capable of giving the younger side a tough game for much of the match, creating several shots on goal as well as many (albeit unawarded) short corner opportunities.

Gary showed what he had been keeping quiet all season, putting in a good display in goal, and Adam did his best to impress his lady friend in the stands with several shots on target.

Despite some good performances, the team is ultimately suffering from a stop-start fixture list which has seen several breaks of 3 or 4 weeks, and the consequent lack of momentum and training committment that follows. Against younger, well-drilled teams, the Tornados will continue to struggle to do themselves justice.

Div3 lose 2-0 to tough SCC team

The Div3 tornados, hit by injury and travel, lost a tough game against SCC 2-0 on a cool Sengkang afternoon.

The game didn't go to plan rights from the start, with Tornados going down to an early goal after about 10 mins and then Barry having to be carried off after 15 or so with a pingged hamstring, the team were stuck with only the 11 players left on the pitch.

The team battled on, trying to keep structure through out the game. That was difficult when SCC brought on some of their youngsters who were being marshalled from centre half. Early in the second half a bit more goal-mouth pressure ended with another goal, and it was possible that Tornados could go down to quite a nasty defeat.

After an over zealous tackle, matters were made worse when Shahroull was yellow carded, forcing the team to an even larger disadvantage.

According to the sideline, Rob pulled a couple of saves off that stopped the rout, and shoulder getting in the way to a final attack from SCC meant the game ended a 2-0 loss.

This loss means the Div3 team will find it difficult to qualify for the semifinals, but hope is still there, and an as yet unscheduled game against CSC is a must win to stand any chance of making those games. Other results will have to go the Tornados way, so we'll just have to wait and see.

MoM - Rob Glover - some fine saves (always seems wrong writing that about yourself!)

Men's Indoor Team get off the mark

The Men's indoor team finally got some points on the board beating Jansenites 10-6 at CCK.

some fine combination work between Izzie, Frenchy and Billy the Frog saw Tornados build a comfortable half time lead against a young Jansenites team playing 1 player short. However, in the second half Tornados allowed Jansenites back into the game by failing to finish the hatfull of goalscoring chances which came their way.

The Tornados indoor team will have to improve in their next game in 2 weeks if they are to stay in contention for the final.

Ladies Indoor Clash

It was the long awaited indoor clash last night with Tornados A taking on Tornados B - so many questions needed answering such as; Where on earth is CCK stadium; Who would be in goal next; who would forget their shoes; and most importantly where were the sticks?  Thankfully most people managed to find the CCK stadium, and some even turned up early and could watch the transformation from a badminton court to an indoor hockey pitch - complete with newly laid yellow table indicating the wobbly circle.  As 7pm rapidly approached you could forgive both sides for getting a bit nervous as the goals still weren't constructed and the umpires looked utterly confused when we asked for sticks.  Thankfully the man in yellow managed to find a bag of sticks and balls from somewhere.  30 minutes late - finally we were ready and battle could commence.

TJ and Queenie donned the keepers kits (TJ as punishment for not turning up to last years indoor tournament despite having the keepers helmet - we will not forget) and I am sure Lauren is looking forward to her turn for getting lost and turning up late last night.  I know I am looking forward to my turn after missing the last match due to food poisoning. Tony was coaching the Bs and Rich was coaching the As.  The Bs having a slight numbers disadvantage after Bridget made it all the way to CCK only to realise you do actually need shoes to play!!  Thanks for staying to support and please come again soon Bridget.

At the whistle we were off - now I apologies but I have a really bad bad memory for what happened when I am playing but here goes.   I do remember the As taking the lead from a short corner before stretching their lead with a goal from open play - only to be pegged back by a determined B team who managed to score from a short despite TJs sterling running.  The first half consisted of a lot of short corners - the pitch wasn't very big and I swear it felt like only 3 or 4 strides between each circle- some determined play from Megan in the middle who was influential in the attacks from the Bs (who weren't paying any attention to the poorly executed half court press by the As).  The half time score was 5-2 to the As (Sara scored the second for the Bs with a fantastic sweep under TJ)

The second half saw the As focusing more on running and a better execution of the press (we tried anyway) and both sides had a lot of short corner practice. There were some more goals - Cynthia felt the need to get in on the action and looked utterly shocked when her pass went straight in.  Queenie had a storming game in goal - and despite the lack of protective shorts save countless shots with her thighs, hope the bruises aren't too bad.  Virginia (rather annoyingly) kept stopping my shots on the line and all in all it was a good fight right down to the final whistle.  As I said there were some more goals with the As sneaking 4 in the second half to see a final score of 9 (Gemma5, Chris3, Cynthia1) to the As while the Bs got 2 (Sara1, Jane2).

The As built on their last performance where they sneaked past the premiership Jansenites 3-2 with TJ, Chris and Rox scoring and looked to be getting back to match fitness, while the Bs looked like a well drilled team who will give Jansenites a run for their money next week. 


The As are at 7.30 next week and the Bs at 8.30 so it looks like we won't have to build the pitch this week.  See you all then and if you can come down and cheer each other on.

 

Killer Beez Cement Top of Table

2 yellows and a green in their final game of the season cemented the KB's place at the top of the table, unfortunately the disciplinary table.

The Beez went into the break 1-0 from a rather unjust stroke and 2 players down after Anton and Boy were yellow carded. Early into the second half the Beez went further down but this spurred them into life. A goal from Owen and a second from Argo brought the Beez level and from then on only the Beez looked like they would sneak a winner. The game ended 2-2.

This was the last game of the season and the farewell game for Boy and Argo.

I'm sure the Singapore Umpires will miss them both greatly!!!!!

Div 3 team in tense 2-2 draw

The Tornados Div 3 played against AETOS this afternoon. AETOS were standing strong 2 places above Tornados and were coming off the back of a 6-3 win against top-of-the-league Khalsa. It was always going to be a tough game, but Tornados were upbeat due to improved recent performances.

The game didn't start well with a couple of pcs to AETOS after 10 mins, the second one being slotted in the corner. The game got off even worse with various fractious events leading to a couple of talking to by the umpires on both side. It didn't calm down, and it wasn't too long before the players on both sides were seeing a whole rainbow of cards.

Early in the second half, a sublime break by Tim Allen through the AETOS defence followed by lovely shot brought Tornados back into the game. Tim continued to make breaks into the AETOS half, and it wasn't long before a second was added after a little play in the D. Others were getting part of the action, Shahroull running all over hte pitch, and Inn Kuang just having one push sideways by the keeper.

The outbursts were continued, and a second yellow for captain Tim Barkham just after the AETOS captain had been red carded levelled the teams up at 10 a-side. AETOS continued pushing the game to get the draw, and a long ball through connected to stick which sneaked past goalie Fat Bob and in at the post.

There were still a couple of minutes left with Tornados throwing everything at AETOS, and the strong Tornados support cheered every ball on a Tornados stick.

Unfortunately the hooter sounded far too early, and a tough match ended as a 2-2 draw. This leave Tornados in a difficult position in order to qualify but still possible. Maximum points in thee last two matches are needed in order to gain that fabled position, so all left to play for for the Div 3 team.

Man of the Match - Tim Allen - some great runs always asked questions of the AETOS defence and capped off with a brace. Congratualtions

Cock of the Match - Tim Barkham - Two yellow cards. 'Nuff said.

Wooden Shoe Tournament

Tornados Hockey Club put in an excellent effort to get 2 mens and 2 ladies teams to turn out for the annual Wooden Shoe Hockey Tournament. As always the Tornados teams acquitted themselves well on and off the field. The Tornados Killer Beez team even made it to the Semi-Finals but fell at that hurdle against an SCC team comprised of Premiere league players.

Next stop the Agro Cup!!

TORNADOS HALLOWEEN PARTY!!!

Dear Tornados,

You are invited to join Tornados Hockey Club celebrate a very spooky Halloween!!! Mwahahahahah!

Location: Harry's Bar (upstairs) @ Boat Quay
Date: Saturday 30th October, 2010
Cost: $35 on entry (includes buffet food, music, games and Tornados Harry's card drinks prices)
Fancy Dress: 'American' style Halloween (basically ANYTHING goes! Wahey!!!!!!!)

See you all there! Look forward to seeing some great outfits!

Regards,

Fishy & The Social Committee

Changes to Training

Dear All,

With the start of the indoor season, as well as the number of social tournaments coming up, we have decided to cancel Wednesday training at Hockey Village until January.

We will still have ad-hoc training sessions at Delta and CCAB as and when we can book them. Make sure your captain has your contact details so you get the latest information.

And, of course, we have Vietnam, The Wooden Shoe and The Agro Cup still to come.

Cheers,
Richard.

Pesta Hoki USM-Penang International 2010

Hi all,
 
we got a invitation to the biggest Hockey tournament in the world
It is a 6 and 7 a side tournament from 10- to 12 dec. in Penang
 
anybody interrested to go ?
 
Please let me know, i will coordinate this tour.
 
Frenchy 

 

Dear Team Managers,

 

37th ANNUAL PESTA HOKI USM-PENANG INTERNATIONAL 2010 (10-12 DECEMBER 2010)

 

A SPECIAL INVITATION

 

On behalf of Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, I have the pleasure in inviting teams from your end to participate in our unique sporting event: PESTA HOKI USM-PENANG INTERNATIONAL 2010, the world's biggest hockey carnival in the sixes and sevens category to be held on the 10-12 December 2010 at the University.

 

This carnival will bring together over three thousand hockey players, officials and sports enthusiasts from Malaysia and neighbouring countries converging in the University's ground for an exciting three days of competition, cultural exchange and friendship.

 

It gives me great pleasure to invite your teams to join the 37th edition of the hockey carnival. We are looking forward to meeting you in this prestigious tournament.

 

Attached herewith is the official invitation letter. Should you require further information, please visit our official website at www.usm.my/pestahoki or email us at pestahoki@usm.my.

 

Thank you.

 

Yours sincerely,

Rajiv Sharma
Vice Chairperson 2,
Pesta Hoki USM-Penang International 2010.

+6014-905-3063

When Indoor meets Outdoor in hockey

A selection of Unfit "allstar" from 1st division Team and the Killer Beez started yesterday a new version of indoor hockey season here at the Delta Sport Hall.
After a updates on the rules (which proved useless since the umpires did not know the rules themselves) and tactics and telling Nick that in indoor hockey you can use only one side of your stick, We started a mix that Purist will call a outdoor version of indoor hockey.
The Tornados Team was outpassed by a fitter and more skillfull SRC team or commonly know as RECs. I believe the T-REx must have some kind of familly links with them as they eat us yesterday. With a Score line of 7-2 for them. (i lost count may be more), despite this we manage to show some good moves toward the end of the game. Thank to our Johor Boy Sham for scoring a PC and one of the SRC player who score against his team when Frenchy gave a pass back that bounced into his feet and went in.
Special dedication to Kotters who played the role of goalie but without padds when he stops one of their numerous short corner with his knee. We are still looking for his knee if you found it please call 1-800-.
Our Garfield made numerous saves and without him we could have ended with a more damaging score line.
Thank all for coming and support us. Special thank for all our Supporter : Sara and to our manager of the day : our Tornados Royal highest Queenie.
See you next Wednesday 20-Oct at 8PM to play against SCC.

Ladies: THC 3 NYP 2

Tornados took to the field for the first time in months to face a new look NYP side in what would be Emilies’ last game before returning to France later this month.  As well as saying farewell to our plucky goaly we were welcoming some new people into the ever growing Tornados family.   I had always wondered why the NYP pitch wasn’t used for league games and it became apparent while warming up that the pitch itself was rock solid and the lighting kinda dim, but never mind we were all set to continue our winning ways. 

The match began with Tornados scoring three goals in the first 10 minutes or so, during which time the match was more or less entirely played in the NYP half.  The first goal came from a short corner, Lauren pushed out the ball, Gemma missed it chased back to retrieve it and then found Lauren in aches of space who deftly lifted the ball over the keeper.  The second goal game from a low hard cross which Rosie swept into the top of the goal and the final goal came from Gemma who topped that ball and it dribbled under the keepers foot.  Tornados should have scored a hatful more – Serena was unlucky when the diving keeper blocked her shot and well Gemma just couldn’t score.  During the first half the rock solid defence of TJ, Cynthia and Jen were rarely troubled and when NYP did get a shot in it was usually on the reverse stick side and went sailing over the goal. 

The second half was a little tougher for Tornados that the first.  Whether it was the long hockey break, the lack of playing together or trying to battle the odd umpiring decisions  I don’t know but NYP managed to score two goals.  But all in all it was a good result with all the new players adapting to our formation (although we could have done with the coach to explain to people where they should be). 

Emilie we will miss you in goal, Good Luck in France, hope you continue to play.

Team: Emilie, Jen, TJ, Cynthia, Lauren, Chris, Rox, Lou, Rosie, Gemma, Abi, Sara, Bernadette, Jasmine, Serena, Charlotte C

 

Beez add another 3 points

A tired Beez team ran out 1-0 winners against the Police. It was the Beez second game in 2 days and having only 1 sub didn't help. However, a fine and gutsy performance was put in and the Beez goal was rarely challenged. The Beez had many chances but had to wait until mid way through the second half to score when Richard A slid in ahead of the keeper to put the ball in the back of the goal. The Beez now have a 2 week break before the last game of the season against ORA.

Tornados on Channel 5: Wed 13 Oct

The Ladies Team will be appearing on Channel 5 this week!

Last month they played a friendly game so that one of the contestants in the TV show "Lose to Win 2" could test her stamina on the hockey pitch.

The segment of the hockey shoot will be aired on 13th October 2010, 9pm-9:30-pm on Channel 5.

Watch out for post-game interviews with Gemma, TJ and Richard!

Beez beat National Ladies 3-1

The Killer Beez salvaged some pride for this season with a comfortable 3-1 victory over the Singapore National Ladies Team with 2 Goals from Mitch and 1 from Izzie. A rare defensive lapse let the ladies in for the consolation goal that the Men in Green had been desperate to give them. Izzie, the ginger sweat velcro monster, also added a yellow card to his goal after indecently assaulting one of the opposition defenders. Lets hope he doesn't try the same tomorrow against the Police.

Tornados 3s in out-standing 3-0 win!

Tonados hit the game v Ngee Ann Poly almost sprinting after some hard hitting facts from some previous lack-lustre games. the team saw where their problems were and managed to fix them in this game: the structure held beautifully and the charge on the opposition goal was relentless.

Ngee Ann poly, playing only their third game of the season, failed to work out what Tornados were doing. Well, it was quite simple: stack the midfield, focus on structure, structure and a little more structure. It started to pay dividends midway through the first half with a goal by Richard Goddard after some good build up work across the whole pitch.

All players were stepping up into their new responsibilities, with Stuart King, Steve Champ and Barry Daniels all playing a "defensive half" role for part of the game. These three were forever getting the ball off the opposition in the Tornados half and sending it forward to let the rest of the midfield wreck havoc: and so they did! Tim Barkham, Tim Allen, Daenan and Stephen Park all were ripping through the opposition, and even more fun to watch were some of the little linking taps between the various players.

The second half got off well with a goal early on by Tim Barkham, and continued in the same light with Stephen Park slotting a rebound from Inn Kuang's shot.

Overall this game showed just how well the 3rds can play. Earning their "Best Team in the Club" status during a training session on Thursday evening after beating the 1s 1-0, they capitalised on the teachings from Richard and took it onto the pitch.

The 3s get a rest for a few weeks and will then go into the final few games of the season. With 3 wins and 2 draws from 7 matches, they stand in a good position to finish in the top 4 and the play-offs. More hard work for all will bring it on for them.

MoM - Overwhelming from players and supporters alike, Stephen Park scooped the prize.

"10"

Ten Spartans of the Tornados First XI gave NTU a master class in possession hockey as their 5 man midfield controlled an exciting game at Seng Kang. The Ten-man THC took all 3 points in a well deserved 1-0 win.

Superior tactics from super-coach Richard outfoxed NTU as the Tornados famous spirit enabled the team to out-fight their youthful opponents.

An outstanding performance in le goal by Frenchy was entirely in keeping with the team's commitment and attitude that saw XP win MVP for a sterling effort on the left wing.

Neil's cross-field aerials were a constant threat as Joran galloped onto the ball and wobbled into the space created by a pacey Nick, whose tireless runs wore the defence ragged.

The defence were rock-solid again, with new boy John Clark showing why he was such an important mid-season signing as he linked up seamlessly with Sanjay and Rego.

In midfield, Matt P virtually came direct from the airport and overcame jetlag to put in his, now customary, stellar performance and Kamran proved Newton wrong as his perpetual motion machine only stopped when it came time for a well deserved chocolate milkshake after the game.

The Tornados now have a 3 week gap and restart on October 30th against SRC.

Season Effectively over for the Beez

A lacklustre performance from the Beez on a hot afternoon at Sengkang saw them go down 2-1 to the Singapore Veterans, ending any outside hope the Beez had of making the playoffs.

The Beez now head into a double header weekend against the Front Bums and the Plod.

Div 3 - Sikhs 3 Tornados 1

The Div3 team played at Sengkang on Saturday afternoon, and went down to top-of-the-table Sikhs 3-1. The game was of two halves for Tornados, poor team structure led to a couple of soft goals (plus a very well worked one) by Sikhs to take them into the interval 3-0 up. A good team talk was had at half time: structure and keep possession were the two main aims for the second half. This was actually followed, which tightened up the defence nicely to keep a clean sheet. the right wing also was asking questions throughout the half, and after a build up including Naveen and Dan, Richard Goddard scored the Tornados goal.

Better swork will prevent this in future: team structure is always required so the aim for the next game is to do just that.

Improvement from this game was in discipline: we argued with the umpires a lot less than normal. If we can get the discipline working in our other areas, we still have a chance of a top 4 finish and then it's knock-out hockey to be played!

Thurs 30th Sep 8pm at Delta v CSC, 8pm - TO BE CONFIRMED

Sun 3rd Oct at Senkang P2 v Ngee Ann Poly, 6pm

1s Suffer in Scorching Heat

The First Team succumbed to a surprise loss today in sweltering conditions at Seng Kang.

Missing 2 key midfielders, and playing against a much younger C&C, the Tornados never managed to get into their stride. As the sun sapped their energy, they were unable to properly employ their, usually formidable, full-court press. They still managed to dominate the first half, yet were caught on the break just 3 times and came in at half time 3-1 down, much against the run of play.

It was not the day to chase a game and, despite the team spirit and commitment holding firm, the heat, combined with inferior fitness, meant that the final result was 5-1.

The League Championship, although not impossible, now seems a struggle. However, the Tornados still look strong to qualify for the knock-out competition.

10 Valiant Beez Lose 2-1

The 10 men of the Beez turned up at Sengkang to find 16 embryos from the Indian Association busy warming up for the match. Sloppy defending let IA in for their first goal but it was practically the only mistake the defence made during the game. Both the Defence and Midfield put 110 percent into the game and nobody can complain about the team's commitment. The Beez forwards had little support but managed to make a few chances for themselves.

The Beez went 2-0 down early in the second half from an excellent reverse stick hit from IA. Despite playing with only 10 players the Beez got back into the game with Agro (Mr Meat Popsicle) netting yet another goal. With the defence soaking up all the IA attacks the Beez even had chances on the break to square the game late on.

A very solid shift from the Beez despite the loss.

Div 3 result: Tornados 1 IA 1

The Div 3 mens team came away with a well fought 1-1 draw with the Indian Association early Sunday morning (well, anytime on Sunday morning is early!)

The first half was a scrappy affair with both teams complaining loudly to the umpires over several issues, and though the strange (through these rose-tinted specs) decisions kept coming, the game played on. The shin-padless IA no 7 capitalised on his light feet and wove through the Tornados defence with stick, ball and feet to slot in the opening goal half way through the first half.

Tornados stuck to their guns and carried on making clever decisions out of defence, and the second half started brightly with some good interplay between Sharoull and Daenan showed the Tornados weren't beaten yet. IA had sporadic attacks including a couple of PCs, but still the defence held. One tight moment with 10 mins to go saw the goalie keep the ball out and Tornados in the game. As the clock ran down, Tornados started putting together some fine, urgent hockey which ended with a fine hit forward collected by Richard Goddard and flicked left to Naveen. Naveen then slotted the ball lovely into the top of the net, bringing the scores equal at 69 mins. The urgency continued but just not enough time to get that second goal.

The beers were again well earned, and Calyton came away with MoM.

Thanks again to the supporters/managers, and we look forward to next weeks game (4:30pm, v Sikhs SC at Sengkang P2, Saturday 25th September, with the Beaz on pitch 1 playing IA at the same time).

Killer Beez really do sting!!

The Killer Beez found their form again to run out comfortable winners against the Cheeseheads. Goals either half of the break from Dr Fungus and a short corner strike from French Billy, on his debut after promotion from the 1's, saw the Beez win 3-0. Garfield at the back remained a noisy spectator for most of the game.

Notable mentions go out to Towners for trying to hatch the ball and Kotters for his frequent visits to the big white telephone in the changing rooms.

Hockey this weekend

Hi Tornados followers,

Tornados teams play three games on this weekend, with the game that was due to tonight being postponed by the SHF earlier this week. All games move to SengKang for the weekend, and will continue to be there for most games from now on. The pitches are great, having had both the Youth Hockey World Cup and Youth Olympics on them in the last year, but as we all know, it takes an age to get there. If you are going, make sure you plan in travel time.

Both the Div 1 and Killer Beaz, take on the mighty Orangemen this weekend. The KB's, by league position, seem evenly matched, with the Dutch being one position below the Killer Beaz. See them in action on Saturday 18th Sept, 4:30pm.

Div 1 team are lying second, with a won 2 drawn 2 record, and come up against a Dutch team yet to gain a point from their games. The game is on Sunday 19th Sept at 6pm.

The Div 3 team are in a loose sandwich between the two games, coming up against the Indian Association at 10:30am, Sunday 19th Sept. We know what IA are like, but a promise good turn out in numbers should bolster the team and make the game a lot easier than recent ones.

For info, Div3 team have had 2 reasons to be cheerful this week: first, the SHF overturned an 8-1 drubbing against JFA due to ineligible players, handing the Tondados a 3-0 win. That moved them to 3rd place. OK, it was won by default, but the team are anxious to capitalise on such leaps. Secondly, the dreaded Friday night game against CSC at SengKang was postponed by the SHF. The re-scheduled game is to be confirmed, but is likely to be at Delta on a Thursday night, much easier for everyone to get to.

Get your pom poms out boys and girls, and give the Tornados a cheers!

Tornados Hockey Social News

Dear All,

Just a quick couple of 'save the dates' for upcoming Tornados Hockey Club social events and functions:

Tornados Halloweeeeeeeeeeeeeeen Party!

When: Saturday 30th October, 2010 - 7.30pm till late!

Where: Harrys @ Boat Quay

Details: Fancy Dress!

(Pricing & ticketing to be announced............)

'The Agro Cup!'

When: Sunday 31st October, 2010 - 2pm onwards

Where: Hockey Village

Details: Intra-club 'State-of-Origin' tournament

These dates are FIRM in the diary. More information on registration for both events to follow soon........

GO TORNADOS!!!!!!!

Best wishes,

Fishy (Social Sec)

Quiz Night Write-up

For those of you who were at the Quiz Night, you might be interested to read the write-up and photos in the KC Dat Magazine.

You can download it from here.

Charity Hockey Game Fri 8th Oct

Hi Tornados Members and supporters,

Tornados HC in collaboration with SCC and The Dutch Club and sanctionned by the SHF will be organising a Charity Game :

"Foreign Talent All Stars " vs Singapore National Team.

The game is in Support for the Floods victims in Pakistan. Why Pakistan? Because it's a hockey Nation and we as a hockey fraternity can help them.

I hope we can full support from the THC Members. We will be looking for some volunteers to run drinks stall, collect money and run activities.

Thank You

Frenchy.

New Committee (Provisional)

Dear Tornados,

A new committee structure has been proposed to better cope with a larger, more active club and, of course, the impending departure of Agro, our rudder for so many years.

This is in no way meant to exclude anyone so, if you are keen to get involved, please step up as we always need more help.

The intent is to put this new structure in place in September to see how it goes, make adjustments as necessary and formally ratify it at the AGM in January.

Please feel free to contact anyone below if you have any questions or suggestions.

--------------------------

President - Jerry Singh

Secretary - TJ and
Assistant Secretary - TBC from the men's section
Keep records, liaise with ROS, SHF, new membership enquiries, website, book astro

Treasurer - Richard Ayres
Propose subs, plan budget, handle transactions, liaise with IRAS

Social Secretary - Gareth Fish
To be assisted by a Social Committee, comprising of the captain or nominated representative from each team. Major events shall be:
- Start of Season Party before the Ladies League
- Mid Season Party between the Leagues
- Awards Night at end of Men's League
- Intra-Club State of Origin Mixed Cup

Tour Secretary - Kirsten
Liaise with various tournament organisers and to nominate/assist organisers for individual tours

Quartermaster  - Tony
Ordering kit and equipment

Ladies's Representative - Rotating
The Ladies will have their own sub-committee to reflect the fact that their league is at a different time from the men, and will provide one member for each committee meeting. This committee will also be on hand to assist the Club Committee as necessary.

TORNADOS HOCKEY SOCIAL NEWS

Dear All,

This Saturday will see Australia play New Zealand in another Bledisloe Cup match! A game sure to be full of excitement, flair and passion! Will Australia sneak it with a last minute three pointer like last week? Will New Zealand continue their dominance of this years' Tri-Nations?

Don't care?......Well you should!!!! As your Tornados Harry's Card needs to see some game time!!!!!!

Join other Tornados to watch this event whilst enjoying some beers nicely discounted by your Tornados Harry's Cards!!!!!!!! (Harry's HPL bottled lager at $5 each!!!!!!!)

Event: Australia v New Zealand

Location: Harry's @ Robertson Quay

Date/Time: Saturday 11th September 2010, 6pm KO (followed by Everton v ManU at 7:45pm)

Get down there to support The Tornados!

Regards,

Fishy

(Social Secretary - Tornados Hockey Club)

Prodigal Son Brings Win for 3s

Div 3 - Tornados 1 OVA 0

The Tornados Div3 team won their first game of the league which should keep us mid table. Not the best, but certainly an improved performance across the board and some good individual performances.

A great game for Paul Bains to come back and show us what he's learnt in Hong Kong including goal scoring, and great to meet a few more players that is making our game that little bit tighter. Huge game for everyone that helped out in defence, which just didn't stop communicating all through the game. MoM was a hard choice, Barry Daniels quite rightly took the award for a strong performance in that defence. A deserved 1-0 win, well done lads!

The game was very tight, with incursions into both D areas frequent enough, but neither team getting the killer instinct to take them ahead. The odd ball coming into the keeper just pinged back off, and though several penalty corners were awarded to OVA, the runners, lead by Barry, kept them from a decent shot on goal all day long.

The light took a turn for the worse in the second half, with floodlights not being in full working order, but the game carried on after the umpires brought out their light meters and confirmed with captains.

Paul B's goal was just weird: he's claiming a dribble in from his own D, but we really know it was closer to their 25. Still fantastic, and though the writer was unsighted, the cheers from the forwards and the shrill umps whistle meant loud cheers from the sideline cheerleaders and goalie as well.

Comedy moment of the day? Watching Dan and Barry trying to stand up and leave Harry's after a couple of beers. Trust me, we were laughing for 5 mins....because that's how long it took!

Huge thanks to all that came to watch us, many thanks for lending your voices, cheers and assistance throughout the game. Please keep it up: it's a bit further away next time!

Next games:
Friday 17th Sept - 8:00pm v CSC - Sengkang Pitch 2
Sunday 19th Sept - 10:30am v IA - Sengkang Pitch 2

Please start filling in the google doc

Beez Still Looking to Earn Stripes

The Killer Beez are still looking for top gear as they lost a game against SCC that should have been there for the taking. The Beez went 1-0 down early in the 1st half when a poor 16 was intercepted as it crossed the top of the D allowing the SCC forward to shoot unopposed into the far corner.

SCC doubled their lead later in the 1st half when the Beez were caught with far too many players forward. SCC broke away and ended up with a 3 0n 1 on the Beez goal.

The Beez did manage to improve in the second half but went down 3-0 from a strong reverse hit which Garfield got a hand to but will be disappointed not to have kept out.

The Beez have now probably played all the strongest teams in Div 2 and must now regroup to put some points on the table. An outside chance of a playoff place is still there.

Games Week End 5th Sep.

Hi all,

 

below are this week end Games :

 

Sunday, September 5

 

4:30pm

 M2 v SCC at Delta

 

6:00pm

 M3 v OVA

 

M1 does not played and will resume league game on the 19 Sept.

 

good luck to M2 and M3

Tornados move top of Division 1

30 August 2010, SINGAPORE |Tornados move to the top of the Singapore Hockey Federation SHF Men's Division 1 table following their fine 2-1 win over defending champions Singapore Recreation Club (SRC).
Despite sitting at the pinnacle of the league, the Tornados know that they still have lots to do if they are to wrest the title they won back in 2008 this term. Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) and C&C United are both undefeated and look truly solid.
The mix of experience and youth has aided SCC's quest for the title this season but newly promoted C&C are the surprise package of the league. The former came back from 2-goals down to beat the league leaders Tornados 3-2 while the youthful look of the latter has injected much needed freshness into the league and more positives are expected from the team coached by Fred Martens.
Meanwhile, last season's finalist Hollandse Club lie a lowly 6^th in the table following their shock 2-1 reverse at the hands of C&C United. SRC are a place below them no thanks to alphabetical ranking. However both these sides are expected to bounce back and make headway in the right direction as the league progresses.
Old Rafflesians Association (ORA) and Nanyang Technological University played out an exciting 3-3 draw to help neither side make progress up the table. Nonetheless, ORA are now in 4^th spot and that would be somewhere they would like to be at the end of the league.
Results and upcoming fixtures:

Date	Home	Score	Away	Time	Venue
27 Aug 10	SCC	3-2	Tornados HC	8pm	Delta
29 Aug 10	Hollandse Club	1-2	C & C United	3pm	Delta
29 Aug 10	NTU	3-3	ORA	4.30pm	Delta
29 Aug 10	Tornados HC	2-1	SRC	6pm	Delta
Date	Home	Score	Away	Time	Venue
5 Sep 10	SCC		C & C United	3pm	Delta
5 Sep 10	SRC		ORA	4.30pm	Delta
5 Sep 10	Hollandse Club		NTU	6pm	Delta

EHL 2010-2011: Draw and Venues known!

Euro Hockey League 2010-2011: Round 1 Draw and Venue Announcement

2 September 2010

The Euro Hockey League (EHL) and the European Hockey Federation (EHF) are delighted to announce both the draw and the venues for the first Rounds of the 2010-2011 EHL Season. The draw was made jointly by Marijke Fleuren (NED) and Jorge Alcover (ESP), Vice Presidents of the European Hockey Federation.

Round 1.1 will take place in The Netherlands at Eindhoven's HC Oranje Zwart between the 15th and 17th October 2010. The tournament will feature the teams drawn into Pools B, E, F and H, which include European giants such as Rot-Weiss Köln (GER), HGC (NED), Club de Campo (ESP) and reigning EHL Champions UHC Hamburg (GER), as well as the host club who will be participating in their first ever EHL event.

Round 1.2 heads to Spain, with Atlétic Terrassa HC hosting the teams that will compete in Pools A, C, D and G between the 29th and 31st October 2010. As well as the famous team from the host club, other big names include Teun de Nooijer's HC Bloemendaal (NED), 2009-10 EHL Semi Finalists Real Club de Polo de Barcelona (ESP) and Mannheimer HC (GER), the new club of Germany international superstar Matthias Witthaus.
At Eindhoven, German champions Rot-Weiss Köln have been drawn into Pool B where they face a tricky start to their EHL campaign against Madrid's Club de Campo (ESP) – a team featuring former Club Egara stars Edi Tubau and Guillermo Schickendantz – as well as Belgian runners up Racing Club Bruxelles. Pool E sees European Champions UHC Hamburg facing Belgian and Russian opponents in KHC Dragons and Izmaylovo Moscow respectively, while former EHL finalists HGC take on Pembroke Wanderers (IRL) and Olympia Kolos Sekvoia (UKR) in Pool F. Host club Oranje Zwart have been drawn into Pool H, where Russian champions Dinamo Kazan and Polish runners up KS Pomorzanin Torun will provide stiff opposition.

Atlétic Terrassa Hockey Club has the pleasure of welcoming HC Bloemendaal – EHL champions in 2008-09 – who will compete in Pool A against England's Reading HC and SC Stroitel Brest of Belarus. Home favourites Atlétic Terrassa will be vociferously supported by their fans when they face Beeston HC (ENG) and CA Montrouge, the champions of France. Ashley Jackson's East Grinstead (ENG) will do battle with RC de Polo de Barcelona (ESP) and Kelburne (SCO) in Pool D, while WKS Grunwald Poznan (POL), Mannheimer HC (GER) and Glenanne HC (IRL) will fight it out in Pool G.

Over the course of the two tournaments in Eindhoven and Terrassa, 24 teams will be reduced to the 16 participants that will take part in Easter's famous KO16 event.
"The high quality venues at HC Oranje Zwart and Atlétic Terrassa ensure that the Euro Hockey League is continuing to pursue the high standards that we have set over the past three seasons", said Jan Verboom, Operational Manager of the Euro Hockey League. "The EHL and the European Hockey Federation are greatly looking forward to working with both clubs in the organisation of what should be two outstanding first round events."

Full information regarding the draw for the EHL first rounds can be found at www.ehlhockey.tv. A full listing of the match schedule for the tournament will be released next week, with details regarding the sale of tickets being announced in the coming weeks.

KL Tours Pictures online

Official Pictures of RSC tournament of July 2010 are now online :
http://s800.photobucket.com/home/jonathanrsc/allalbums

Friday blues to Sunday cheers!

 

A difficult set of matches over the weekend pitted the 1^st team against SCC and SRC. It was a mixed bag of results that ultimately ended on a high with a strong win against the ‘young ones’ of SRC.

 

Friday’s match was always going to be a challenge against a side that we drew against in the first game of the season, but after a strong start we were quickly 2-0 up following some fine finishing from resident Sri-Lankan paceman, Pasan - who was also man of the match. Unfortunately while we continued to threaten more goals, SCC began to find their feet and following some clinical goals on their part they were once again back in the mix.

 

The second half continued in the same vein with Tornadoes threatening, but failing, to find the back of the net and once again SCC took their chances and we were staring at our first defeat of the season. Great commitment was shown again across the board but this time the goals eluded us!

 

Fresh from that defeat, Sunday was an opportunity against SRC to make amends and from front to back this was probably our strongest performance of the season. At the front, Pasan once again demonstrated his fleet-footedness, while Gary seemed to have found 5^th gear;  interplayed with strong hold-up play from Paddy and inventive passing from Rashid, we were looking very dangerous going forward. Composure was the name of the game both defensively and in the midfield and it was no surprise when we took the lead from a sweet drag-flick from Gary. While we continued to press, more opportunities came and barring some heroic keeping from SRC we would have been a couple up at half time.

 

Unfortunately Tornadoes were left to rue not stretching their lead, when SRC struck back through a well taken drag flick of their own. The match was finely poised for long periods of the second half and this was backed up by some fantastic saves from le gardien de but and man of the match, Frenchy. There was also tireless running from Joran and co in the midfield and strong tackling from our back three – Rego, Steve and Matt. However as the game entered the last ten minutes, Pasan was released down the right and following a deflection in the box, Paddy was able to sweep home for a well deserved Tornadoes victory.

 

We now go into a three week break on the back of a convincing win and performance that set us up well for the remainder of the season.

 

 

Results Weekend (27-29 Aug)

Hi All,

Results of the weekend

Friday, August 27
M1 2 v SCC 3

Sunday, August 29
M2 1 v SRC 5
M3 0 v Khalsa 1
M1 2 v SRC 1

KBs turn into Asthmatic Ants

After going up 1-0 with a slightly dubious Agro goal the Killer Bees succumbed 5-1 against a decent SRC side. As usual just about every decision went SRC's way. Apparently they are allowed to dribble around the D using their feet.

The game was marred by a very serious looking hand injury to Kiss and Mitch also limped off early in the 1st half. This left the Beez playing with 1 substitute compared to the 6 plus a spare keeper for SRC.

The second half turned out to be a bit of an onslaught on the Beez goal but despite this we did manage to create some chances at the other end.

A massively improved performance will be needed next week!

Games This Weekend (27-29 Aug)

Hi All,

Below is this weekend's Tornados HC teams games schedule.
All games at Delta beside the third playing at CCAB.

Please Note the 1st Team has 2 games

Friday, August 27
8:00pm M1 v SCC at Delta

Sunday, August 29
10:30am M2 v SRC at Delta
3:00pm M3 v Khalsa at CCAB
6:00pm M1 v SRC at Delta

Mucha

Live internet Broadcast of the YOG

here a link for the live broadcast of all the sports at the YOG :
 
http://www.youtholympicgames.org/

Tornados Mixed Hockey Comp

Tornados proved themselves generous hosts as the guest Dutch team won the inaugural THC Mixed Hockey Tournament.

50 players from across all Tornados teams mixed it up to form 4 new teams for the day that, along with a guest team from Hollandse Club, competed in a round-robin 8-a-side competition on Saturday afternoon.

Dave's Destroyers topped the league and looked strong for the title. However, they narrowly lost to the Dutch in an exciting, if hastily arranged, penalty shoot-out after a 1-1- draw in the final.

Hockey, though, was the real winner. Once the games were done, the BBQ was fired up and the sausage sizzle kicked in. Rain then forced many players to stay at the Hockey Village and drink beer into the evening.

Big thanks to Rob and Queenie for sorting the food and to Emilie for corralling the teams.

Cleaning club GK Kit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NwL4vzfgPU

Tornados on YouTube

Catch all the thrilling highlights of the 1st team's 2-2 draw against ORA on YouTube.

Cheer as Paddy converts a penalty corner, whoop as Joran dives for a tackle and gasp as Frenchy upends an ORA forward (in slow motion!)

First Half

Second Half

We're looking for volunteers to record future games from the stands and are able to pay anyone willing in beer.

Wooden Shoe - Sat 23 Oct

Rabobank Wooden Shoe SAVE THE DATE - Saturday 23 october 2010

On Saturday 23 October 2010, the Dutch Hockey community - part of the " Hollandse Club' - will organise the 17th edition of the "Wooden Shoe Hockey Tournament". This unique, one day sport event is an outstanding intercultural happening in SIngapore.

It is a 7-a-side tournament for both men and women teams. The tournament will be played at the Sengkang Hockey Stadium.

SAVE THE DATE! More information and subscription forms are coming soon!

Contact: woodenshoe2010@gmail.com

THC 1s Top of the Table

The First Team were held to a 2-2 draw by Old Rafflesians on Sunday afternoon. For the Tornados, who were leading 2-0 after 30 minutes, it was definitely a case of 2 points dropped but still enough to put them top of the league.

Andrew Barnardiston, Man of the Match, opened the scoring after 6 minutes when he picked up a pass from Patrick Fok and let rip from the top of the circle. Patrick then made it 2-0 when he cleaned up a rebound from a short corner on 30 minutes. Two minutes before half time, however, ORA broke away after intercepting a back-pass and managed to find the back of the Tornados net courtesy of a fluked reverse stick shot that bobbled up over the keeper.

The second half saw the Tornados hit the post, miss a penalty and Frenchy save a p-flick yet. Despite heroic defending, the Tornados still conceded a goal minutes before full time. However, the team spirit continues to be strong and there was no lack of commitment, with players thoroughly unafraid to throw themselves around and make runs to support and defend. Combining talented players with a great team game, THC are very much the team to beat this season.

Despite the disappointment of a draw, THC go into the August break undefeated and riding high on the back of 3 good performances. In a division where each team plays each other twice, THC are still very much in the driving seat to win the title.

Spirited 3s Climb Learning Curve

The Tornados 3s showed plenty of heart and fought to the end despite going down 8-1 to league favourites JFA.

Rob Glover, outstanding in goal, was instrumental in keeping the score in single figures and thoroughly deserved Man of the Match. THC's goal came from a short corner deep in the second half, with Daenan collecting a rebound from Sharroul's initial strike.

When they did get into their rhythm, the forward line showed promise with Morgan and Daenan linking up well to provide THC with a couple of good chances of a goal.

Ultimately fitness was the telling factor and, despite showing plenty of skill, a static midfield was always going to struggle against the youth of JFA whose players obviously had gone to bed early the previous night.

The Tornados now have a 3 week break to work on fitness before the season restarts.