England

Men Women

As expected, England coach Bobby Crutchley has named his strongest possible squad for this tournament, with experienced trio Ashley Jackson, Simon Mantell, and Nick Catlin being selected alongside brilliant captain Barry Middleton, a player considered to be among the very best attackers in the game. However, the team will be without defender and penalty corner specialist Richard Smith, who looks likely to miss all of the 2014 calendar due to knee surgery. Midfield ace Adam Dixon, who has been one of England’s star performers over the past 18 months, has also been selected despite recently suffering ligament damage whilst representing his club side Beeston in the Euro Hockey League. England claimed a fifth place finish in the 2006 Hockey World Cup in Mönchengladbach (GER) and went one better at the 2010 event in New Delhi (IND) by finishing fourth. Their talented, fit and well drilled squad certainly has the potential to get among the medals in The Hague.

Best World Cup results:
The men took silver in 1986 (London) and they have taken part in 11 previous World Cups.

FIH World Ranking:
4th

News:
06-05-2014: Bobby Crutchley, coach of the England men
21-03-2014: Meet Ashley Jackson
18-03-2014: Busy timetable faces England's hopefuls
17-03-2014: This is: England!
04-07-2013: German and English men qualify

Team

1 George Pinner

2 James Bailey

6 Henry Weir

7 Ashley Jackson

8 Simon Mantell

9 Harry Martin

11 Alistair Brogdon

12 Michael Hoare

14 Mark Gleghorne

16 Adam Dixon

18 Barry Middleton

20 Dan Shingles

21 Tim Whiteman

22 David Condon

23 Tom Carson

24 Iain Lewers

26 Nick Catlin

27 Dan Fox

Staff

Head Coach - Bobby Crutchley

Assistant Coach - Jon Bleby

Team Manager - David Ralph

Stand-In Manager - Andy Halliday

Team Doctor - Rob Hurry

Physiotherapist - Julia Sawkings

England have earned the respect and admiration of every hockey playing nation thanks to a string of medals at world levels events in recent years. The team claimed Bronze at the 2010 World Cup in Rosario (ARG) before going on to form the majority of the Great Britain team that would take Olympic Bronze at the London 2012 Games. 2013 proved to be another special year for the team coached by former England & GB men’s boss Jason Lee, who guided the women to Silver and Bronze medals at the European Championships and World League Final respectively. The squad remains largely unchanged from those events, although one notable omission is the vastly experienced midfielder Helen Richardson-Walsh, who has been suffering with ongoing back problems. Lee has also named two relative newcomers in attacker Ellie Watton and defender Zoe Shipperley, while talented young players like Sophie Bray and Lily Owsley are really starting to establish themselves on the international scene. With three World Cups under her belt and a Bronze medal from the 2010 event, England captain Kate Richardson-Walsh will be hoping her side can improve on third this time around. Having beaten the top two sides in the world last year - the Netherlands and Argentina – England head into the tournament as genuine contenders.

Best World Cup results:
The women won bronze in 2010 (Rosario) and have taken part in eight previous World Cups.

FIH World Ranking:
3rd

News:
27-03-2014: Coach Karen's missing medal
21-03-2014: Dancing with England
18-03-2014: Busy timetable faces England's hopefuls
17-03-2014: This is: England!
29-06-2013: England and Argentina in World Cup