Brendan Creed wants Great Britain’s men’s hockey team to use their FIH Pro League victory over Germany as a spark of momentum for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
On their return to international action, GB edged a thriller 5-3 at Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, in a match that swung back and forth for 60 minutes.
A frantic first half saw Liam Ansell, Creed, Phil Roper and Chris Griffiths all find the net for the hosts, yet Moritz Rothlander’s goal just a minute in, combined with strikes from Thies Prinz and Paul Doesch, kept the visitors in the contest at 4-3 behind.
A slightly less dramatic second half ensued but Harry Martin diverted Adam Dixon’s effort from a penalty corner into the net to extend GB’s advantage and goalkeeper Ollie Payne then performed heroics to repel the Germans at the other end and seal the win.
Victory over Germany is always sweet and Creed – after scoring his first competitive goal in five years – is eager for the triumph to be used as a platform with Tokyo 2020 edging ever closer.
“It’s as close to normality as we’ve been in a long time and it’s really nice to be back playing,” he explained.
“It’s a great way to spark momentum, which is what we’ve spoken about a lot in training recently. To get the win here is big especially since we haven’t got that many games in the build-up to the Euros and Olympics.
“The game was a bit higher scoring than we’d hoped in terms of goals conceded but at the same time that’s the sort of thing we need to work on so it’s a good experience.
“It’s been five years since I’ve scored competitively, which was in the league, so for me it was the unknown and not knowing how to react when the ball came to me!”
The men’s contest was the first of a double-header at Lee Valley as GB’s women’s side also faced Germany, only to slip to a last-gasp 3-2 defeat.
Charlotte Stapenhorst struck three minutes from time to secure victory for Germany after Lena Micheel’s moment of magic drew them level 11 minutes into the second half.
Sarah Robertson had opened the scoring for GB on her 150th international appearance and although Jette Fleschutz equalised, Susannah Townsend’s goal just after half-time looked to have put the hosts on course for victory.
But the Germans refused to lie down and eventually turned things around, although Great Britain will have an immediate chance for revenge, with rematches of both the men’s and women’s contests to be played on Thursday evening.