HOCKEY: Their Australian hosts chose the theme from Mission Impossible as the music to accompany Ireland and England's arrival on the pitch at the Perth Hockey Stadium yesterday before the two nations' opening World Cup pool game.
Fifteen minutes after the start, by which time Ireland were 2-0 down and looking hopelessly out of their depth, Mission Impossible seemed like an infinitely more appropriate anthem for Riet Kuper's team at this tournament than Ireland's Call.
By full-time, however, pride was largely restored, even if the points were lost, after a rousing second half display that, if repeated against the United States today (8.05 a.m. Irish time), will give Ireland a fighting chance of yielding their first points of this World Cup.
Even with a 9.35 a.m. start the temperatures were in the high 70s, but the bulk of the Irish team still managed to freeze in the opening spell, with nerves, quite evidently, getting the better of even their most experienced players. By the time Helen Grant gave England the lead, after nine minutes, her team had already forced two short corners, their dominance helped in no small part by a lethargic and decidedly edgy Irish start that produced enough errors, mostly unforced, to have Kuper - not to mention the 500, or so, Irish supporters - wishing she could retire to one of the many hospitality bars at the venue.
Every member of Ireland's back four - Linda Caulfield, Arlene Boyles, Daphne Sixsmith and Katharine Maybin - had moments to forget, while the midfield of Laura Lee, Jill Orbinson and Rachael Kohler was alarmingly over-run. The forward line of Claire McMahon, Jenny Burke and Lynsey McVicker were idle in the morning sun, starved of possession while their team-mates attempted, in vain, to stem the ceaseless flow of English attacks.
Grant gave England their just rewards when she was picked out, inside the circle, by a sublime Lucilla Wright pass from the right wing, and slotted the ball clinically past the advancing Tara Browne. Six minutes later substitute Alex Danson brought another flurry of intense English pressure, during which the Irish rarely escaped their half, to its climax, diving in on the right post to convert Grant's ferocious shot-cum-cross.
Between then and the end of the half Ireland could have - and should have - fallen even further behind but were indebted to sloppy finishing by Anna Bennett and Grant who spurned good scoring opportunities. By then all the promise Ireland had shown in their build-up to the competition seemed like a hazy memory of the very distant variety, with the old failings rearing their ugly heads all over the pitch.
Only the introduction of Eimear Cregan lightened the Irish mood in the first half, the 20-year-old from Castletroy, Co Limerick adding some desperately needed spark. Indeed, it was Cregan who forced the English goalkeeper in to her only action of the first half, Carolyn Reid smartly saving the University of Limerick forward's attempt on goal when she met, first time, Orbinson's cross from the right.
Half time came as an almighty relief. The second half? "Well, we had nothing to lose," as sweeper Arlene Boyles put it after the game. That attitude paid off. Handsomely. In a quite remarkable turn-around Ireland completely dominated the first 20 minutes after the break, pulling one goal back and coming agonisingly close to levelling the game. England didn't know what hit them.
The introduction of Cregan and also Karen Humphreys, Ciara O'Brien - who was superb - and Linda O'Neill lifted Ireland's performance and they turned the tables on England, pinning them back in to their own half for much of the period. Five minutes after the break Mandy Nicholson was harshly adjudged to have stick-tackled McVicker in the English circle and Boyles converted the resulting stroke with gutsy aplomb. Game on.
Beautiful Day greeted the goalon the stadium tannoy but, as Ireland demonstrated six minutes later, they still haven't quite found what they're looking for in terms of goal-scoring forwards. McMahon burst through in to the circle from the right wing and shaped up for a shot on goal - an equaliser beckoned, but her attempt flew wildly over the bar.
Still, Ireland pressed on, pinning England back, with their midfield coming alive and McMahon, Burke and Cregan constantly troubling the defence. Orbinson engineered Ireland's first short corner of the game in the 52nd minute, but Boyles' shot was deflected wide. Just as an equaliser seemed there for the taking, England broke free from the pressure and advanced in to Ireland's circle, with Wright setting up Leisa King for the goal that sealed their victory, 14 minutes from time.
The goal, predictably, dampened Irish spirits but they persisted, with Burke almost narrowing the lead again, only to be denied by substitute goalkeeper Hilary Rose who smothered her close-range shot.
"When we got it back to 2-1 we genuinely believed we could get something out of the game - we created the chances to do it, we just didn't take them," said Boyles. "We're happy enough, though, with our second half performance - we fought back well when it looked all over and gave England a good game in the end. The USA is the big one for us now, just as we always felt it would be - if we play like we did in the second half today we can do it, I'm sure of that."
IRELAND: T Browne, L Caulfield, A Boyles, D Sixsmith, K Maybin, L Lee, J Orbinson, R Kohler (capt), C McMahon, J Burke, L McVicker. Subs: A Platt, K Humphreys, L O'Neill, C O'Brien, E Cregan.
ENGLAND: C Reid, D Marston-Smith, M Clewlow, H Grant, A Bennett, M Nicholson, L Wright, F Houslop, R Walker, L King, A Panter. Subs: H Rose, J Bimson, J Smith, S Blanks, A Danson.
Umpires: M Arnold and C de la Fuente.
WORLD CUP (at Perth); Pool A - China 0 Korea 0; Russia 0 Germany 4; Argentina 1 New Zealand 0; Ukraine 2 Scotland 1. Pool B - Japan 1 Spain 1; Ireland 1 (A Boyles pen) England 3 (H Grant, A Danson, L King); Australia 4 USA 0; Holland 3 South Africa 0.
Today: Pool B (local times) - Japan v Holland, 2.05; South Africa v England, 4.05; Ireland v USA, 6.05 (8.05 a.m. Irish time); Spain v Australia 8.05.
