Switzerland assistant coach Linda Haussener is anticipating a “ruthless” women’s EuroHockey Indoor Championship in Berlin this week as they return for their fourth appearance in the top division.
They move up from the second tier after a fourth place finish in Ourense in 2022 and come into well prepared thanks to six games in four days against South Africa in Basel last week.
That yielded two wins, three draws and a loss while they also played in a great invitational tournament in Ipoh, Malaysia, the HRH Tuanku Zara Women’s International Indoor Tournament last November where they reached the final.
They have named a side with an average age of 25 with a smattering of experience from around Europe. Sofie Stomps – whose brother Boris impressed in Leuven last weekend – has shone for SV Kampong this season while Sae Fontant also play in the Netherlands with AMVJ.
Charline Heselhaus is with UHC Hamburg and Nele Pöhler plays for Ludwigsburg in Germany. Beyond them, there are a quartet from both Luzerne SportClub and Rotweiss Wettingen.
In Ourense 2022, Ursina Fazis was named goalkeeper of the tournament while Stomps was the most valuable young player. Tamara Trösch will play her 50th indoor cap in Berlin, which is a Swiss record – the Rotweiss player lines out alongside her sister Elena.
“Competition at such a tournament is ruthless,” says Haussener of the challenge ahead. “You play two games a day and, with this format, every point and really every goal counts.
“You need to be able to bounce back quickly and move on both from games won and games lost in order to compete at the highest level each time you get on the pitch.
“We know our strengths and we know that they can make us win games, but it will be our mental resilience that will determine how far we will go in this tournament.”
Coach Mathias Schaeben adds: “I’m expecting a tournament in a great venue. We want to play a good European Championship and, of course, stay in the A-division. However, the competition is balanced, so that everything up and down can be possible.”
** 28 of the games will be streamed live from Berlin on www.eurohockeytv.org
** To find out more about the stats, fixtures and teams, click here: https://tms.fih.ch/competitions/1551
