It is what every elite hockey player dreams of – winning an Olympic Gold Medal. Who will stand on the victory dais in the Rio Olympics? Will it be for the men, the inform Aussies, the formidable Germans, the improving Belgians or consistent Dutch? And who will it be for the women?
It is the Olympics of course and therefore anything is possible. Anything? Yes, as a seasoned hockey player I vividly recall one of the unexpected but best wins by a nation to grab the gold medal in hockey and that was by the New Zealand men’s hockey team in the 1976 Montreal Olympics. These gallant men are celebrating the 40th anniversary of their Olympic win when they caused a stir by defeating the much favoured Australians 1-0 to become the first becoming the first non-Asian/European team to win gold. It took until 2004 for the Australian men’s hockey team to claim their first Olympic Gold Medal.
When the New Zealand team left for the Montreal Olympics in 1976, the hockey team, which was coached by Ross Gillespie, was seldom mentioned as possible medallists. But they soon became the toast of the nation, winning a surprise and welcome gold medal. The New Zealanders, captained by Tony Ineson, began with 1-1 draws against defending champions West Germany and Spain. They then had a 2-1 win against Belgium but lost to Pakistan 5-2 and found themselves in a playoff for the semi finals against Spain. That game was won 1-0 after three periods of extra time, the Kiwis’ superior fitness making the difference.
Then the final against old friends and rivals Australia was 0-0 at halftime, but Ineson broke the deadlock when he scored from a penalty corner 28 minutes from the end. It was to be the only goal. The Australians could not penetrate the grit determination of the Kiwis to stand their ground, especially by match hero, NZ goalkeeper, Trevor Manning.
This is player ‘make up’ of the Australian and New Zealand teams. You may recognise names who to this day play or have played major contributing roles to the development of hockey as we know it today, whether as Elite coaches or sport administrators.
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GOLD |
Paul Ackerley, Jeff Archibald, Arthur Borren, Alan Chesney, John Christensen, Greg Dayman, Tony Ineson,Barry Maister, Selwyn Maister, Trevor Manning, Alan McIntyre, Neil McLeod, Arthur Parkin, Mohan Patel,Ramesh Patel, and Les Wilson. |
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SILVER |
David Bell, Greg Browning, Rick Charlesworth, Ian Cooke, Barry Dancer, Douglas Golder, Robert Haigh,Wayne Hammond, Jim Irvine, Malcolm Poole, Robert Proctor, Graeme Reid, Ronald Riley, Trevor Smith, and Terry Walsh. |
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BRONZE |
Munawwaruz Zaman, Qamar Zia (gk), Shahnaz Sheikh, Saleem Sherwani (gk), Iftikhar Syed, Saleem Nazim, Abdul Rasheed Jr (captain), Hanif Khan, Samiullah Khan, Arshad Mahmood, Islahuddin (vice-captain), Manzoorul Hasan, Manzoor Hussain, Akhtar Rasool, Arshad Ali Chaudry, and Mudassar Asghar. |
When you look at photos and footage of the 1976 Olympic hockey tournament and there is one jarring note: the goalkeepers look hopelessly vulnerable. These days, modern keepers look like Nasa projects. Clad from top to toe in the latest shock-resistant padding, custodians like New Zealand’s Kyle Pontifex look capable of surviving a nuclear winter let alone a 130km/h drag-flick.
Not so Trevor Manning (above). At Montreal, he was wearing nothing more than his uniform, a jaunty sunhat, “abdominal” protector and a pair of cane pads when he stopped a “100-mile-per-hour” rocket from an Australian striker. Only later did the celebrating players learn that their keeper had finished the match with a shattered kneecap.
Fast forward the clock 40 years from 1976 and as these Gold Medallists are planning a 2016 reunion But there is one thing for sure when the Rio Olympics begin they will be in the “corner’ whether by spirit or in the stands to watch the current New Zealand Black Sticks men’s and women’s team give their ‘all’ to emulate what their 1976 forefathers achieved.
Is it possible? The Black Sticks men in the end rightfully made it to Rio and when you have been thrown a ‘life line’ you certainly appreciate it much more and realise nothing is impossible from their world ranked position of 7. The Black Sticks women are going to Rio after a highly successful campaign in the 2015 Hero Hockey World League where they were silver medallists. They are improving constantly under coach, Mark Hager, and are certainly a gold medal contender.
May the current Black Sticks players be inspired by the renowned 1976 New Zealand team’s historical feat.
