EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL KORFBALL TOURNAMENT

Sighthill Sports Centre, Edinburgh

26^th – 27^th January 2013

The team (UEA Game)

With Dundee still celebrating the news that they will finish in the top half of the Scottish League this season, attention turned to the first tournament of the season, the Edinburgh International.  A well-established fixture in the Scottish calendar, the International generally attracts some big names from the korfing world.  One look at Dundee’s group showed, ominously, that this was the case again this year.

A quick reshuffle of the selected teams preceded Dundee’s first match, against the Scottish national team, with Michael Nicholson drafted in to replace Erwin Oosterhorn, who was running late.  The Scottish internationals never really hit top gear but their performance was electric enough to dispatch Tayside’s finest, 5-1, with Nigel Cooper scoring a terrific long shot to provide some consolation.

The next opposition, Oxford University, proved to be more of an equal match.  Nigel Cooper again popped up with a long shot in the first minute but, despite spells of sustained pressure, Dundee were unable to capitalise and failed to grab a second.  Somewhat inevitably, the Oxford students equalised with less than a minute to go to the secure the draw.

A heavy defeat to Lancaster University followed, though the final scoreline (6-1) was more an indictment of Dundee’s shooting than of their general play.  Rattled by some debatable decisions awarded against them, the Dundonians nonetheless played some nice korfball but, as against Oxford University, simply couldn’t put the ball through the korf when given the opportunity; Nigel Cooper’s third goal of the day proved scant consolation.

A tactical masterclass from the Original Ruff Shakers (of Norwich) came next; Dundee were never really able to cope with the speed and technique of last year’s runners-up and succumbed to a 7-1 loss.  The name Cooper was on the scoresheet yet again, though this time it was Mary Cooper who pierced the Norfolk team’s defence with a hard-earned running in shot.

Day one ended with another loss to an experienced Edinburgh University Alumni team.  Despite both Nigel and Mary- the “Super Coopers”- chipping in with goals (a long shot and a run-in respectively) Dundee’s leaky defence was breached six times.  The result left Dundee rooted to the bottom of their group and competing in the C Road on day two.

Playing mainly for pride now, Dundee changed things around for the second day, with four replacement players coming in.  There was no time to settle, though, as Edinburgh Mavericks proved to be stiff competition as always.  Paul Grocott’s long goal- the first Dundee goal of the tournament from a person not named Cooper- was a particular highlight of the weekend, but the team from the capital ran out 6-1 winners.

The real highlight came in the next fixture, though, as the Taysiders finally scored their first (and, is it turned out, only) win of the competition, overcoming local rivals St Andrews University 3-2.  Goals from Fiona Iannetta, Alan Morrison and Mary Cooper gave Dundee enough of a cushion to survive a tense last few minutes and guarantee themselves not to finish last.

After a four hour wait, Dundee took to the court one last time to battle the University of East Anglia for 21^st place.  Mary Cooper put Dundee ahead early on with a nice run-in shot, but UEA soon pulled ahead.  Dundee continued to apply attacking pressure, but found themselves unable to break through a stubborn UEA defence.  With time running out, Tanjeel Maleque hammered in a shot from way out to level the scores and push the game into a sudden-death penalty shootout.  Only one apiece was needed, though, with Nigel Cooper failing to match his counterpart’s effort, consigning Dundee to 22^nd place, ahead of Edinburgh University 3 and St Andrews University.

Dundee did see some representation in the higher levels of the tournament, with Nigel Cooper being the teams’ choice of referee for the final,  following solid performances officiating both earlier in the competition.  Scotland v Original Ruff Shakers, a rematch from the previous day (when the Original Ruff Shakers prevailed 7-2) was fast-paced and physical, featuring two injuries and sixteen goals- the Norwich team once against besting the Scots in a deserved 10-6 victory.

It would be easy to look at this weekend in negative terms, but some clear positives shone through.  For last year’s tournament, Dundee had to team up with the Mavericks due to a lack of players.  This year, not only was there a full complement from Tayside, they were in fact oversubscribed!  Drawn into an exceptionally tough group, the team persevered and never gave up regardless of how large the score-lines got, with every game featuring a Dundee goal.

Our thanks go to Edinburgh University Korfball Club, and especially to Tournament Secretary Poppy Simpson-Wells, for organising the competition.