Ireland men's national ice hockey team
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The Irish badge features the golden clàrsach on a green background which is also used on the Green harp flag, one of the flags used to represent Ireland. | |
| Association | Irish Ice Hockey Association |
|---|---|
| General Manager | James Pepper |
| Head coach | Kenneth Redmond |
| Assistants |
Mark Perres Robert Stewart |
| Captain | David Morrison |
| Most games | Robert Leckey (38) |
| Most points | Gareth Roberts (36) |
| Home stadium | Dundalk Ice Dome |
| Team colors | |
| IIHF code | IRL |
| Ranking | |
| Current IIHF |
48  |
| Highest IIHF | 40 (2008) |
| Lowest IIHF | 48 (first in 2015) |
| First international | |
 Mexico 8–3 Ireland  (Reykjavík, Iceland; 16 March 2004) | |
| Biggest win | |
Ireland 23–1 Armenia  (Mexico City, Mexico; 8 March 2005) | |
| Biggest defeat | |
 Romania 22–0 Ireland (Zagreb, Croatia; 13 April 2011) | |
| IIHF World Championships | |
| Appearances | 7 (first in 2004) |
| Best result | 40th (2008) |
| International record (W–L–T) | |
| 13–25–1 | |
Irish men's national ice hockey team is the National Squad run by the Irish Ice Hockey Association. The team gained promotion to Division II of the International Ice Hockey Federation in 2007, but after a poor performance in their Division II debut, the team has been relegated to Division III. They have not played in a world championship since placing 4th with 6 points in 2013. With the closure of the Dundalk Ice Dome they no longer meet minimum IIHF standards for participation. The team had members from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and has a working relationship with the Belfast Giants of the Elite Ice Hockey League and new Irish clubs, Flyers Ice Hockey Club and Dundalk Bulls.
History
The Republic of Ireland was accepted into the International Ice Hockey Federation in May 1996 after a nomination by Great Britain and a second by Canada. They have not had a long history of international competition, with the Ireland senior team first competing in 2004.
- First match: 16 March 2004: Reykjavík, Iceland: Mexico 8–3 Ireland
- Largest victory: 8 March 2005: Mexico City, Mexico: Ireland 23–1 Armenia
- Largest defeat: 13 April 2011: Zagreb, Croatia: Romania 22–0 Ireland
IIHF World ranking
In the IIHF World Ranking, Ireland is ranked 44th out of 49 as of December 2014.
International competition
(statistics, standings, and results taken from the IIHF IIHF Tournament Page)
2004 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III World Championships Reykjavík, Iceland
Game 1. Ireland 3 Mexico 8
Game 2. Armenia 1 Ireland 15
Game 3. Ireland 1 Iceland 7
Game 4. Turkey 7 Ireland 4
Final result: fourth place, one win, three losses for 2 points, 23 goals for, 23 goals against
2005 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III World Championships Mexico City, Mexico
Game 1. Ireland 23 Armenia 1
Game 2. Luxembourg 8 Ireland 4
Game 3. Ireland 4 South Africa 5
Game 4. Mexico 6 Ireland 1
Final result: fourth place, one win, three losses for 2 points, 32 goals for, 20 goals against
2006 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III World Championships Reykjavík, Iceland
Game 1. Ireland 0 Armenia 6
Game 2. Iceland 8 Ireland 0
Game 3. Turkey 2 Ireland 2
Game 4. Ireland 3 Luxembourg 1
Final result: fourth place, one win, two losses, one tie for 3 points, 5 goals for, 17 goals against
2007 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III World Championships Dundalk, Ireland
Game 1. Ireland 11 Mongolia 0
Game 2. Ireland 2 New Zealand 4
Game 3. Ireland 3 South Africa 1
Game 4. Ireland 4 Luxembourg 3 [OT)
Final result: second place two wins, one overtime win, one loss for 8 points, 20 goals for, 8 goals against [Team Ireland are Promoted to Division II of the IIHF World Championships]
2008 IIHF Ice Hockey Division II World Championships Miercurea Ciuc, Romania
Game 1. Ireland 1 Serbia 13
Game 2. Ireland 4 Bulgaria 7
Game 3. Ireland 1 Belgium 9
Game 4. Ireland 1 Romania 21
Game 5. Ireland 1 Israel 7
Final result: sixth place zero wins, five losses for 0 points, 8 goals for, 57 goals against [Team Ireland is relegated to the 2009 IIHF World Championship Div III]
2009 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III World Championships Dunedin, New Zealand
Game 1. Ireland 3 Greece 7
Game 2. Ireland 3 Luxembourg 8
Game 3. Ireland 5 Mongolia 0(Forfeit)
Game 4. Ireland 1 Turkey 7
Game 5. Ireland 0 New Zealand 9
Final result: fifth place one win, four losses for 3 points, 12 goals for, 31 goals against
2010 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III Group A World Championships Kockelscheuer, Luxembourg
Game 1. Ireland 6 Luxembourg 4
Game 2. Greece 1 Ireland 3
Game 3. UA Emirates 2 Ireland 8
Final result: first place three wins, zero losses for 9 points, 17 goals for, 7 goals against [Team Ireland are Promoted to Division II of the IIHF World Championships]
2011 IIHF Ice Hockey Division II Group B World Championships Zagreb, Croatia
Game 1. Ireland 0 Bulgaria 6
Game 2. China 5 Ireland 0
Game 3. Romania 22 Ireland 0
Game 4. Ireland 4 Croatia 21
Game 5. Iceland 14 Ireland 0
Final Result: sixth place zero wins, five losses, for 0 points, 4 goals for, 68 goals against [Team Ireland is relegated to the 2009 IIHF World Championship Div III]
2012 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III World Championships Erzurum, Turkey
Game 1. Luxembourg 7 Ireland 2
Game 2. Ireland 5 Greece 3
Game 3. Ireland 3 Turkey 5
Game 4. Ireland 8, Mongolia 4
Game 5. North Korea 5, Ireland 0
Final Result: fourth place two wins, three loses, for 6 points, 18 goals for, 24 goals against
2013 IIHF Ice Hockey Division III Group A World Championships Cape Town, South Africa
Game 1. Greece 3 Ireland 6
Game 2. South Africa 7 Ireland 4
Game 3. Luxembourg 5 Ireland 0
Game 4. Ireland 1 North Korea 2
Game 5. Ireland 7 United Arab Emirates 3
Final Result: fourth place two wins, three loses, for 6 points, 18 goals for, 20 goals against
Personnel
- Jim Tibbets – Head Coach (former General Manager of the French national ice hockey team)
- Scott Fusco – Assistant Coach (Harvard Crimson hockey player, class of '86, American national men's hockey team 1984 Olympic Member)
Ireland roster
(roster taken from the IIHF IIHF Tournament Page)
- Head coach: Kenneth Redmond
| Pos. | No. | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | 20 | Adam Pepper (6 September 1991) | Besancon Eagles |
| GK | 25 | Scott Bickerstaff (13 November 1992) | Wightlink Tigers |
| D | 9 | Timothy Ross O'Driscoll (28 March 1980) | Ireland men's national ice hockey team |
| D | 13 | Dean Kelly (11 December 1981) | Dublin Rovers |
| D | 17 | Stephen Balmer (23 January 1991) | Streatham Redskins |
| D | 16 | Robert Leckey (29 September 1979) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| D | 19 | David Morrison (2 April 1980) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| F | 23 | Stephen Adams (13 July 1990) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| F | 23 | Chris Adams (25 December 1986) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| F | 15 | Stephen Cooper (30 October 1984) | Flyers IHC |
| F | 11 | Mark Pepper (11 February 1986) | Dublin Flyers |
| F | 5 | Adam Jackson-Wyatt (21 July 1990) | Ireland men's national ice hockey team |
| F | 10 | Sean Dooley (16 January 1985) | Ireland men's national ice hockey team |
| F | 7 | David Gibson (11 December 1981) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| F | 8 | Sean Coleman (24 July 1996) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| F | 18 | Conor Redmond (29 March 1995) | Swindon Wildcats |
| F | 6 | Philip Catherwood (2 February 1992) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| F | 14 | Stephen Hamill (26 December 1978) | Belfast Junior Giants |
| F | 24 | Gareth Roberts (10 January 1986) | Belfast Giants |
Future
Early in 2007 Team Ireland moved their headquarters to the Dundalk Ice Dome. It is envisaged that the Ice Dome will become a centre of excellence for ice hockey in the Republic of Ireland and it was here that Team Ireland took silver in the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championships Division III and gained promotion to Division II. The next year they were relegated after a last place finish to Division II, but in 2010 they earned a first place result and again earned promotion to Division II. The next year the took last place in the IIHF Division II Group B World Championships and were relegated to Division III, which they played in in 2012 and 2013, earning fourth place in the World Championship each year. They have not competed at a world championship since.
References
See also
External links
| National sports teams of Ireland | |
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