COACH Mark Tumilty was ecstatic after Ireland became the 12th and final hockey team to qualify for the Paris Olympics thanks to their 4-3 win over South Korea in Valencia on Sunday.
Three times during the match, Ireland held two-goal leads but on each occasion South Korea brought the deficit down to the absolute minimum. However, Tumilty’s team held on and made up for the disappointment of the women’s team failing to qualify day before.
“We’ve done it,” he said afterwards.
“I had a lot of belief in this group. I did think though it might come down to this final game before the tournament.
“The guys have delivered and we are on our way to the games. Very pleased for the players, we had to rebuild the squad after Vancouver and this a reward for all the work they put in and all the sacrifices they have made to get there.
“We have a very busy period, between now and the summer, in the run up to the games.
“We have the FIH Pro League, a trip to India and the games themselves in Paris. The Pro League will be 16 games against the top 8nations in the world and that in itself will be excellent preparation for the Olympic tournament in July-August.”