Ireland show their true worth

HOCKEY/ European Championships/ Ireland 5; Switzerland 2: "We're better than this," went up the exasperated cry from the pitch during yesterday's ninth-12th place play-off against Switzerland, and with that Ireland duly responded by proving that they were. Before then they'd relinquished a two-goal lead; after it they finally began to take their chances and ran out 5-2 winners.

They play Italy, who they beat 2-1 to finish 11th at the last finals, in tomorrow's ninth-10th play-off.

Yesterday's scoreline brought Ireland's goal tally at this tournament to an impressive 17 in six games, but compare it with their "goals against" column (19) and this team's strengths and weaknesses are revealed. Both were displayed, in abundance, against the Swiss.

By the 16th minute they led 2-0, through Justin Sherriff and Mark Irwin, but contrived, once again, to allow opponents back in to a game, finding themselves level by the fourth minute of the second half.

They weren't, though, helped by the loss from their defence of David Smyth, who limped away in the 14th minute after being hit on the leg by a fierce Thomas Gahwiler shot on goal.

But by the time Oliver Bilgerig halved Ireland's lead the game should have been over as a contest. Sherriff and David Hobbs had chances to make it 3-0, with Sherriff again denied by a point-blank save three minutes before the break.

It was from Switzerland's first short corner of the game, in the 39th minute, that Thierry Grandchamp levelled the scores and they had opportunities to take the lead when they won two more corners soon after.

But Ireland responded by lifting their game, several notches, scoring three goals in a 10-minute spell.

The first, Irwin's second of the game, in the 50th minute, forced the Swiss to throw men forward from there on, with the Irish attack revelling in their newly found space.

Chris Jackson scored a rare goal from play - by his own calculations his first since 1996 - to make it 4-2 before Sherriff got his ninth of the tournament 10 minutes from time.

After that Wesley Bateman had to make two smart saves, his replacement Nigel Henderson making another from Xavier Penny at the death, but Ireland conceded no more and held on for a comfortable victory.

IRELAND: W Bateman, P Brown, E Lutton, D Smyth, J Black, A Barbour, S Butler, C Jackson, N Buttimer, J Sherriff, M Irwin. Subs used: M Raphael, K Burns, D Hobbs, G Shaw, N Henderson.