Qualifiers revamp may boost Ireland

Ireland’s quest to feature at major tournaments could be made easier by a new World League which will revamp the qualification process.

The International Hockey Federation’s (FIH) complicated new venture, which began in Prague this week, is divided into four rounds will take place over the next 19 months.

Once the continental championships have been decided, the World League will act as sole qualifier for the World Cup and the Olympics, doing away with the winner-takes-all qualification tournaments where both Ireland’s teams fell at the final hurdle in March.