Wales moved to the top of Pool B after a convincing 5-0 win over Thailand. The spectators were then in for a real treat as South Africa and Italy played out a high quality, competitive match that could have gone either way. It was South Africa who emerged victorious but both teams showed that they are determined to leave everything on the pitch here in Valencia. Wales v Thailand On paper this Pool B match should have been a close contest with Wales ranked 27 and Thailand 28 in the FIH World Rankings. However, Wales’ opening match against South Africa will have sent a warning to all the higher ranked teams at this event that Kevin Johnson and his squad are here to prove their worth on the international stage. Thailand, for their part, are an Asian side that is developing apace and every match will prove a steep but hugely valuable experience to the young team, that has nine teenagers (including two 15-year-olds) within its ranks. The opposing styles of play were in evidence from the first whistle. A high press, with Leah Wilkinson as the lynchpin, meant the European side could swing the ball from left to right until a gap appeared. Thailand, by contrast, utilised the aerial ball well to get out of defence and then looked to their speedy forwards to put Wales under pressure. It was Wales who took the lead when Sophie Robinson struck home from a penalty corner after some great build-up play to give her side a boost just ahead of the quarter break. The lead was doubled through a courageous diving shot from Leah Wilkinson. The ball had rebounded from a penalty corner and the captain dived full length to send the ball high into the goal, past Siraya Yimkrajang. A surging run by Natthakarn Aunjai forced the Welsh line back and the Thai team’s collective quick stick work and speedy change of direction caused the Wales’ defence some concerns as the Asian team began to work their way into the match. The final minutes of the first half saw Wales drop off and form a defensive press, challenging the Thailand team to run at them. The strategy nearly came apart when the ever-dangerous Aunjai intercepted the ball and ran at the defence. Wilkinson was on hand to clear up. The second half saw Wales really begin to exert pressure on Thailand. Swinging the ball around the pitch, the Welsh were slowly sucking the energy from the Thai players as they sought to get meaningful possession. The ploy was rewarded when Phoebe Richards worked the ball around the back of the Thai defence and slipped it to Natasha Mark-Jones, who had no hesitation in striking it home. The fourth goal came as a result of a slick penalty corner routine. It was Wilkinson who scored her second of the match, connecting neatly with a slipped pass to send the ball high into the corner of the goal. A first goal for her country was the reward for a good all-round performance from Xenna Hughes. The ball was crossed in by Sian French and Hughes was in front of the penalty spot and able to put it round the ‘keeper. Thailand worked hard to find a consoaltion goal and, in the final minutes of the game, the speed of their attack, spearheaded by Kornkanok Sanpoung, caused some chaos in the Wales circle. “We have a young team and we are learning with every game. We must keep our structure and play with discipline in our next game. We must also take our opportunities better,” Natthakarn Aunjui had said previous to this game. Despite the scoreline, the team is obviously working to fulfill those demands and improving with each game. “We made sure we stuck to our principles,” said goalscorer Hughes. “We tried out our presses to put pressure on them but also kept our discipline. And our penalty corners worked well. We didn’t give them all away – they are our secret weapon.” Wales 5, Thailand 0 (Pool B) Umpires: Dihaya Deepa (IND), Mercedes Sanchez (ARG),  Match 2 Italy v South Africa Two teams ranked in the top 20, both feverishly seeking a place in the FIH Olympic qualifiers in October and November – this was always going to be a feisty matchup – a stressful occasion for the teams, a tasty encounter for hockey fans. Italy (WR:17) came into the game on the back of a dominant 7-0 win over Thailand, while South Africa (WR:15) had endured a much tougher encounter against underrated Wales, a match that ended 2-2. The match started with both teams playing uncompromising hockey. Maria Socino and Elisabetta Pacella were looking menacing as they probed for a way through the South Africa defence but, marshalled by the experienced Celia Evans, the African champions held firm. South Africa’s best chance of the first 15 came in the final minute of the quarter after Nomnikelo Veto’s shot was well stopped by Natalia Schinoni in the Italian goal. The resulting penalty corner was cleared safely. The second quarter was more of the same. Italy were playing quick, smooth passes but were unable to find a final, telling shot. South Africa were extremely busy all over the pitch, chasing for possession or firing balls up to their forward line but with no end product. A sense of desperation was creeping into both teams’ games as players began carrying the ball too far and getting caught in possession. For Italy, Celina Traverso was playing a fantastic holding role at the heart of the Italian defence, clearing up any South African attack that made it past the Italian midfield line. But, in a measure of how much of this game was being played between the two circles, neither goalkeeper had been unduly challenged for most of the half. That changed with 30 seconds left on the clock in the first half as Bianca Wood threw herself at the ball as it bobbled in front

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In a sunny but windy Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, suspense was at its maximum as Korea qualified for the semi-finals against Egypt after a shootout. Scotland also qualified after they won 1-0 in a tough and tight game against Chile. Scotland v Chile To open this fourth day dedicated to the quarter finals, we saw the national team of Scotland, who ended up second of the pool A, playing against Chile who qualified after finishing third of the Pool B. During a rather windy day in Le Touquet, both teams were fighting hard but making no difference in the score by the end of the first quarter. Led by their captain, Fernando Renz, the Chileans were thinking they had opened the score sheet with a shot from Andrès Pizaro but this was disallowed by the Umpires as the number 28 Nils Strabucchi deviated with the back of his stick. Scotland consequently received two Penalty Corner opportunities, but one was stopped by Adrian Henriquez, the Chilean goalkeeper and the second ended up outside the posts. Both teams were once attacking and once defending for the better part of the second quarter and you could easily understand that neither of them were ready to lose their spot to the semi-finals. Scotland and Chile went to the bench for half-time with a 0-0 score. Five minutes into the second half, number 14 Cameron Golden scored a stunning field goal which came straight after his team mate Craig Falconer had to go off the field because of a hit on his knee and Maldonado Jose, the number 9 from Chile, received a green card. This goal saw a joyous release on the Scottish bench. The National team of Chile continued to try and hit hard on Scotland defence without success which created many open spaces and counterattack opportunities for the Scots.  Luckily for the Chileans, none were converted.. At the end of the third quarter, Scotland was 15 minutes away from a qualification to the semi-finals. In the fourth and last period of this quarter-final match, Scotland monopolised the ball and played it safe to avoid any risks. Chile only had a few opportunities in front of the goal despite all their efforts to steal the ball from Scotland. Scottish head coach Derek Forsyth, and his men secured their qualification to the semi-finals after a well-played match which ended with a score of 1-0. Scotland’s captain, Nicky Parkes said: “it was a tough match for us and I think we are going to have to play quite a lot better against France if we want to get to the finals.” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Scotland 1, Chile 0 Umpires: Nick Bennett (ENG), Kris Cholewa (IRL) ********** Korea v Egypt With only three world ranking places between Korea (WR:17) and Egypt (WR: 20), this quarter-final draw promised to be eventful. Korea, who finished second in Pool B are possibly one of the favourites for this competition.   On the other hand, Egypt also played extremely well even creating a stunning upset against the “Green Machine”, Ireland to finish third in Pool A. Egypt came out with all guns firing in the first quarter of the match. They won two penalty corners in a row, both stopped by Kim Jaehyeon the Korean goalkeeper. Although both teams produced some of their best hockey, the score remained unchanged in the first quarter. In a rather electric atmosphere, Korea and Egypt couldn’t be separated until Korea’s Lee Jungjun shot the ball into Mohamed Sayed’s goal. Straight after the half-time break the team led by Ahmed Ezz, the captain, equalised with a goal from Ahmed Abd Elhakim. The pace of the match dropped as both teams sought a way to break the deadlock. The pace might have dropped but the tension and pressure remained high considering what was at stake – a place in the semi-finals of these FIH Series Finals and the possibility of going through to a FIH Olympic qualifier. It was Egypt who scored next. A brilliant pass from Ahmed Mohsen to Walid Metwalli saw the striker convert to give his side the lead. Korea continued to press forwards and  with only 18 seconds before the final whistle, Jung Manjae brought the scores level and sent the match to shoot-out. This is where the experience of Korea paid dividends as they won the shoot-out 3-0 and so will play against Ireland in the semi-finals on Saturday 22 June. Korea’s captain Lee Namyong said: “We are happy of course and it was a very tough game. We need to prepare for the next game and continue to play better and better every match”! ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Korea 2, Egypt 2 Shootout (Korea 3, Egypt 0) Umpires: Fraser Bell (SCO), Nazmi Kamaruddin (MAS) ********** Action in le Touquet-Paris-Plage continues Tomorrow with:  Singapore v Ukraine at 15:30 CEST Chile v Egypt at 18:00 CEST Semi Finals on Saturday will be:  Ireland v Korea at 15:30 CEST France v Scotland at 18:00 CEST #FIHSeriesFinals #RoadToTokyo

During this last day of pool action, Ireland beat Singapore by a comfortable margin, claiming an automatic qualification spot in the semi-finals. France qualified for the semi-finals in front of its home supporters despite a great performance from Chile. Scotland beat Egypt with a stunning last minute goal and Korea confirmed its qualification for quarter-finals against Ukraine. Ukraine v Korea (Pool B) The first match of the third day started with Ukraine against Korea. In beautiful sunny conditions, Korea opened the scoring in the first quarter by converting a penalty corner though Yang Jihun, who shot past Koval Sergii in the Ukraine goal. It was not long into the second quarter, before Korea struck again with a field goal scored by Hong Eunseong. Toward the end of the second period, Ukraine reduced the goal difference after an incredible collective movement started from their own defence. Shevchuk Vitalii was the player to finish the sweeping movement, pushing the ball past Kim Jaehyeong in the Korea goal. Korea got the second half underway in style with a well taken penalty corner, converted by Jang Jognhyun. Despite their combative style, Ukraine were no match for Korea team as they hit their rhythm. In the 38th minute Jeon Byungjin made it 4-1 and seconds later Kim JungHoo added to the score line. Only 10 second before the end of the third period, Ukraine were rewarded for their hard work as Andrei Koshelenko scored from a penalty stroke. Jang Jonghyun scored his second of the day from a penalty corner and  Jeon Byungjin added to his tally with his second and Korea’s seventh. A final flourish saw Lee Jungjun add his name to the scoresheet and the higher-ranked team took a well-deserved 8-2 win, sealing Korea’s position as leaders of Pool B. Korea’s captain Lee Namyong, said: “We are very happy, in the first half Ukraine played really well with a great defence and we had to step our game up on the second half to score many goals.” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Ukraine 2, Korea 8 (Pool A) Umpires: Benjamin Peters (USA), Michiel Otten (NED) ********** Scotland v Egypt (Pool A) With Egypt leading Pool A and Scotland chasing a win to maintain the possibility of qualifying for the next round, spectators were expecting a tight and competitive match. The first quarter lived up to expectation as both teams played at a high intensity. Great defence meant the score remained 0-0 going into the first break. With seven minutes of the second quarter remaining Egypt, after a second penalty corner in a row, converted and opened the score through Amr Ibrahim netting in the Scottish goal. Scotland instantly fought back and put together a brilliant collective move to come back to 1-1 with Cameron Golden the last to touch the ball deftly past the ‘keeper. As the pressure grew, Egypt’s Walid Metwalli received a yellow card. The Scots took advantage of a perfectly executed penalty corner which was converted by  Duncan Riddell to give his team a 2-1 lead. In the fourth quarter, Egypt gave it their all against a strong Scotland defence. They were rewarded when Ibrahim scored his second goal of the day – a shot that rasped into the roof of the Scottish goal. With just 40 seconds remaining on the clock, Scotland’s Kenny Bain proved the hero of the hour as he shot home from a penalty corner to give his side the precious three points. It was a fitting moment as Bain also received his 100th international milestone award at the start of the match. Winning goal scorer Kenny Bain said: “Egypt is a good team, we don’t know much about them as we’ve not played them in a long time. We knew they were good, we knew they had some really really talented players. We definitely did very well. We have a super young team and super talented team and what was amazing is that they were so mature in that end phase and we made it so yeah, we are really happy” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Scotland 3, Egypt 2 (Pool A) Umpires: Nick Bennett (ENG), Paul Walker (ENG) ********** Ireland v Singapore (Pool A) After their loss against Egypt on Sunday, Ireland really needed to win against Singapore to make it through the pool stage. The match couldn’t have started better for the Green Army as Shane O’Donoghue converted a penalty corner within the first minute of the first quarter. Shortly after, it was the same scenario, albeit a different scorer, as Conor Harte netted after the second penalty corner. Ireland made it 3-0 when Matthew Nelson took the ball around the Singapore goalkeeper Sandran Gugan. The second quarter saw Ireland extend their lead as Stephen Cole and Benjamin Walker both added to the scoreline. The Irish were in dominant form against a young but combative Singapore team. Straight after the half-time break Ireland won another a penalty corner which was converted by O’Donoghue – his shot flew directly into the top right corner of WEE Wei Xuan’s goal. Cole got his second just before the end of the third quarter to make it 7-0. Luke Madeley got his name on the scoresheet when he converted yet another penalty corner and then O’Donoghue completed his hat trick, the first three-goal haul of this FIH Series Finals event in le Touquet. The final goals came from Conor Harte and Lee Cole to complete a totally dominant performance by the top-ranked team in France. Matthew Bell was awarded a milestone hockey ball to mark his 100th caps for Ireland and what a way to celebrate. Hat trick scorer Shane O’Donoghue said: “That was a big improvement from two days ago, obviously we were pretty disappointed with the results against Egypt. It was better today and we put a comprehensive win today. The team is very happy!” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Ireland 11, Singapore 0 (Pool A) Umpires: Tyler Klenk (CAN), Nazmi

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The second day of the FIH Men’s Series Finals in Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, France provided a spectacular intensity with tight matches. Scotland were winners against Singapore, while Ukraine versus Chile and Korea versus France finished in draws. Beyond all expectation Egypt defeated Ireland in a captivating match that provided the first big surprise of the tournament. Scotland v Singapore (Pool A) Both teams were defeated by their respective opponents in their first pool matches yesterday and were determined to claim their first three points. Scotland started quickly and opened the scoring through a penalty corner from Cameron Golden. At the very end of this first quarter, Golden scored again to make it 2-0, this time netting from open play. Singapore defended really well in the early stages of the second quarter, although a yellow card five-minute suspension to Aidil Ibrahim did not help their cause before Edward Greaves made it 3-0 to the Scots in the 24th minute. Singapore also impressed in the third quarter, only conceding at the end of the period when Kenny Bain netted the fourth Scottish goal. Andy Bull completed a 5-0 score-line with a penalty corner, with Scotland finishing the day second behind Egypt in Pool A. Scotland goal scorer Kenny Bain said: “Tomorrow is a rest day so we will have a normal recovery, certainly a Fun day tomorrow but also focus on the match against Egypt on Tuesday.” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Scotland 5, Singapore 0 (Pool A) Umpires: ESTEBANEZ Diego (ESP), CHOLEWA Kris (IRL), Reserve Umpire: KAMARUDDIN Nazmi (MAS) (Entered) ********** Egypt v Ireland (Pool A) Both winners in their first matches, Egypt and Ireland started this game with a tangible pressure. Despite a few goal opportunities and a penalty corner for Ireland, the score remained unchanged during the first quarter. At the beginning of the second quarter, Ireland received a second chance to score with a penalty corner and converted it through John Jackson. Ireland’s lead lasted just four minutes, with Mohamed Adel levelling with a penalty corner of their own. Egypt’s winning goal arrived with thirteen minutes of the match remaining, with Ahmed Elhakim scoring from open play. Ireland pressurised the Egyptian backline but could not get the breakthrough, with goalkeeper Mohamed Sayed making some important saves as Egypt recorded the first upset of the competition. Egypt captain Ahmed Ezz said: “it was a good game for us. Ireland played really well and it is a great chance to be at the top of our pool.” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Egypt 2, Ireland 1 (Pool A) Umpires: WALKER Paul (ENG), PETERS Benjamin (USA) ********** Ukraine v Chile (Pool B) With Ukraine and Chile both lost their matches on Saturday (against France and Korea respectively), both sides knew that this was a big opportunity to claim some points ahead of the rest day. The match remained score-less for the first two quarters and was closely contested, although things change in the third period when Ukraine’s Vitalii Kalinchuk beat Chilean goalkeeper Araya Agustin to make it 1-0. Chile levelled with a penalty corner from Pablo Purcell, before Andrii Koshelenko’s penalty stroke restored Ukraine’s lead at 2-1. However, Javier Osses pulled Chile level once again, making the score 2-2 going into the final quarter. Remarkably, nothing changed after that four-goal burst in the third quarter, with the match finishing with the scores locked together. Chilean captain, Fernando Renz said: “It was a tough game today and we didn’t play well. France is going to be hard match, but we are going to do our best.” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Ukraine 2, Chile 2 (Pool B) Umpires: BELL Fraser (SCO), BENNETT Nick (ENG) ********** Korea v France (Pool B) The 18:00 match in Le Touquet-Paris-Plage was what the majority of the spectators had been waiting for, as the top two teams in Pool B went head to head. The pressure was high, but les bleus unblocked the scoreboard in the 11th minute with a penalty corner converted by French Captain Hugo Genestet (#7). Korean National team defended with strength and even converted their first penalty corner thanks JANG Jonghyun, who beat goalkeeper Arthur Thieffry with a drag-flick. France hard and created several opportunities, but both teams went into half-time with a draw 1-1. In the third quarter, France hit the post and missed penalty corner chances as they applied serious pressure on the Korea defence. Korea also had their chances as both goalkeepers were forced into action. With the sound of “Allez les Bleus” ringing around the stadium, France kept on attacking but were regularly stopped in their tracks by Korea goalkeeper Kim Jaehyeon, who played a crucial role to earn his team a draw against the host nation. France captain Hugo Genestet said: “It was a tough game today but Korea is really good team. I think with more efficiency we could have won the game but if we continue to play like this we can do well in this tournament.” ********** FIH Series Finals Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, 2019 Result: Korea 1, France 1 (Pool B) Umpires: KLENK Tyler (CAN), OTTEN Michiel (NED) ********** The action continues Tuesday 18 with last pool matches: Pool A: Korea v Ukraine: 11:15 CEST Scotland v Egypt: 13:30 CEST Pool B: Ireland v Singapore: 15:45 CEST France v Chile: 18:00 CEST #FIHSeriesFinals #RoadToTokyo

The two highest-ranked teams in this tournament clinched the two top spots. India scored no less than 35 goals, much to the delight of their great fans. The home team and South Africa have earned a berth in the FIH Olympic qualifiers. Defeating the USA, Japan took third place. Japan – USA True to the tactical principles they had showcased since the beginning of the tournament, Japan immediately started to put pressure on the USA while the North Americans were defensively well organised and ready to seize every opportunity to move quickly upfront. On one of their first counter-attacks, the USA won a penalty corner which Aki Kaeppeler converted into the first goal of this match for third place. However, Japan reacted quickly and following a drag-flick from a penalty corner by Yoshiki Kirishita, Kazuma Murata found the target one minute later. Japan continued to attack and were close to take the lead after a nice combination inside the circle but the US defence intervened. Halfway through the second quarter, the Asian champions were awarded a penalty stroke. However, Hirotaka Zendana missed the target. The Asian champions did not give up and in the same quarter they got another penalty stroke which, this time, Yoshiki Kirishita converted, therefore giving his side a 2-1 lead. In the meantime, Japan’s goalkeeper Takashi Yoshikawa had denied a further scoring opportunity for the USA with a brilliant save. The second half started with repeated attacks from Japan on USA’s goal. But, despite a plethora of great chances, they were either unable to find the target or were thwarted by US goalkeeper Daniel Wisselink – later elected Man of the Match – who was having an outstanding day. Meanwhile, Rutger Wiese’s team always looked dangerous on the break. The dying moments of the game were just thrilling. With one minute to go, the USA managed to get back into the match with a second goal from Aki Kaeppeler from a penalty corner. A shootout competition was looming … but the team of Captain Mohan Gandhi had hardly celebrated their equaliser when they conceded two goals from Kenta Tanaka before the final whistle! Japan’s Head Coach Siegfried Aikman: “Our team has made big steps in this tournament. In all our matches, we did our passing and our receiving play very well. Against India, we lost our control. But even then, it was a good match. In our finishing, we are poor. In our penalty corners, we are a disaster. Until the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, we will focus on physical strength, finishing and of course penalty corners. But we have time and those are things which you can practice very well.” USA’s captain Mohan Gandhi: “Our performance throughout the tournament has been fantastic. We’re a tough team to beat. Nobody likes playing against us. Slightly disappointed as in the last two minutes of each game we just couldn’t close it out. We showed our inexperience and lack of confidence, I think. But the whole tournament, the whole time we’ve been here, we’ve grown and we’re going to take that into the next tournament.” ******** FIH Men’s Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019 Result: Japan 4, USA 2 (match for 3rd place) Man of the Match: Daniel Wisselink (USA) Umpires: Dekang Chen (CHN), Ahmed Elsayed (EGY) ******** India – South Africa In front of their home fans, India wanted to live up to their supremacy in the FIH World Rankings. It did not take them very long to take the lead with a goal from Varun Kumar from a penalty corner. The Asian team was playing mostly in South Africa’s half during the first quarter and doubled their lead, with another penalty corner; this time from Harmanpreet Singh. South Africa spared no effort to come back into the match but they struggled to create good chances. And it was India who added another goal to their tally with a penalty stroke from Harmanpreet Singh, therefore becoming the joint top goalscorer of the tournament with Russia’s Semen Matkovskiy (6 goals each) at that moment. Half-time came with a solid 3-0 lead for Graham Reid’s side. At the start of the second half, South Africa missed a good opportunity which, if converted, would have given hope and confidence to the African champions. Instead of that, India took a 4 goals advantage through Vivek Prasad who converted from short distance as a result of an offering from Simranjeet Singh after brilliant dribbling in the circle. South Africa were determined to find the target and they were a step away from doing so on two consecutive attempts from Keenan Horne and Richard Pautz towards the end of the third quarter. The final quarter of this tournament saw the home team continue attacking and Varun Kumar scored his second penalty corner. He too was taking his goal tally in this event to six, therefore joining Harmanpreet Singh – later chosen Man of the Match – and Semen Matkovskiy at the top of the goalscorer standings. Meanwhile, the African champions also found the target as Richard Pautz was in the right place to hit the ball over the goal-line from a penalty corner. India’s Head Coach Graham Reid: “It was a really interesting tournament. There are always things which we can improve. I think that the areas that we worked on in the last 2-3 months, we’ll be continuing. The boys will now have a couple of weeks off, spend time with their families and recharge their batteries. Then we have a really hard month in July and we go to the Olympic Games’ test event in Tokyo in August. It will be a busy period.” South Africa’s Head Coach Garreth Ewing: “First, we’ll take from this tournament a step to the next round. It was really good for us to spend some time together as a team. The first couple of games were tough but we progressed nicely, then we found our rhythm and we were very competitive and really happy to

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Defeating Japan and the USA respectively in today’s semi-finals, hosts India and South Africa are certain to grab one of the first two spots of the FIH Men’s Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019 which give access to the FIH Olympic qualifiers scheduled in October-November this year. USA – South Africa The first opportunity in this game was created by the African champions with Austin Smith’s drag-flick from a penalty corner heading just centimetres wide of the goalposts. South Africa was enjoying most of the ball possession but, as previously showcased in this tournament, USA was defending very well, leaving very little space for their opponents to capitalise upon. South Africa had a further very good opportunity from a deflected ball after another penalty corner, but USA goalkeeper Jonathan Klages cleared it. On a counter-attack, the USA got a penalty-corner which Aki Kaeppeler converted for the first goal of this semi-final, five seconds before the end of the first quarter. The next fifteen minutes did not provide many scoring chances. A good attempt from Keenan Horne went slightly off target. At half-time, the USA were still leading 1-0. The match continued in the same pattern at the start of the second half. South Africa had to look for the equaliser but they struggled to create opportunities as USA’s defensive organisation was very solid. Additionally, the American side were quick to go on the attack whenever they turned over possession. However, Garreth Ewing’s team found the net towards the end of the third quarter when a penalty corner was fired home by the experienced Austin Smith. South Africa came very close to taking the lead following two consecutive penalty corners right at the start of the final quarter but Jonathan Klages was in fine form and saved well. The USA reacted quickly with Kei Kaeppeler crossing the ball for Alberto Montilla who could not quite get into position to deflect it into the goal. The intensity of the match was increasing, with the ball moving quickly from one half to the other. With just 30 seconds left to play, the fate of this match was decided: following a shot from Nqobile Ntuli, South Africa’s Nicholas Spooner was in the right place to deflect the ball past the goal-line and give his team a place in the Final. South Africa’s Nicholas Spooner: “0-1 behind, then coming back to score and then the 2-1 was 30 seconds to play. It’s incredible. Great performance from the team. We’re fortunate enough to get a win. I was in the right place at the right time and was lucky enough to hit the ball over the line at the end of the day.” USA’s Head Coach Rutger Wiese: “Congratulations to South Africa. What two battles we fought with them this week! Overall, I think our first four games were pretty good.” ******** FIH Men’s Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019 Result: USA 1, South Africa 2 (semi-final) Man of the Match: Tyson Dlungwana (RSA) Umpires: Zeke Newman (AUS), Eduardo Lizana (ESP) ******** India – Japan This all-Asian encounter started at a high tempo and it took only 90 seconds for Japan to open the scoring after a great pass from Kenta Tanaka was converted into a goal by Kenji Kitazato. India immediately put pressure on Japan’s goal in an attempt to get a quick equaliser. After a great save from Yusuke Takano following a shot from Nilakanta Sharma and a missed opportunity by Gursahibjit Singh, the home team levelled the score with a penalty corner from Harmanpreet Singh, who celebrated his 100th cap in the best possible way. But Japan were determined to give a hard time to the 5th ranked team in the world. First, Kenta Tanaka, at the conclusion of one of his numerous fast runs, put the Indian defence under pressure. Then, in the 20th minute of the game, Kota Watanabe managed to hit the ball into the goal, making it 2-2. But once again, India reacted with no delay. First Ramandeep Singh from a penalty corner and then Hardik Singh doubled their team’s tally within two minutes (4-2). In the second half, India won numerous penalty corners and it was Ramandeep Singh – later elected Man of the Match – who converted, scoring his second goal of the night. He was soon copied by his teammate Gursahibjit Singh, increasing the score to 6-2 at the end of the third quarter. The final quarter gave the opportunity to India’s youngest player Vivek Prasad to put his name on the scoresheet, much to the delight of the home crowd. Despite several penalty corners, Japan could not find the net in this second half. India’s captain Manpreet Singh: “Japan played very well. They were attacking and did not give us easy chances in the first two quarters. But after that our players played very well, they got good chances and we converted penalty corners. We’re really happy because we’re qualified for the Final and for the FIH Olympic qualifiers. Tomorrow is a really important game for us because South Africa is doing very well. We hope we’ll play as we played today.” ******** FIH Men’s Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019 Result: India 7, Japan 2 (semi-final) Man of the Match: Ramandeep Singh (India) Umpires: Sébastien Duterme (BEL), Xavier Fenaert (FRA) ******** The action continues tomorrow (15 June) with the tournament’s last two games: 17:00 (IST) Japan – USA (match for 3rd place) 19:15 (IST) India – South Africa (Final) #FIHSeriesFinals #RoadToTokyo

With a win over Poland today, Japan will play India in an all-Asian semi-final. The other semi-final will see South Africa, who qualified after defeating Russia today, take on USA. Both European teams will play the match for the 5th place. All games are scheduled on 14 June. Japan – Poland As has happened so often in this event, Japan did not wait long to set up camp in their opponents’ half. But on a counter-attack, Joseph Hillyer managed to find his teammate Mikolaj Gumny in an ideal position in front of the goal. Gumny had no hesitation in converting this golden opportunity into the first goal of the match. The ball possession remained mostly with the Asian champions but Poland was defending well. On a penalty corner however, Shota Yamada drag-flicked the ball into the net, giving his side a deserved equaliser. Japan then missed a huge opportunity with Koji Yamasaki deflecting the ball onto the goalpost. But on the subsequent penalty corner, Hirotaka Zendana made no mistake as he put his team ahead. Another counter-attack from the determined Poles saw Michal Poltaszewski sending a clever pass to Maciej Janiszewski who, in turn, delivered a precise cross to his team’s leading goalscorer Mateusz Hulboj. The striker needed no invitation to score from short distance. Early in the second half, Poland’s goalkeeper Maciej Pacanowski cleared a penalty corner but the ball came back to Kenta Tanaka, who found the target making it 3-2. Just two minutes later, Japan made the most of the Polish defence’s inability to clear the ball from their own circle to add another goal to their tally. This time the scorer was Koji Yamasaki. In the final quarter of the game, Poland gave all they could in an attempt to reach the semi-finals. Despite their efforts, it was Japan who increased their lead with two further goals from Kenji Kitazato and Koji Yamasaki – his second of the night. Japan’s Head Coach Siegfried Aikman: “If you win, it makes you happy. But I was unhappy in the previous games with the way we conceded goals and today was similar: we dominate, our opponents get one chance and it’s a goal. So, then we make it very hard for ourselves. We need to work harder. The inconsistency in our play is troubling me. It’s fantastic to play the home nation. It will a be an exciting match. India play good hockey, they’re skillful, they’re fast, they have everything which should be in a hockey match. For us, it’s a challenge because they are the number one in Asia. We envy them, we want to get that position. So, we accept the challenge with a lot of joy.” Poland’s Maciej Janiszewski: “I think we just lost energy in the second half. In the first half, we kept our tactic and our positions. At 2-2, we were thinking we could make it. But we lost energy and could not come back when Japan scored again.” ******** FIH Men’s Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019 Result: Japan 6, Poland 2 (cross-over) Man of the Match: Kazuma Murata (JPN) Umpires: Gus Soteriades (USA), David Sweetman (SCO) ******** Russia – South Africa There were high expectations before this encounter between the second highest-ranked team of the tournament, South Africa, and a Russian side clearly on the rise after their challenging start against hosts India. Both teams lived up to the expectations as they set a high tempo right from the start of this intensely contested game. The ball circulated quickly from one camp to the next throughout the first half with both teams creating good chances and defending well at the same time. Only goals were missing in this exciting game. The second half followed the same pattern. The African champions and the European representatives multiplied the attempts on goal but both goalkeepers Marat Gafarov and Rassie Pietersee seemed invincible and their defences were performing well. Halfway through the third quarter however, Nqobile Ntuli found the target following a penalty corner. But at the beginning of the next quarter, Russia equalised on a penalty corner by Georgii Arusiia. Was the fate of this game to be decided on penalty shootouts for the first time in this tournament? The answer eventually came from South African Ryan Julius who gave to his team a definitive lead. Russia tried hard to come back, but to no avail. South Africa’s Nicholas Spooner: “We’re feeling pretty good. We didn’t play our best hockey tonight but we’re the winners at the end of the day against a good Russian side, so in these conditions we’re happy to get to the semi-finals. We didn’t have the best start against the USA in this tournament. It’s always hard from a South African point of view as we don’t have a lot of time together. We’ll be looking to put pressure on them and hopefully get a win there.” Russia’s Pavel Golubev: “I’m really disappointed about our loss because we came here to win as usual and we had a lot of great opportunities to score. This game was even but I think we had more chances to score and we didn’t manage to do this. It’s our main problem nowadays. So, we’ll work to make it better.” ******** FIH Men’s Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019 Result: Russia 1, South Africa 2 (cross-over) Man of the Match: Austin Smith (RSA) Umpires: Eduardo Lizana (ESP), Sébastien Duterme (BEL) ******** The action continues on 14 June with the following programme: 08:00* (IST) Russia – Poland (match for 5th place) 17:00 (IST) USA – South Africa (semi-final) 19:15 (IST) India – Japan (semi-final) * In order to adjust to the current high temperatures affecting Bhubaneswar and considering that the welfare of athletes, fans, volunteers, officials and everyone involved in an FIH event is paramount, FIH has decided that the game will start at 8am (IST), instead of 8:45am (IST) as initially planned. #FIHSeriesFinals #RoadToTokyo

The South African Hockey Association has today announced the SA Men’s side that will take part in the FIH Hockey Series Final in Bhubaneswar from the 6-15 June 2019. The tournament will be the first under the stewardship of Garreth Ewing with the goal of trying to finish in the top 2 to qualify for the FIH Olympic Qualifiers. South Africa will be in Pool B alongside USA, Mexico and Japan. With India, Poland, Russia and Uzbekistan competing in Pool A. The top team from each pool progresses to the Semi-Finals directly while the teams in 2ndand 3rd play a crossover Quarter Final. Ewing has taken the opportunity to call up a few players who missed out on the 2018 FIH World Cup at the same venue. Siya Nolutshungu returns to the line-up alongside Ryan Julius, Alex Stewart and Matt de Sousa. Matt Brown, who is lethal at penalty corner time, will get the opportunity to earn his first cap for his country. With Rhett Halkett and Julian Hykes having announced their retirement from the International game, there is an opportunity for others to cement their spots in the squad. Tim Drummond will continue to lead the team as captain. “Selection was a tough series of decisions because there were a lot of conversations between the selection panel and me regarding player availability. I am sure that some guys will be thrilled, and some will be disappointed.” Shared Ewing, “I’m happy with the balance of the team and our depth in terms of penalty corner attack. Some players will be in slightly different positional roles which I believe will be mentally stimulating for them. I’m very positive about this group both in terms of its talent and the balance between experience and youthful energy. I believe we will compete well and take a positive step in the team’s process.” South African Men’s Hockey Squad *Caps per FIH Tournament Management System at 08 May 2019, Province is most recently represented province. Fixtures – Hockey Series Final 06 June – South Africa vs. USA 08 June – South Africa vs. Japan 10 June – South Africa vs. Mexico 12 June – Crossovers 14 June – Semi-Finals 15 June – Final Source: Sports24Seven