The South African Hockey Men, ranked 15th in the world, took on the 10th ranked Malaysians in a match to decide which of the two sides would play in the 9-12th bracket and who would drop to 13-16 pool. The South Africans looked the better team from the start and almost had a lead with an early penalty corner. But they did get the lead their early dominance deserved. Sam Mvimbi received the ball in the circle, waited for the pass, and picked out Brad Sherwood who finished superbly. The South Africans could and probably should have made it 2 before the end of the quarter as they wasted several penalty corner opportunities. They did however make the penalty corner count in the second quarter. The initial shot was saved, in fact the second shot was saved too, but it fell to Guy Morgan, and he fired home for his first International goal for South Africa and doubled the lead. Captain Dayaan Cassiem almost made it 3 with an incredible piece of individual skill. But his shot was incredibly saved on the pad and trickled inches wide of the goal. The South Africans would get their third and deservingly so. The ball was fed inside and a halfhearted clearance from the Malaysians fell to Bli Ntuli who netted his second of the tournament and gave the team a convincing lead at the half time break. Despite the superb showing in the first half the South Africans saw their lead cut down by one as Razie Rahim finished from a penalty corner to re-ignite the Malaysian challenge. The Malaysians were visibly buoyed by their goal and raised their momentum, but the likes of Eustice and Bell were frustrating the attacking attempts regularly. Tevin Kok and Ryan Julius combined sensationally to create an opportunity, but Tevin Koks shot was saved well by Othman on his glove side. Brad Sherwood came incredibly close to double his tally with a snap reverse shot but it went agonizingly wide. The goal felt like it was coming and that’s exactly what happened. Keenan Horne reacted to a great run from Sam Mvimbi and smashed it home. It improved even further for the African champions when Sam Mvimib was taken down and a stroke was awarded. Mustapha Cassiem got his first World Cup goal finishing with a super strike. Malaysia was given a lifeline themselves when they were given a stroke after a clumsy challenge by Lembethe, and Rahim doubled his and Malaysia’s tally. South Africa leading 5-2 with a quarter remaining. Malaysia was pushing in the final quarter, but South Africa held them off before striking a sensational counter attacking goal that saw Brad Sherwood net from a wonderful cross from Dayaan Cassiem. Malaysia immediately pulled a goal back, but the South Africans always looked more likely to add to the scoreline rather than concede. As a result, the South Africans will have the opportunity to finish in the top 10 when they play their final game at the World Cup in two days. This already is the teams highest finish in a 16-team world cup tournament, but they will look to finish in the top 10, a great achievement considering the ranking of 15. Source: SAhockey.co.za

BHUBANESWAR: Brothers playing for the same national team is not new but siblings scoring goals in the same match is rare. The Grambusch brothers — Mats and Tom — achieved the distinction in the FIH Men’s World Cup quarter-final, helping Germany rally from a 0-2 deficit to take the match against England into penalty shootout. Germany then won the shootout 4-3 to set up a semi-final clash against Australia on Friday. Mats and his younger brother Tom scored a goal each with just two-and-a-half minutes left in the match, sending the capacity crowd at the Kalinga Stadium into a tizzy. Mats scored in the 57th minute and, a minute later, asked Tom to take the penalty stroke after Christopher Ruhr had missed from the spot just a few minutes ago. Tom repaid his elder brother’s trust by scoring the equaliser to take the match into penalty shootout where the ‘Die Honamas’ won 4-3 in a match which England captain described as a “cruel” one. An ecstatic Tom punched the air while Mats and the other team-mates converged to celebrate the sensational comeback. Asked why his elder brother asked him to take the penalty stroke, Tom said there was no favouritism. “Christie (Christopher Ruhr) took the first one and missed. Then we switched because I am the second penalty-stroke taker in the team. So, Mats told me to take it and I did. “Luckily, I scored. My mom must be proud as both of us scored. They were watching on TV,” the 27-year-old six-feet tall defender told PTI. Mats and Tom hail from Monchengladbach, which had hosted the FIH Men’s World Cup in 2006. They have studied in the same college and currently play for the same club, Rot-Weiss Koln, in Cologne. “Tom started his international career in 2016. So, it was in February 2016 when we first played together for the national team and then we played together in the 2016 Rio Olympics,” Mats said. “I started a little bit early (in 2011) as I am a little bit older. We are also playing for the same club now,” said the 30-year-old midfielder. Asked how their parents would react to the feat, Mats said, “They will probably scream first and then one of them will have tears of joy. “Me and Tom scored the goals to take Germany to victory. We have taken the team to the semi-finals. They (parents) would not have been prouder than this. “All said and done, it is a team game and we are happy to have helped our country win the match and enter the semi-finals. That is more important.” The Spanish and Wales sides in this edition of the World Cup too have siblings in their squads. While Spain have the Cunill brothers, Pau and Pepe, Wales have the Furlong siblings, Gareth and Rohdri. Spain lost to Australia 3-4 in the quarter-finals, while Wales were eliminated early, finishing fourth and last in their pool. The Indian gold-winning teams at the 1932 and 1936 Olympics had brothers Dhyan Chand and Roop Chand playing together. Gurbax Singh and Balbir Singh Grewal were part of the same India team that won bronze at the 1968 Olympics. Brothers Harmik Singh and Ajit Singh also won a bronze medal in the 1972 Munich Olympics. Source: TIMESOFINDIA.COM | January 26,2023

India’s unfortunate exit from the title race of the Hockey World Cup was scripted on Sunday at the end of a breathless penalty shootout in the crossover match against New Zealand, who went on to win 5-4 in sudden death. To know what ‘sudden death’ means in a shootout, let’s first understand the format of a penalty shootout and how it is executed. A shootout in hockey is required as a tiebreaker when the teams end up scoring the same number of goals or no goals in a knockout match are scored where a winner needs to be declared in order to progress in the tournament. Unlike football, there is no extra-time period in hockey if the regulation game of 60 minutes ends in a tie. The game straightaway moves to a shootout.   THE SHOOTOUT RULES The teams are asked to select five players each and the order in which they will take turns to take five shootouts. Earlier, the shootout in hockey used to be like a penalty stroke, where the ball was kept at a spot seven yards out from the goal and the player pushed or flicked it, trying to beat the goalkeeper in the post. However, now, as per FIH’s tournament regulations for outdoor competition: a) the goalkeeper/defending player starts on or behind the goal-line between the goal posts b) the ball is placed on the nearest 23-metre line opposite the centre of the goal c) an attacker stands outside the 23-metre area near the ball d) the umpire blows the whistle to start time e) an official at the technical table starts the clock f) the attacker and the goalkeeper/defending player may then move in any direction g) the shoot-out attempt is completed when (1) 8 seconds have elapsed since the starting signal or (2) a goal is scored or (3) the attacker or the goalkeeper commits an unintentional offence inside or outside the circle in which case the shoot-out is re-taken by the same player against the same goalkeeper or (4) the goalkeeper commits an intentional offence inside or outside the circle, in which case a penalty stroke is awarded and taken or (5) the ball goes out of play over the back-line or side-line, which includes the goalkeeper intentionally playing the ball over the back-line. SUDDEN DEATH If the above still fails to decide a winner and the scores remain level after five shootout attempts each, then the game moves to a sudden death shootout. Everything remains the same in sudden death, except that when a team takes a one-goal lead over the other, and the opposition fails to equalize, the game comes to an end. Like in the World Cup crossover match between India and New Zealand on Sunday, Sam Lane scored to put NZ ahead 5-4, but Shamsher Singh failed to level it, and thus New Zealand were declared the winners. Source: TIMESOFINDIA.COM | Jan 23, 2023

Germany and Netherlands are semi-finalists at the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 earning wins against England and Korea in their respective quarterfinals. In the semi-finals, Australia will face Germany, while Belgium will take on Netherlands, on 27 January, in the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar. Match 1: England vs Germany 2-2 (SO: 3-4) Germany were quicker off the blocks in the first quarter dominating possession and territory in the English half. They created the first big chance of the game as Mats Grambusch’s good work on the left saw Zwicker deflect his pass into the circle, onto the path of Trompertz, but his shot on the reverse sailed high and wide of the goal. As the time moved forward, England started to find their rhythm and a free hit just outside the circle was played into the circle by Calnan and his pass in was lifted by Rushmere and at the end of his 3d skill move, the ball fell in the air to Zach Wallace and his volleyed effort found the back of the goal to open the scoring for the English. Germany were measured in their attack in the second quarter, as the threat England possessed on the counterattack was evident. Zach Wallace nearly doubled England’s lead in the 21st minute on one such counter as he beat two defenders at the top of the circle with silky touches, before unleashing a shot, but his shot hit teammate Ansell’s foot before it could reach Stadler in the goal. Germany won two late penalty corners in the quarter, but their first was a variation that was well read and intercepted by Albery and the second, taken by Peillat, was stopped and kicked out rather easily by the in-form Ollie Payne. Germany were down to 10 players early in the third quarter as Oruz was given a green card for a deliberate foul to stop an English counter attack. England made good use of the player advantage to win three quick penalty corners and they doubled their lead on the third attempt as a misplaced injection by Condon forced Ansell to improvise with a flat hit and he placed it into the bottom left corner to perfection. As time started to wind down in the 3rd quarter, things started to get a bit fiery. Christopher Rühr earned himself a 5-minute suspension for an aggressive tackle in the middle of the field. Germany’s search for a goal to get back into the game was well stuffed out by some terrific defensive work by the likes of Alberry and Waller. England continued to play calmly and stuffed German attacks in the midfield in the first half of the final quarter. Germany subbed Stadler out for an extra outfield player and with a little under 5 minutes to go, won a penalty stroke. Christopher Rühr stepped up to take it, but his attempt hit the crossbar and England survived. Germany finally managed to score as Trompertz sent in a cross that found Mats Grambusch all alone on the far post and he lifted the ball into an open goal. England then went down to 10 players as Zach Wallace got himself a green card with just a little over 2 minutes to go. England then conceded another penalty stroke as a shot by Wellen looked destined to go into the goal but instead hit an English body. Tom Grambusch who takes penalty strokes for Germany, when on the pitch, was available this time and sent Payne the wrong way to complete the comeback for the Honamas and send the game into a shoot-out. Germany, who had won 7 out of the 9 shoot-outs over the past 4 years, were perfect in the shoot-out, scoring all 4 of their attempts. David Goodfield missed England’s third attempt and Danneberg, who was in the goal instead of Stadler for the shoot-outs, saved the final English attempt by Ansell to give the Honamas a famous win, and their first semi-final appearance at the World Cup since 2010! Mats Grambusch was awarded player of the match and said: “My legs are still shaking, that was a great comeback, really proud of the team. We were better in the second half and to come back and draw the game in the final 2 minutes was just incredible.” Match 2: Netherlands vs Korea 5-1 Netherlands and Korea played a fascinating first quarter in the last quarterfinals match at the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023. It was end to end action as both teams looked to play on counter-attacks and managed to find spaces through the midfield to successfully penetrate opposition circles. Both teams also won 2 penalty corners each, but all 4 penalty corners amounted to very little, thanks to some brave number one running from the defences. Netherlands had the best chance from open play as Pieters went on a great run from his own circle all the way to the Korean circle, but his shot was well saved by Jaehyeon Kim. The second quarter was much of the same as the teams traded possession on counter-attacks. Korea had a great chance on one of their attacks launched from a turnover they forced at the halfway line. Hwang’s driven pass into the circle nearly found the diving Junwoo, but Lars Balk got a crucial touch right before the pass got to Junwoo to send the ball out over the baseline. Netherlands opened the scoring in the 27th minute as Thierry Brinkman cut through the Korean defence from the right and his attempted pass was almost intercepted Jungjun, but he failed to make a clean connection on the ball and Koen Bijen was there right behind him to latch on to the loose ball and put it in the back of the goal to give Netherlands the lead they would carry into the interval. Netherlands won an early penalty corner to start the second half and while Kim saved Jansen’s flick, the rebound was collected brilliantly by

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23 January, 2023 The second day of crossovers at the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 saw Germany and Korea seal their quarterfinal berths with wins over France and Argentina respectively. Germany will now take on England in the quarterfinals, while Korea will face Netherlands, with both matches to be played in Bhubaneswar. France and Argentina head into the 9-16 classification matches, which will take place in Rourkela. Match 1: Germany vs France 5-1 France and Germany were both coming off strong performances to end their pool stage matches. France almost got the better of Argentina in an incredible 5-5 draw where Argentina needed to score with just 6 seconds left on the clock to get to the draw, while Germany pulled off a huge 7-2 win against Korea in their final game. The start of the game looked to set up an even contest as France and Germany both traded opportunities in the first half of the opening quarter. Germany had the first big chance through a penalty corner, but Peillat’s flick was at a comfortable height for Thieffry to save. France then got a big chance to grab the lead as a great run into the circle by Gaspard Baumgarten led to the ball hitting a German foot. It was young star Clement who received the opportunity to score from the corner, but he dragged his effort low and wide. Germany ended the quarter on the front foot and finally found the opening goal through Marco Miltkau, who had been searching for his first goal in the tournament. Germany blew the doors open in the second quarter scoring thrice to take a huge lead into the halftime break. Their first goal of the second quarter came via a brilliant counter attacking move started by Hinrichs that allowed Germany to go 2 on 1 in the French circle and while the pass to Wellen was initially intercepted by Thieffry, the rebound fell to the German forward who kept his impressive form going, by scoring his 5th goal of the tournament. Captain Mats Grambusch then latched onto a loose ball in the French circle in the 24th minute, to score his second goal of the tournament, and Trompertz made it 4 for the Honamas, just a minute later, by deflecting a low drag flick by Tom Grambusch, over Thieffry and into the French goal. Germany slowed things down in the third quarter, secure in the big lead they built up in the first half. France had a great opportunity midway through the quarter, as an aerial ball seemed destined to find Clement free in the German circle, but a leaping Tom Grambusch extended his stick in the air and managed to get a slight touch on the ball that deflected it away from Clement, keeping Germany’s clean sheet intact. The best chance early in the 4th quarter also fell France’s way, with Masson’s run and piercing pass finding van Straaten in the circle and his cross nearly found Clement open at the far post, but Hinrich positioned himself perfectly to intercept the pass and clear the danger. France did finally manage to get a consolation goal with 2 minutes left on the clock as a low drag flick by Clement was deflected over Stadler by a diving Goyet, to give France a goal they deserved for the attacking intent they showed throughout the second half. Germany got the final goal of the game to put the cherry on top of a great performance, as a quick penalty corner routine caught the French defence unaware and Peillat’s low drag flick met no resistance sealing a 5-1 win for Germany and a spot in the quarterfinals against England. Captain Mats Grambusch was awarded player of the match and said: “Our first half was among the best hockey we have played as a team, constantly attacking and getting the goals that took us to this win. Second half was a little step down for us in terms of intensity, but we managed the game well overall.” Match 2: Argentina vs Korea 5-5 (SO: 2-3) Argentina made a good start to the crossover game, dominating possession and territory, pinning Korea into their own defensive half. The opening goal came rather fortuitously for the Argentines as a deflected ball into the circle was not handled well by the keeper and the ball fell to Maico Casella whose diving shot looped over the keeper and into the goal. Korea settled into the game after the goal and won a penalty corner late in the first quarter, but Jang’s attempted drag flick did not get the height he wanted and was easily saved. Korea had a much better start to the second quarter and they turned defence into attack with Jang Jonghyun intercepting a cross in his own circle and bursting out to launch a counter-attack that deflected off a Argentine stick and fell to Sunghyun Kim who had an empty goal to tap the ball into. Korea then quickly added a second goal to grab the lead as a messed penalty corner routine saw the ball ping across the circle and fall to Junwoo who tapped it into the goal. Argentina were back level inside a minute as Nicolas Keenan scored from the right after his first deflected shot attempt was saved, but the rebound fell kindly back to him. The goals continued to flow as Argentina scored from a penalty corner through Nicolas della Torre, whose powerful flick dissected the keeper and the post defender to perfection. Argentina started the second half looking to increase their lead but Korea absorbed the early pressure well, not giving away any penalty corners despite multiple circle penetrations by the Argentines. Finally Korea had the opportunity to attack 10 minutes into the half and they quickly won a penalty corner that was scored by star drag flicker Jang Jonghyun. Once again one goal brought another as Argentina won a penalty corner of their own within a minute

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The first day of crossovers at the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 produced drama aplenty as Spain and New Zealand sealed their quarterfinal berths with shoot-out wins, in the sudden death stage, against Malaysia and India respectively. Spain will now take on Australia in the quarterfinals, while New Zealand will face Belgium, with both matches to be played in Bhubaneswar. Malaysia and India head into the 9-16 classification matches, which will take place in Rourkela. Match 1: Malaysia vs Spain 2-2 (shoot-out: 3-4) Malaysia were under pressure early in the first quarter and were lucky to go into the 2nd quarter at level footing, having survived a couple of big chances, particularly when Enrique Gonzalez hit the crossbar from a couple of metres out. Malaysia started to get on the front foot a bit more in the second quarter but neither team was able to carve out any high quality scoring opportunity in the 15 minutes, and as the half-time whistle blew, the teams remained tied on 0-0. The second half burst into action as Malaysia showed why they are such a big threat on the attack as a long pass from inside his own half, by Faiz Jali, found form man Faizal Saari who received the ball in his stride just outside the Spanish circle and unleashed a powerful shot on the reverse to beat Adrian Rafi. The goal sprung Spain into action and they committed more players to the attack. Spain equalised through a Marc Miralles penalty stroke in the 41st minute and snatched the lead a minute later as a mesmerising run by Pere Amat led to a cross which was turned into an empty goal by Gispert at the far post, leaving Malaysia to chase the game in the final quarter. The final quarter started with Malaysia thinking they had equalised through Amirul Azahar inside 20 seconds, but Spain reviewed and a backstick in the build up to the goal reversed the goal. Three minutes later though Malaysia did score through Shello Silverius and there was no doubt about the validity of the goal this time, setting up an exciting final 10 minutes. Spain earned a flurry of penalty corners over the final minutes, but their attempted drag flicks were saved each time by a combination of good first rushing and calm keeping, taking the first knockout game of the event into a shoot-out! The teams could not be separated through the first 5 attempts in the shoot-out as the game moved to sudden death. Marc Miralles scored his first for Spain and Mario Garin, who was brought on by the red sticks to keep in the shoot-outs, stepped up and saved the Malaysian attempt to earn his team the win and a spot in the quarterfinals! Marc Miralles was awarded player of the match and said: “Well played to Malaysia as well, we know this is a very tough way to lose a game. Really happy with our team’s performance throughout, coming back from a goal down to get the win and move on is great for us.” Match 2: India vs New Zealand 3-3 (SO: 4-5) India were dominant in the first quarter in terms of territory and possession but in terms of big chances, the teams were level at one apiece. New Zealand were the first to get a good shot on target, but Sreejesh was quick to step out, make himself big and make the save. Harmanpreet, who scored his first penalty corner goal in the game against Wales, nearly saw his first penalty corner break the goal-line, but a save on the line by Simon Child, kept the scores tied to end the first quarter. New Zealand had a huge chance to start the second quarter, but the shot attempt by Morrison went narrowly wide and India capitalised soon with a quick counter, that was smashed in from the right by Lalit, who was smartly found on the counter by Shamsher. India added a second goal midway through the second quarter as a Harmanpreet drag flick was saved by the keeper, but the rebound looped up in the air and Sukhjeet was the first to get to it and smash the high volley into an open goal. The black sticks had their best opportunity to score just before the half as Findlay found Child on the left baseline and his pass across the face of the Indian goal was tapped in by Sam Lane to bring New Zealand back into the game. Both teams traded a goal each in the third quarter, with India scoring first through a Varun Kumar penalty corner that snuck through the legs of Dixon, but New Zealand pulled back to within one again with Kane Russell beating Sreejesh from a penalty corner of his own, setting up an incredible final quarter of action. India retreated into the defence to begin the fourth quarter while New Zealand turned up the heat. India conceded a penalty corner in the 50th minute and while the attempted flick from Russell did not make the contact he wanted, the follow up shot by Lane was brilliantly turned in by Findlay, with his back to the goal. The final 10 minutes were filled with non-stop action as India failed to capitalise on their penalty corner opportunities, while Krishan Pathak was brilliant in stopping New Zealand shots on target, including once in the final second of the game to take the game to a shoot-out. The shoot-out was a nervous affair all over again with 18 shoot-out attempts required to separate the two sides. Both New Zealand and India had 2 attempts where a goal would’ve won the game for them, but Hiha and Lane missed for New Zealand, while Harmanpreet and Sukhjeet missed their possible match winning attempts for India. On the 17th attempt, Sam Lane gave New Zealand the lead and Shamsher, who had missed once earlier, stepped up again, but his attempt was well saved by Hayward,

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21 January, 2023 The International Hockey Federation (FIH) is thrilled to announce that it has signed a partnership with JSP Foundation for its development programs. FIH will be working closely with JSP Foundation for some of its key initiatives for hockey development over the coming months. This partnership will also see the JSP Foundation coming onboard the ongoing FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela as a Global Partner. “We’re delighted to welcoming JSP Foundation as global partner for this absolutely thrilling FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup, magnificently organised here in Odisha, as well as for our hockey development activities. On behalf of FIH, I’d like to extend our sincerest thanks to JSP Foundation. We look forward to a superb collaboration!”, said FIH President Tayyab Ikram. “It has been a matter of great pride and privilege for the nation to host the Men’s Hockey World Cup. Hockey has deep foundation touching and binding millions across the country. At JSP Foundation, we are committed to bringing the social change through sustainable development for the people and for the nation at large in-turn making a difference to millions at the ground level. People of this nation are the common factor for our partnership with FIH for the ongoing Men’s Hockey World Cup and we are proud of Hockey as the Sports of our Nation’s passion. We congratulate Govt of Odisha for nurturing Hockey consistently and organising World Cup Hockey in this magnificent scale second time consecutively”, said Shallu Jindal , Chairperson JSP Foundation On this momentous occasion, agency that stitched this exciting partnership, Creatigies Communications, complimented both FIH and JSP Foundation for this partnership. “At Creatigies, over the last 2 decades, we have been at the forefront of getting consumer and business brands to partner with a wide range of sports sponsorships and partnerships. It gives us great pleasure to enable JSP Foundation, a foundation dedicated to the cause of Humanity ride on a Global sports event like the FIH Odisha Hockey Men`s World Cup and use this association to further collaborate to partner hockey development programs around the world.”, said Navroze D. Dhondy, Founder and Managing Director, Creatigies. The 15th edition of FIH’s flagship event for men is being played from 13 to 29 January in Odisha, India. All information about the tournament is available on www.worldcup.hockey. For more information about FIH and hockey in general, please download the Watch.Hockey app or follow the FIH social media channels – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – and website. #HWC2023 #HockeyEquals #HockeyInvites

Day 7 of FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 brought the conclusion of the group stage action from Pool A and Pool B, as Australia and Belgium topped their groups, booking their quarterfinals spots, while Argentina, France, Germany and Korea now move on to the crossovers. Incredibly, all 4 games saw at least one player score a hat-trick, with the second game between France and Argentina producing two, as Blake Govers (AUS), Victor Charlet (FRA), Nicolas della Torre (ARG), Tom Boon (BEL) and Niklas Wellen (GER) all scored at least thrice for their teams! A total of 38 goals were scored across the 4 games on the day, for a whopping average of 9.5 goals per game! In the opening game of the day, Australian attack showed out in the first half going into the break up 7-1 to put the result beyond much doubt. South Africa gave a better account of themselves in the second half but Australia still ran out comfortable winners with a 9-2 final scoreline. Argentina and France then played in an absolute thriller that included 2 goals scored by the teams in the final 53 seconds! The game ended 5-5 which kept Argentina above France in the final pool standings, as both teams head into the crossovers. In Pool B, Belgium handled their business first registering an impressive 7-1 win over Japan, with star striker Tom Boon opening his account in the World Cup with a 5-goal performance, taking Belgium’s goal difference to +11. Germany faced Korea in the final encounter, needing to win by 9 goals to overtake Belgium in the Pool B standings and earn direct entry into the quarterfinals, but an impressive 7-2 was not enough as they join Korea in heading to the crossovers from Pool B. Match 1: Australia vs South Africa 9-2 After a brief hiccup in their game against Argentina, Australia were back to their scoring best right from the first whistle in the game against South Africa. Blake Govers who scored the all important equaliser against Argentina was on fire, scoring 4 times in the first half to go level with Jip Janssen and Thierry Brinkman on the top scorer list. South Africa did manage to get on level terms after Australia’s opener, but Australia added 6 goals in between the 10th and 28th minute to make the South African equaliser in the 8th minute seem like a distant memory by the time the half time whistle blew. Jeremy Hayward added an 8th for Australia in the 32nd minute, but that would be the only goal scored in the 3rd quarter as South Africa tightened their defence. Tevin Kok had a great opportunity to score a goal as the time expired in the 3rd quarter, but his attempted lob over the keeper sailed over the goal. South Africa’s resurgence continued in the final quarter as well, as Tim Brand’s early 4th quarter goal was cancelled off by a late goal by Tevin Kok to keep the scoring in the final quarter balanced. Blake Govers was awarded player of the match for his 4-goal performance and said: “We got our goals early which was good because we weren’t very tidy in our performance in the second half. Overall it has been a good start to the World Cup.” Match 2: France vs Argentina 5-5 France have been a bogey team for Argentina in recent years earning important wins against the Leones in the 2018 World Cup, as well as the FIH Hockey Pro League in 2022. With France coming into the game off a big win against South Africa, and Argentina coming off an impressive draw against Australia, the stage was set for another high pressure encounter. And the teams delivered on the promise early, with Argentina scoring early in the 3rd minute through Nicolas Keenan, and France answering back in the 11th minute through Etienne Tynevez, as the teams went into the half on level terms. Momentum swung multiple times in the 3rd quarter as Argentina scored early to take the lead through Nicolas della Torre, before France snatched the lead back through a Victor Charlet brace. della Torre scored once again from a penalty corner to bring Argentina back level, setting up an exciting final quarter. Both teams traded a goal each in the 4th quarter and the game looked like it was heading for a draw when France won a penalty stroke with just 53 seconds left in the game, which was dispatched once again by Charlet, for his fourth goal of the game! Argentina, unwilling to give up, earned a string of penalty corners in the final seconds and scored with 6 seconds left on the clock to lock up the second spot in the group, as France finished third. Victor Charlet was awarded player of the match and said: “Good to get a hattrick but I would have preferred a win. We really wanted to finish second in the group, but we will take the confidence from this performance on to the next game.” Match 3: Belgium vs Japan 7-1 With a draw in the previous game against Germany, Belgium needed a big win against Japan to try and seal their spot at the top of Pool B and earn direct qualification to the quarterfinals, and a first half hat trick by Tom Boon gave them a 4-goal lead by the end of first half, and increased their goal difference to +9, with another 30 minutes to further extend their lead over Germany, who had a +3 goal difference with one game to go in the final match of the day against Korea. Japan had a much better start to the second half, keeping Belgium out in the 3rd quarter and scoring their first of the game early in the 4th. But Belgium had a much better finish to the game scoring thrice in the final 10 minutes, including 2 more goals for Tom Boon, to win with a 6 goal

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The South African Men’s team was facing an uphill battle as they had suffered two narrow defeats, making it unlikely for them to qualify for the crossovers. However, they were determined to test their mettle against the world’s top-ranked side and prepare for the playoffs with the goal of finishing in the top 12 still very much within reach. As the match began, the South Africans were met with frustration as their keeper, Gowan Jones, made a fantastic save, but the rebound was picked up by the Australian player, Blake Govers. Despite this setback, the South Africans were determined to make the most of their opportunity. However, it was clear that it was going to be a tough afternoon for them as the Australians continued to press forward, hunting for a second goal. The South Africans levelled through Bili Ntuli. An aerial ball from Dayaan Cassiem found Ntuli in space and he fired home with a cover drive type of finish that would not be amiss in the current SA20 tournament. Disappointingly for the South Africans it was a parity that did not stay like that for long as Australia restored the lead through a Tom Craig goal. Australia then became the Blake Govers Association as the Australian hitman hit three more to make it 5-1 to the world’s leading team. The South Africans had the opportunity to pull one back as they were awarded a penalty stroke after an illegal intervention from the Australians. Nic Spooners shot was saved by Andrew Charter and immediately the South Africans were punished as Jake Harvey ran through unmarked and made it 6-1 with the half time whistle still a few minutes away. And there was time for a seventh after a penalty corner was well charged down Australia reacted first and Nathan Ephraums obliged. Coach Cheslyn Gie asked for the team to be tougher and fight more in the second half and will be disappointed that they conceded one minute in from a Jeremy Haywood penalty corner. South Africa, who had lost their referral in the first half, were let off from a terrible penalty corner decision when Govers fired over the top of the goal. Australia was then awarded a penalty corner for a foot when the ball come off Guy Morgan’s stick, but fortunately Estiaan Kriek made a good save and the deficit remained seven. Tevin Kok almost produce one of his characteristic world class goals as the South Africans finally gave a better account of themselves in the third quarter. It finished with the score 8-1. South Africa won an early penalty corner in the final quarter. Beauchamp got tremendous power from the shot but missed the target frustratingly. Kriek made another good save on his World Cup debut, but Australia would add another through Tim Brand to make it 9-1 to the Australians. South Africa would give the game its final glittering end with a rocket from Tevin Kok as he picked up an overhead from Dayaan Cassiem and smashed it into the roof of the net. For the South Africans it was a stark reminder of the gap to the top teams and the work ahead to bridge it. All eyes will now turn to the playoffs as the SA Men look to finish as high as possible. Source: SAHockey.co.za

19 January, 2023 Day 6 of FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 brought the conclusion of the group stage action from Pool C and Pool D, as Netherlands and England topped their groups, booking their quarterfinals spots, while Malaysia, New Zealand, India and Spain now move on to the crossovers. Malaysia and New Zealand played the first game with Malaysia needing a win to overtake New Zealand for the second spot in the group, while New Zealand just needed a draw to stay ahead of Malaysia on goal difference. What unfolded was an enthralling contest with Malaysia grabbing the first two goals of the game, but the Kiwis responded with two quickfire goals in the 4th quarter to level the scores. Malaysia had the last laugh however, scoring with 2 minutes left on the clock to seal the win and grab the second spot in Pool C, with New Zealand finishing 3rd. Netherlands were up next against Chile who had been resilient in their first two games of the tournament. Netherlands came into the game in a menacing mood and scored 14 past the Chilean defence to set a new record for the biggest margin of victory in an FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup. Action then moved over to Pool D as Spain and England went up in game 1 with all 4 spots in the group undecided. Spain started the game brightly, but failed to find their scoring touch, while England made the best of their opportunities, scoring twice before the half. The second half followed a similar pattern, as Spain’s scoring touch completely deserted them, while the English defence withstood all the pressure and launched counter-attacks that helped add 2 more goals in the second half for an emphatic 4-0 win. The final match of the day was between hosts India, playing their first match in Bhubaneswar against the plucky Welsh team that had nothing to lose. India made a great start to the game holding more than 80% possession in the first half, but their finishing wasn’t the best as they were up by two goals until the 43rd minute when Wales found a way back, scoring twice in two minutes to end quarter three on level terms. Akashdeep who had scored India’s second, put them ahead again at the start of the 4th quarter and Harmanpreet added his first goal in the final minute to carry India to a win and 2nd position in Pool D. Match 1: Malaysia vs New Zealand 3-2 New Zealand started the game stronger and nearly got themselves an early goal with a 3 on 1 attack in the Malaysian circle, but Kingstone’s shot was rather tame in the end. Kane Russell and Razie Rahim were off target from the first penalty corners for both sides as the game started to open up. Malaysia were the first to score as Faizal Saari got a slight touch on a ball into the circle that took it past an onrushing Dixon giving Malaysia a crucial lead. Malaysia had fewer circle penetrations by half time, but they had the better chances to score the second goal of the game through Shello Silverius and Marhan Jalil, with both missing great chances, to keep the score at 1-0 at the break. Second half followed the same pattern as New Zealand kept possession and territory but were well kept out by the Malaysian deep defence, while everytime Malaysia went into attack, they created great scoring opportunities. They added the second goal from their 6th penalty corner as Razie Rahim buried a low drag flick into the bottom left corner of the goal. The final quarter provided pulsating hockey as New Zealand scored twice early in the quarter through Phillips and Lane to temporarily move into the 2nd place on the Pool table, but Malaysia grabbed the lead back with less than 3 minutes left, as Faizal Saari scored his second of the game to get Malaysia the 3 points and 2nd place in Pool C. Marhan Jalil was awarded player of the match for his great performance in the Malaysian defence. Double goalscorer Faizal Saari said after the match: “It was a good team performance as we stuck to our strategies. We will enjoy this moment and this win first and then we will think about the cross-overs.” Match 2: Netherlands vs Chile 14-0  Netherlands came into the final pool game with 2 near perfect wins, while Chile came in with 2 closely fought contests where they ended up on the losing side. On paper it was an uphill task for Chile to take much from the game and the first half proved that as the Dutch played incredible attacking hockey to score five times in the first half, with Vilder, Thijs and Brinkman scoring once, while Jansen added two from penalty corners. The second half saw Netherlands turn up the pressure to 100 as they scored 6 goals in the 3rd quarter and 3 more in the final quarter. In the process Netherlands broke the record for the biggest win in the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup history, previously held by Australia, when they scored 12 unanswered goals against South Africa in the 2010 Men’s World Cup. For the Dutch, Jip Janssen top scored with 4 penalty corner goals, with captain Thierry Brinkman also grabbing a hattrick in the 59th minute. In total, 8 Dutch players got themselves on the scoresheet as they moved into the quarterfinals in red hot form! Jip Janssen was awarded player of the match and said: “I didn’t know we had broken the world record, so that is good to know. It was a great team performance overall and in terms of penalty corners it’s good to get the rhythm going and not just for me but for the injectors and stoppers as well.” Match 3: Spain vs England 0-4 Spain and England came into the encounter with 3 and 4 points respectively with all positions from 1-4 undecided

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