Australia held to 3-3 draw by Argentina, Netherlands crush New Zealand 4-0

BHUBANSEWAR: Three-time champions Australia and heavyweights Argentina played out a thrilling 3-3 draw in the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup on Monday. Hayward Jeremy opened the scoring for Australia by converting a penalty corner in the ninth minute but Argentina’s Domene Tomas restored parity in the 18th minute. Beale Daniel then produced a field goal to put Australia in the lead but Argentina were once again back in the game courtesy Casella Maico’s 32nd minute strike. Playing catch-up all evening, Argentina took the lead for the first time when Ferreiro Martin scored in the 48th minute. They looked on course to clinch all three points on offer but Govers Blake scored in the dying minutes for Australia as the two sides split points.

In the other Pool A match, Charlet Victor converted two penalty corners to help France defeat South Africa 2-1. South Africa’s lone goal came from the stick of Beauchamp Connor as he converted a penalty corner in the 15th minute. At the start of the first quarter, France had better control over the ball, but it did not translate into any circle penetrations. In the seventh minute, France earned a penalty stroke and Charlet converted it to make it 1-0 for France, less than 10 minutes into the match. Barely seven minutes later, South Africa won a penalty corner and skipper Connor Beuchamp’s fierce strike couldn’t be blocked by the French shot-stopper. It was honours even at the end of the first quarter. France earned a penalty corner in the 21st minute but Goyet could not do much with it. Both sides made no penetrations into the others half as both sets of midfielders seemed content supplementing their defence. At the end of the second quarter and the first half, the scoreline read 1-1. In the third quarter, both sides pushed for a goal in the quest of a win. South Africa created chances but failed to cash in on them. In fact, both sides won penalty corners in this quarter but could not convert them. With 15 minutes left for the end of the third quarter, the scoreline still read 1-1. In the final quarter, South Africa looked more proactive and eager. They tried to find holes in the French defence but ran into a wall every time. France won a penalty corner in the 56th minute and Charlet smashed the ball into the left bottom corner of the net, helping his side gain a lead with just four minutes to go for the hooter. France held on to their lead in the closing minutes and eventually got over the line, albeit with a slender 2-1 margin.

In the Pool C matches in Rourkela, three-time champions Netherlands thrashed New Zealand 4-0, while Malaysia eked out a 3-2 win over Chile. Brinkman Thierry scored two field goals in the opening quarter while Bijen Koen and Hoedemakers Tjep added two more goals to help Netherlands inch closer to a quarterfinals spot. Earlier, in the opening match of the day, Rahim Razie, Hamsani Ashran and Sumantri Norsyafiq scored for Malaysia, while Amoroso Juan and Rodriguez Martin registered their names on the scoring sheet for Chile. Having won both their games, Netherlands sit pretty atop Pool C with six points. New Zealand and Malaysia are second and third respectively with Chile valiant South Africa 2-1 in their Pool A match.