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China vs. South Africa in Day 3 action at the men's Olympic Qualifier (Photo: Stanislas Brochier)
By FIH
China 2, South Africa 5
South Africa won the battle of the unbeatens in the first major meeting of this Olympic Qualifier, topping China in a solid 5-2 victory. The win puts South Africa and Japan atop of the standings, each with three wins in the three games. The two teams will meet when the men’s tournament resumes on Wednesday.
The teams started tentatively, but soon enough South Africa found its scoring touch thanks to the fancy flicking of Justin Reid-Ross who fired the 1-0 goal into the upper left corner to break the scoring silence. A defensive lapse by China led to the 2-0 goal for South Africa when they found themselves on a breakaway. The initial shot was stopped, but Ian Haley put in the second effort.
Lloyd Norris Jones gave South Africa a convincing 3-0 lead before the break with a picture-perfect diving deflection, China had to be disappointed with the first half performance which saw a few miscues on key opportunities and only a handful of meaningful scoring chances.
Jonathan Robinson was the man of the second half for South Africa. He scored two goals in a five-minute span to give the South Africans ample breathing room. Robinson’s first marker lifted the lead to 4-0 and his second was a answer to China’s Yubo Na’s goal at the other end and was key to keeping the momentum on the South African side.
China had a few chances late in the half, but the four-goal difference was simply too much to overcome with the clock ticking as top-seeded South Africa won its first major test of the event against third-seeded China.
South Africa has another major test on Wednesday when they take on unbeaten Japan. It will be a meeting of the two top seeds in one of the most highly-anticipated games of the round robin. China will look to regroup against the Czech Republic on Wednesday before they face Japan on Friday.
Brazil 0, Japan 11
Japan stayed undefeated at the Men’s Olympic Qualification Tournament after a convincing 11-0 victory against Brazil. Japan is 3-0 in three games, but the hosts and second-seeded team at this event still have their two biggest games to play in the last two days of the round robin with South Africa and China coming up.
Japan wasted no time getting started, opening about 20 seconds into action on its first trip down field. The 1-0 lead stood for about seven minutes until Japan put in three goals in less than two minutes, leaving the Brazilians stunned by the rapid fire onslaught. Hiroki Sakamoto scored once in the flurry and Kenta Tanaka struck twice.
From there, Japan continued to roll, putting in two more penalty corner goals to close the first half with a 6-‘ lead. The second half was much of the same as Brazil could not keep pace with the quicker, more skilled Japan side. Japan’s scoring slowed a bit in the half, but the still added five goals in the half to bring the final to 11-0.
Kenta Tanaka paced all scorers with three goals in the win while Katsuyoshi Nagasawa and Hiroki Sakamoto scored two goals each.
Austria 2, Czech Republic 1
Austria earned its first win at the Men’s Olympic Qualification Tournament after hanging on for a 2-1 win against the Czech Republic. Michael Korper was the difference for the Austrians, scoring both goals in the victory.
The loss leaves the Czechs still looking for their first win of the event as they are winless in their first three outings with China and Brazil left to meet in the round robin phase.
The two teams are the most physical among the field and in the first half they lived up to expectations as the intensity was high and the tempers were right on the edge. Korper struck midway through the half with a well-executed penalty corner to give the Austrians the early lead. But the Czechs quickly responded with a field goal when Ondrej Vudmaska deflected a shot into the net.
Korper’s easy conversion on a penalty stroke restored the Austrian lead. Little did either team know that the 2-1 advantage would last through the end of the game as the intensity and scoring chances visibly ebbed in a tepid second half.
Austria will look to continue its winning ways against last-seeded Brazil on Wednesday. The Czechs have China next on the agenda.
K. DHARMARAJ was never one to hide his thoughts, be it during his playing days or coaching the Project 2013 team since 2009.
He has set his mind on not only qualifying for the Junior World Cup next year in New Delhi, but also win Malaysia’s first Junior Asia Cup gold in Malacca from May 3-13.
“Every time I was quoted in print and television that I want not only the World Cup spot, but also the gold medal in Malacca, I receive many calls and SMS’ cautioning me not to be overconfident.
“My reply to them is -- until when are we going to have a low key attitude going into a tournament. What is the message that we are sending the players if the coaching staff themselves are afraid to set a target higher than that of the parent body?” questioned Dharmaraj.
The Malaysian hockey Confederation (MHF) have set a target of playing in the final, but Dharmaraj is bent on winning the gold as he believes his players are capable of it.
“I have won many local tournaments both as a player and coach. But winning the Sultan of Johor Cup was the best moment of my life.
“To be honest I never thought that we would be champs in Johor. But having been at the helm as coach since 2009, I have had a dream to win the Asian level tournament.
“This tournament was why the Project 2013 team, was formed and with playing at home providing us with the perfect opportunity to make good the dream,” said Dharmaraj.
And he has a large coaching and support staff to achieve the dream of being champions, and denying India their hat-trick of titles.
“I have two video analyst, one masseur, one medical assistant, one nutritionist, one psychologist and one bio mechanic.
“My coaching team consists of K. Gobinathan, Nor Azlan Bakar and M. Nadarajan as goalkeeper coach. All were there in Johor as well .
“To me, I am strong believer of sharing responsibilities and using the best to master the best. All this would not have been possible without the support and encouragement from the MHC, NSI (National Sports Institute) and NSC (National Sports Council),” said Dharmaraj.
The Junior Asia Cup only offers two tickets to the World Cup, while India are automatic qualifiers.
In Group A are Malaysia, South Korea, Iran and Japan, while in Group B are India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and China.
And what is his biggest fear: “I fear my own team’s performance than any of the other team. One off day could spell trouble for us.
“Pakistan have included five senior players in their squad. And I reckon India and Korea too are strong in their own way as they are Olympic playing nations.
“but we have trained long and hard and are well prepared for this moment. I will play attacking hockey all the way, and I believe the results will be in our favour,” said Dharmaraj.
MALACCA are primed to host their first international
hockey tournament, as their stadium received an RM1 million face-lift,
while the opening ceremony will be a first of its kind.
The
Junior Asia Cup, which also doubles up as a World Cup Qualifier, will
be held on May 3-13 with players and officials ferried by boats along
the Malacca River to the venue of the Opening ceremony.
“We are
proud to play host to the tournament and have worked hard to ensure
that all preparations are of in ternational standards,” said Datuk Nur
Azmi Ahmad, deputy president of Malacca HA and senior vice president of
the Malaysian Hockey Confederation.
“It is a honour for Malacca
to play hosts as this is the first time we are given the opportunity
to host a top class tournament and that is why we want the opening
ceremony to be a first of its kind.
“And another pride is that
Malaysian coach K. Dharmaraj, manager Mirnawan Nawawi and assistant
coach Nor Azlan Bakar are all from Malacca as well,” said Nur Azmi.
Eight teams will battle for two slots to the World Cup, with India claiming the third as hosts next year in New Delhi.
The eight are -- Malaysia, South Korea, Iran and Japan in Group A,
while in Group B are India, Pakistan, China and Sri Lanka.
The
MBM Hockey Stadium has undergone renovations that cost more then RM1
million and the after effects are there for all to admire.
The
grandstand has been upgraded with dedicated media and broadcast rooms
and seats fitted as well on the terraces. Even the changing rooms have
been done up, truly reflecting a world class venue.
And that is not all, as the lighting system has been upgraded, enough for telecasting matches in high def inition.
And fans are also in for a treat, as host broadcaster Astro Arena are planning to telecast all Malaysian matches live.
As for Pakistan, among the favourites to claim a slot in the final, seasoned forward Umar Bhutta will lead them.
Skipper Umar Bhutta is a regular with the Pakistan senior team in
several international events, along with Kashif Shah, Ali Shan, Tousiq
Ahmed and Muhammad Rizwan.
“This is an important event for us and
we are looking to book a berth in next year’s Junior World Cup,” said
team manager cum coach Rana Mujahid.
“We have a strong
combination in presence of five senior players and we are hoping to see
boys performing well to reach the final,” he said.
Pakistan
squad: Mazhar Abbas, Amjad Ali (goalkeepers) Muhammad Khalid Bhatti,
Syed Kashif Shah (full-backs), M. Rizwan Jr, Kashif Javed, Muhammad
Tousiq, M.Faisal Qadir, Tawasar Abbas, Zohaib Ashraf, Ammad Shakeel
Butt (half- backs), Muhammad Irfan, Ali Shan, Muhammad Dilbar, Muhammad
Umar Bhutta, Muhammad Suleman, Hafiz Umar Sardar, Hafiz Rizwan,
Muhammad Umar, Muhammad Jaffar (forwards).
Austria vs. Azerbaijan in Day 3 action at the Women's Olympic Qualification Tournament (Photo: Stanislas Brochier)
THE Malaysian women’s team salvaged a draw against Belarus in the Olympic Qualifiers in Kakamigahara, Japan, yesterday.
Coach Nasihin Nubli’s ladies were down 2-0 by the 27th minute and it looked like they were heading for another hiding, but a second half show saw them salvage a point.
Siti Rahma ignited the fight-back with a field goal in the 41st minute, while Siti Noor Amarina salvaged the game with a penalty corner attempt in the 68th minute.
Japan, who beat Malaysia 8-0, were held in a surprise 0-0 draw by Chile.
“The first half was very panicky as my players failed to settled down after being pressed from the start. However, they were more disciplined in the second half and since Belarus beat Chile 3-1 (last Wednesday) and Chile held Japan 0-0, there are no easy teams in this tournament,” said Nasihin.
Malaysia next play Chile on Tuesday.
Meanwhile defender Sebah Kari, who got injured during the Azerbaijan match, is back in Malaysia and will undergo surgery today.
Sebah fractured the front and side of her jaw in that gruelling match and was flown home on Saturday.
RESULTS: Malaysia 2 Belarus 2, Chile 0 Japan 0, Austria 0 Azerbaijan 5.
INDIA have claimed the favourites tag, as they attempt a hat-trick of Junior Asia Cup titles in Malacca from May 3- 13.
The 2013 Junior World Cup hosts, who are automatic qualifiers, won the last two editions in Karachi 2004 and Chennai 2008 respectively, and will arrive in Malacca to day.
India will be captained by striker Akashdeep Singh, and if they advance to the final, the bronze medallists will also book a spot in the Junior World Cup.
Malaysia are in Group A with South Korea, Japan and Iran, while in Group B are India, Pakistan, China and Sri Lanka.
In the Sultan of Johor Cup, where Malaysia became champions, India finished fourth but they have listed 11 new players for Malacca.
Both their goalkeepers are new, as well as the captain. The seven who played in Johor are Amit Rohidas, Pardeep Mor, P. Thimmanna, Satbir Singh, M. Gnasekar, Sukhdev Singh and Mylaram Sampath.
“India have made a big change in their team after the Sultan of Johor Cup and it looks like their match against Pakistan would be the highlight of Group B as both of them fight for the top spot,” said Project 2013 coach K. Dharmaraj.
If Malaysia meet India in the semi-finals, Dharmaraj’s boys will have two lives. This is because if India beats Malaysia, the bronze medal will carry its weight in gold.
“Out first match is against Iran, and we need to score as many goals as possible but I would not pressure my players by setting too high a target. The goals would come, that is for sure,” said Dharmaraj.
To date, six team have sent in their team lists while Sri Lanka have been playing hard to get.
The Asian Hockey Confederation (AHF) have been in contact with officials in Sri Lanka who promised a team list, but until yesterday, it was still not available.
The Lankans have also made a request to stay in a dormitory or hostel and organsiers in Malacca are having a tough time trying to accommodate them.
FIXTURES: May 3 (Group A): Korea v Japan, Malaysia v Iran.
May 4 (Group B): Pakistan v China, India v Sri Lanka.
May 5 (Group A): Japan v Iran, Malaysia v Korea.
May 6: China v Sri Lanka (Group B); India vs Pakistan (Group B); Korea v Iran (Group A).
May 7: China v India (Group B); Pakistan v Sri Lanka (Group B); Japan v Malaysia (Group A).
