December 13 | Story By FIH Bhubaneswar, India: The line-up for the semi-finals of the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018 has been revealed following quarter-final victories for Belgium and Netherlands on Thursday (13 December). Belgium’s Red Lions claimed a hard-earned 2-1 triumph over Germany to secure a first World Cup semi-final appearance in their history. Their opponents in Saturday’s final four meeting will be England, who defeated Olympic champions Argentina on Wednesday. The Netherlands completed the semi-final line-up by breaking the hearts of host nation India, with the Dutch battling to a 2-1 success over the home favourites to keep alive their hopes of World Cup glory. The Netherlands will now face reigning champions Australia in their semi-final, a re-match of the gold medal match at the 2014 World Cup in The Hague. The quarter-final match between Pool D winners Germany (FIH Hero World Ranking: 6) and Belgium (WR:3) – 5-0 winners against Pakistan in the cross-overs – was fascinating from start to finish, with both teams showing attacking intent throughout. Germany were the first team to make a mark on the scoreboard a minute before the end of the first quarter through midfielder Dieter Linnekogel, who drilled a low, powerful shot through the legs of Vincent Vanasch after being expertly found by Tom Grambusch’s searching pass from the right. The Red Lions pulled level three minutes into the second period, with Alexander Hendrickx scoring his fifth goal of the competition with a perfectly executed penalty corner drag-flick. It was no more than Belgium deserved, who were thwarted on numerous occasions thanks to some terrific goalkeeping from Germany’s Tobias Walter. The high-paced action continued throughout the third and fourth quarters, with the defensive lines of both teams excelling before Belgium made what proved to be the decisive breakthrough ten minutes from the end. Shot-stopper Walter produced another fine save to deny Belgium captain Thomas Briels, but could do little about the follow-up, with Tom Boon brilliantly spinning to slide the ball under the outstretched leg of the Germany goalkeeper. Die Honamas went for broke in the final stages, replacing Walter with an outfield player in an effort to ramp up the pressure on their European rivals. However, Belgium’s defensive line – marshalled by Odisha Player of the Match Arthur Van Doren – were simply superb, running down the clock to put Belgium into the World Cup semi-finals for the first time in their history. Speaking after the match, Belgium’s Simon Gougnard was understandably thrilled about the result, but indicated that the team’s focus had already switched to Saturday’s semi-final against England. “We had to fight really hard”, said Gougnard. “We are really happy but now we have to refocus and reboot and we’re looking forward to play the next game against England. The English team has some really quality players on the ball. A really physical team so we’re going to have to bring our ‘A’ game if we want to be able to contest with them. We will have to analyse them on video and come back with a really good plan if we want to win.” With three of the four semi-final places decided, the final berth was to be taken by the winner of what proved to be a thrilling encounter between host nation India (WR:5) and Netherlands (WR:4) in front of a huge crowd responsible for creating a deafening noise and an incredible atmosphere. Dutch ace Jeroen Hertzberger rattled the side of the India goal early in the contest, but it was the home favourites who were first to register when Akashdeep Singh showed his renowned finishing abilities to fire into the roof of the Netherlands net following Harmanpreet Singh’s saved penalty corner effort. The European champions restored parity with two seconds of the period remaining thanks to Thierry Brinkman’s brilliant touch in the circle, getting just enough on Mirco Pruijser’s hopeful pass to guide the ball past the despairing dive of goalkeeper PR Sreejesh. The two teams could not be separated in the second and third quarters, although both teams had their chances. Mink van der Weerden saw a string of penalty corner opportunities wasted, while Akashdeep Singh fired high over the Dutch goal with a backhand strike. When the Netherlands had a goal ruled out by a smart Indian video referral early in the fourth quarter, it seemed that it was not going to be their day. However, a poor tackle from Chinglensana Kangujam outside of the Indian circle resulted in a penalty corner, and the Dutch made no mistake from the opportunity as Mink van der Weerden slammed a low effort into the net. India’s hopes of getting back into the match were reduced when Amit Rohidas was given a ten-minute yellow card suspension for a foul on Mirco Pruijser. Despite that hinderance, India rallied and forced a fine save from Netherlands goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak, who brilliantly kicked clear a blistering backhand strike from the outstanding Harmanpreet. While the Dutch held on for their 2-1 victory, India’s 43-year wait for a World Cup semi-final appearance will continue for at least another four years. It was a painful end for the young team coached by Harendra Singh, but they have provided plenty of evidence at this event that the future of Indian hockey is very bright indeed. Speaking after the match, Netherlands match winner Mink van der Weerden said: “It’s been an exciting game to look at, I guess. It’s been going up and down. We didn’t get the control we really wanted, I think. It’s hard playing India. They were really creative and fast and sometimes a bit unpredictable, which is one of their strengths. But I think we did well. It’s been a pleasure to be on the field. The crowd was crazy. It’s been impressive and it’s been a lot of fun playing this game.” Looking ahead to the semi-final meeting with Australia, Van der Weerden said: “Australia and the Netherlands are two different teams from four years

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December 12 | Story By FIH Bhubaneswar, India: England and Australia became the first teams to reach the final four of the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018 thanks to victories in their respective quarter-final matches on Wednesday 12th December. England claimed a stunning 3-2 triumph over Olympic champions Argentina to book their ticket to the semi-finals, with Harry Martin’s fourth quarter strike proving decisive to set up a last four meeting with either Germany or Belgium, two teams that meet in the quarter-finals on Thursday 13th December. Reigning world champions Australia proved too strong for 20thranked France, powering to a 3-0 win to maintain their own ambitions to claim a third successive title. The Kookaburras’ semi-final opponents will be either host nation India or European champions the Netherlands, two sides that also go head-to-head tomorrow. The opening stages of the quarter-final meeting between Pool A winners Argentina (FIH Hero World Ranking: 2) and England (WR:7), winners against New Zealand in the cross-over play-offs, was a cagey affair, although England certainly had the better of the first quarter. Danny Kerry’s team saw a penalty corner effort blocked by the Argentina defence in what was England’s best chance of the period, before Los Leones – who defeated England in the bronze medal match at the 2014 World Cup in The Hague – hit the European nation with a sucker-punch at the start of the second quarter. The goal came through a very familiar source, Gonzalo Peillat finding the net with low and powerful penalty corner effort that England goalkeeper George Pinner half-blocked, but not enough to keep it out. England dragged themselves level before half time when 34-year-old Barry Middleton rolled back the years with a stunning strike into the bottom corner, smashing home after a surging run into the Argentina circle from Odisha Player of the Match Liam Ansell. Things went from good to great for England at the end of the third quarter when Middleton sent an aerial pass deep into Argentine territory, with Will Calnan capitalising on a defensive error to drill a terrific effort past the left foot of Juan Vivaldi, putting his side in command ahead of a thrilling final fifteen minutes of play. A video referral by umpire Javed Shaikh saw a penalty stroke initially awarded to Argentina downgraded to a penalty corner. However, it made little difference, as Peillat showed once again why he is rated as the world’s finest drag-flicker by scoring his sixth goal of the tournament to tie the match at 2-2 with 12 minutes remaining. Incredibly, England regained the lead just a minute later, with Harry Martin forcing home after Argentina’s usually reliable defence failed to clear their lines. Argentina almost conceded a fourth goal when Ansell rattled the left post after a mazy run from deep in his own half, while Pinner was brought into action in the dying seconds to make a crucial block and confirm England’s place in the semi-finals for the third Men’s World Cup in succession. “I think it was a good game”, said England’s Michael Hoare, who tasted victory against the Olympic champions on the occasion of his 100thinternational match. “Scoring with one second left in the end of the third quarter… we’ve had that against us in the last World Cup, it’s nice to get one in this one. I felt the boys dug in really deep at the end and we played really well. We deserve to win. We got to the semi-finals last time. I think this time we’re in a better position than last time. Our team is a bit stronger. Defensively we’ve been really good in the last two or three games. If we can do that again in the semis, I think we’ve got a great chance to get to the final.” Despite being the top ranked team in the world and entering their quarter-final meeting against France (WR:20) on the back of a devastating 11-0 Pool B victory over China, Australia (WR:1) had no intention of taking their opponent from Europe lightly. It was hardly surprising, given the stunning victory Les Bleus claimed over Argentina in their final pool match. The Kookaburras were dominant throughout the first period, scoring the opening goal just four minutes in when Jeremy Hayward sent a low penalty corner drag-flick into the net, either side of both Trent Mitton and Jake Whetton hitting the frame of the France goal.  A second Australian goal arrived four minutes into the second quarter, with Blake Govers bagging a penalty corner to move level with Gonzalo Peillat on six goals in the top scorer’s chart. France had a chance to pull a goal back when Timothée Clement created a good opportunity for Aristide Coisne, who managed to beat Australia goalkeeper Tyler Lovell only for Jeremy Hayward to clear the ball off the goal-line. Australia’s third and final goal arrived in the third quarter, again from a penalty corner situation. This time it was team captain and Odisha Player of the Match Aran Zalewski who found the net, flicking into an unguarded goal after two slick passes eliminated the majority of the France defence. It was the icing on the cake for the title holders, who enter the semi-finals with four wins from four matches and having conceded only once in 240 minutes of World Cup hockey in Bhubaneswar. “It was a really good game”, said Australia’s Tim Brand after the match. “We held the ball and defended really well. I don’t think we allowed France much possession. They did not have many chances. Full credit to them, they played a good game but in the end we played really well tonight. Now we’re going to go home for a long shower, just rest a bit and then we’ll do our homework. We don’t know whom we’re playing yet but whoever we play, we’ll do a bit of research. We’re looking forward to that, hoping to win the next game to get ourselves to the final.” While Australia

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December 11 | Story By FIH Bhubaneswar, India: Belgium and the Netherlands both claimed cross-over play-off victories at the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, securing their respective places in the upcoming quarter-finals of the competition on another high-quality day of action at the Kalinga Stadium. Belgium’s 5-0 victory over four-time world champions Pakistan sets up a mouth-watering all-European quarter-final against Pool D winners Germany, a match that will take place on Thursday 13thDecember. On the same day, home favourites India have a quarter-final meeting against the Netherlands, who defeated Canada 5-0 today. The World Cup quarter-finals begin on Wednesday 12thDecember with Argentina facing England and top-ranked Australia going head-to-head against France, the lowest ranked of the 16 competing nations here in Bhubaneswar. In the day’s opening cross-over match, Belgium (FIH Hero World Ranking: 3) had the better of the first period against Pakistan (WR:13), with the Olympic silver medallists from Rio 2016 taking a 2-0 lead against the giants of Asian hockey. Alexander Hendrickx opened the scoring with a low penalty corner before Red Lions captain Thomas Briels completed the simplest of finishes after a wonderful run along the backline from Nicolas de Kerpel. Pakistan improved greatly in the second quarter and could well have reduced the deficit through Ali Shan and Muhammad Irfan Jr, who both missed the target when they had a clear sight of goal. Those missed opportunities were punished just before half time when Cedric Charlier’s speculative cross-shot took a wicked deflection off the stick of Pakistan captain Ammad Butt and flew into the goal to give Belgium a 3-0 lead at half time. The team coached by Shane McLeod added a fourth goal to their collection when Sebastien Dockier finished off a flowing team move to leave Pakistan with a mountain to climb in the final 25 minutes. As they have done throughout the event in Bhubaneswar, the Green Shirts gave it everything but could not get the goal their endeavour deserved, with Tom Boon completing a 5-0 score-line from the penalty spot in the fourth quarter. It was a special day for Belgium duo Florent van Aubel and Simon Gougnard, with the former making his 200thinternational appearance for his country and the latter being named Odisha Player of the Match for his creativity in midfield.  Speaking after the game, Van Aubel said: “I think we played our best game in the tournament so far. Winning 5-0 and getting into the quarter-finals, I think it’s really good. The whole team worked really hard to get there, so it’s really positive. We knew we were going to face Germany or the Netherlands in the next round. It’s Germany. We have to get ready for them. They’re playing really well at the moment, so I expect a tough game.” With a quarter-final meeting against host nation India on the line, the cross-over match between the Netherlands (WR:4) and Canada produced a fascinating opening fifteen minutes as the Pan-American team frustrated the European champions. Canada goalkeeper David Carter – later named Odisha Player of the Match – bravely charged down a shot from Bob de Voogd that crashed against the shot-stopper’s helmet, while Mink van der Weerden wasted a penalty corner effort towards the end of the period. The breakthrough arrived in the opening moments of the second period when defender Lars Balk found himself at the other end of the field to smash a blistering first-time effort under the cross-bar, producing the sort of finish that most strikers would be proud of. Carter denied the Dutch a second when he saved a penalty stroke from Jeroen Hertzberger, although the Netherlands did take a 2-0 lead into half-time when Robbert Kemperman guided home a cross-shot from Thijs van Dam. The Netherlands put some clear water between themselves and the Canadians with a solid display in the third quarter, netting twice to take the score to 4-0. Van Dam scored the third while Kemperman was the creator of the Netherlands’ fourth goal, stealing possession and dancing through the Canadian defence before eliminating goalkeeper Carter with a perfect pass to Thierry Brinkman, who walked the ball over the line to effectively end the contest with quarter to spare. The scoring was completed in the fourth quarter by Thijs van Dam, starting and finishing a rapid counter-attack to give the Netherlands a 5-0 victory over Canada to confirm a quarter-final meeting against India on Thursday. Speaking after the match, Netherlands captain Billy Bakker said:“We wanted to play better against Canada than we played against Pakistan. We just looked at the statistics and we had about 30 circle penetrations and we made five goals, so it could be more but we should be proud of this result. We’re very happy and we’re confident for playing the quarter-final against India. It’s lovely. My team gets a lot of energy in front of this big crowd and this enormous stadium so it’s only an advantage for us.” The first two matches of the Odisha Hockey Men’sWorld Cup Bhubaneswar 2018 quarter-finals will take place on Wednesday 12thDecember. Reigning Olympic champions Argentina (WR:2) face England (WR:7), cross-over winners against New Zealand, at 1645 IST (UTC+5:30) before reigning world champions Australia (WR:1) play France (WR:20) – who defeated China in the cross-overs – at 1900. Assessing his team’s performances so far whilst also looking towards the meeting against Olympic title holders Argentina, England’s Adam Dixon said: “We’ve grown into the tournament and improved game by game. Our young players have really stepped up and made themselves counted for. Argentina are a strong and experienced team and we will have to be at our best to get a result. However, we are full of confidence and looking forward to the challenge.” Looking ahead to his team’s quarter-final against France, Australia’s Trent Mitton – who will make his 150thsenior international appearance in the match and whose father Grant was part of Australia’s 1986 World Cup-winning side – said: “On the World Cup so far I think our

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December 10 | Story By FIH Bhubaneswar, India: England and France were triumphant on the first day of the knock-out phase of the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, sealing their places in the competition quarter-finals with victories over New Zealand and China respectively. England’s triumph against the Black Sticks sets up a quarter-final clash against Olympic champions Argentina, the team that defeated them in the bronze medal match at the 2014 World Cup in The Hague four years ago. For France, their success against China means that the competition’s lowest ranked team must now face a quarter-final meeting against the event’s highest, with reigning world champions Australia being their opponents in the last eight. England (FIH Hero World Ranking: 7) arguably had the better of the first period against New Zealand that was short on genuine goal-scoring opportunities, with England goalkeeper George Pinner stepping out to deny Hugo Inglis while New Zealand (WR:9) shot-stopper Richard Joyce made a comfortable glove save from Mark Gleghorne’s penalty corner drag-flick. England took the lead in the second quarter thanks to a close-range finish from Will Calnan, although the undisputed architect was Phil Roper, who escaped his marker before bursting into the circle and coolly lifting the ball over Joyce for Calnan to force home at the back post. That advantage was almost doubled when Liam Ansell’s strike flew just wide of the target before New Zealand’s Nick Ross stung the pads of Pinner with a ferocious volley from the top of the circle, giving Danny Kerry’s team a timely reminder that this match was far from over. Stephen Jenness came close to levelling the scores on three occasions in the third quarter, but it was England who doubled the advantage a minute before the end of the period to make life increasingly difficult for the Black Sticks. A penalty corner from Adam Dixon rattled the right post before Luke Taylor smashed home the follow-up to put England firmly in control of the match. New Zealand replaced their goalkeeper with an outfield player in the latter stages, but England’s defence held firm to secure a berth in the competition quarter-finals. When asked about how it feels to reach the last eight of the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, Phil Roper said: “It feels absolutely amazing. This was a really tough game again. We’re starting to build some momentum. First a really good performance against Ireland and now a pretty good performance against the Kiwis who are a really, really tough side. We’re delighted to come away with a clean sheet and score a couple of good goals.” Looking ahead to the match-up against Argentina, Roper was cautiously optimistic. “Obviously they’re a really good team, but we’re very excited”, said Roper, who today wore the captain’s armband. “As I said, we’ve built a momentum. We’ve played two games while they’ve been resting so maybe we’re building something. It will be a tough game but we’re starting something and we’re really enjoying it.” France (WR:20) and China (WR:17) started this World Cup as the lowest ranked teams in the competition, but both had made it through to the knock-out stages of the event. Neither wanted their journey to end here, but it was fate awaiting one of these nations. The two teams came into this match on the back of very different results, with France having stunned Olympic champions Argentina with a 5-3 victory while China were crushed 11-0 by reigning world champions Australia. Despite those outcomes, the early stages of this match were far closer than many had predicted, with China’s defensive line being particularly impressive. The match remained score-less in the second quarter, although France certainly had the better chances with Blaise Rogeau twice going close and Etienne Tynevez hitting the left post of the China goal with an angled deflection. Shortly after China’s E Wenhui forced a save from France goalkeeper Arthur Thieffry in the early stages of the third quarter, Les Bleus finally broke the deadlock thanks to a true striker’s finish from Nicolas Clemont, who guided Maximilien Branicki’s cross-shot into the China goal. China responded immediately by winning a penalty corner, but the attempt on goal from Du Talake was deemed dangerous after hitting France defender Victor Charlet on the knee. China had two penalty corner opportunities to pull themselves level in the final quarter, but it was not to be. France, the lowest ranked team in the competition, were into the quarter-finals, much to the delight of Head Coach Jeroen Delmee. “I’m really happy with the performance”, said former Netherlands international Delmee. “Offensively we did very well, but just failed to score [goals] two and three, and we were a bit unlucky also with the ball hitting the post, but the most important thing for us is to win. To be ranked number 20 and to reach the top eight is an amazing achievement for the team.” Looking ahead to a quarter-final meeting against title holders Australia, Delmee said: “Now we have another big opponent. We beat the Olympic champion and maybe we can beat the world champion, but it may be a different story. We will prepare as best we can and hopefully we can perform another very good match with our team.” France’s Viktor Lockwood was named as the Odisha Player of the Match on the occasion of his 100th senior international appearance. The final two cross-over play-off matches take place on 11 December, with Belgium (WR:3) taking on Pakistan (WR:13) at 16:45 IST (UTC +5.30) with the winner playing Germany in the quarter-finals. The 1900 match will be contested between Netherlands (WR:4) and Canada (WR:11), with the winner setting up a quarter-final clash against host nation India (WR:5). The Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018 takes place between 28 November and 16 December. The Men’s World Cup is played every four years. For all information regarding the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, including the full schedule, teams, news and

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