December 1, 2025 South Africa produced a statement performance in their final Pool A match, beating Canada 9–1 in Tamil Nadu to record their biggest Junior World Cup victory since a 9–0 triumph over Mexico back in 2005. The result gives the African champions a faint but very real chance of finishing as one of the two best second-placed teams, the final pathway into the quarter-finals.   With heavy rain pouring down, South Africa knew the equation was simple: win big, or risk slipping into the middle-eight playoff bracket. They started with clear intent and immediately took control of the game. Jaydon Brooker opened his tournament account with a superb finish, and less than a minute later he repeated the strike, almost identical in execution, slightly lower, but equally clinical, to make it 2–0. A brief lapse allowed Canada back into the match when Robin Thind was given far too much space to finish calmly, cutting the deficit to 2–1 by the end of the first quarter and offering the only moment of frustration in an otherwise dominant opening spell. South Africa reset quickly and reasserted their superiority. Midway through the second quarter Ross Montgomery pounced on a turnover and found Brett Horn, who made no mistake this time with a composed finish for 3–1. Moments later Sian Maart reacted fastest to a rebound and smashed home the fourth, sending South Africa into halftime 4–1 ahead and in complete control. Brooker completed his hat-trick early in the third quarter, this time with a flowing field goal he initiated himself, playing a delightful one-two before finishing clinically on the reverse. Litha Kraai’s sharp reactions created the next opportunity, allowing Dan Neuhoff to tuck home South Africa’s sixth before the close of the third quarter. Carlon Mentoor then produced the goal of the match, unleashing a thunderous reverse-stick shot into the roof of the net to make it 7–1. Brooker converted a penalty stroke, his fourth of the game, before Ross Montgomery capped off the scoring, tapping home after excellent work from Brett Horn to round out a commanding 9–1 win. South Africa now await the final standings across the pools to determine whether the emphatic victory is enough to place them among the top two runners-up, and secure a coveted quarter-final spot, or whether they will compete in the middle-eight classification phase. Source: SAHockey.co.za

30 Nov, 2025 The FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup Tamil Nadu 2025 moved towards the business end of the pool stage after Day 3 of the tournament witnessed some intense battles besides a flurry of goals in Chennai and Madurai. Spain emerged on top in an all-European contest against Belgium, Japan stayed alive in the quarter-finals race by going past Asian rivals China. While the tournament also witnessed its first draw, the day ended with an entertaining battle that saw France stunning Australia. Here’s a look at the eight action-packed matches from ‘Super Sunday’. Egypt vs Namibia (Full-Time Score: 2-4) After a cagey and goalless first quarter, Namibia got their act together to beat Egypt 4-2 in their second game of Pool D on Sunday. The win kept Namibia mathematically alive in the tournament,butEgypt’s second defeat ended their chances of a place in the quarterfinals. Namibia shifted gears towards the middle of the second quarter to find two goals courtesy Liam Bruys and James de Jager; but Egypt cut that lead before half-time with a goal from Abdelrahman Kasem. Two minutes into the third quarter, Namibia increased their lead to 3-1 when Josh van der Merwe beat the Egyptian post. A goal from Mohab Hegab brought Egypt back in the contest with seven minutes left on the clock, but the game was put to bed in the lastfew secondswhen Namibia’s John-Paul Britz converted a penalty corner to finish the game 4-2 in favour of his team. “It feels surreal; I can’t just put it in words. The boys put in a massive effort. Obviously it was very difficult (to come back from a defeat). Belgium is a very good side and we ended up conceding quite a few goals. We just thought this is the game we can target in our pool and we’re happy we did that (won),” said Namibia captain, Britz. “We take it game bygame. So,we’ll recover on the rest day, see what we learnt from this game and try our best against Spain. Anything can happen in hockey.” Belgium vs Spain (Full-Time Score: 0-2) Last edition’s bronze medallists Spainbeat fellowEuropeansBelgium 2-0 to register their second victory and put a foot in the quarters – leaving theBelgiansto play a win-at-all-cost game against Egypt in their last Pool D fixture. Spain, who are yet to concede a goal in the tournament, broke the deadlock in the 20thminute of the evenly-contested match when Juan Prado put the finishing touches to an incisive move. Soon after half-time, a 32nd-minute penalty corner saw Bruno Avila increasing Spain’s lead to 2-0. After two matches each in Pool D, unbeaten Spain are on top, while Belgium and Namibia both are at three points from a win and a loss each. Egypt have bowed out of the race to quarters. “I think it was our first final in the championship and this match was very important for us because we are rivals,” said Spain captain, Pablo Roman. “We were really, really serious in defence as we thought that was the key to win this match. We defended really well and I am very proud of the team and our defence. We ran a lot and now we have to rest before meeting Namibia in the last game and (hopefully) top the group. I think we have to stay tight in defence; and when we attack, we fly.” Japan vs China (Full-Time Score: 3-2) Japan revived their campaign on Day 3 after losing their opening game of the tournament and defeated Asian rivals China 3-2 in a tightPool Cmatch at Chennai’s Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium. China, however, lost their second game on the trot, which ended their hopes of reaching the last-eight stage. China were the first to strike in the 11thminute of the match when Dongjun Ning convertedapenalty corner. But Japan regrouped after the quarter-break to first equalise through Shun Hara and then take a 2-1 lead off Shu Ono’s stick, with both the goals coming offpenalty corners. The third quarter saw both the teams putting up a staunch defence, and it wasn’t until the 50thminute that Japan added a cushion to make it 3-1, thanks to Kazuki Terasaka’s field goal. China gave themselves a chance to come back when Jialiang Zhang converted a penalty stroke three minutes before the final hooter, but the Japanese held firm in the dying minutes of the game to hold on for a win. “We lost yesterday’s game, but we were not nervous and had confidence for today’s game. We did some hard work, which helped us in this match,”said Japan’sShogo Sasaki. England vs Austria (Full-Time Score: 13-0) England firedonall cylinders in their must-win second game of Pool E to hammer Austria 13-0, with ‘Player of the Match’ Kaden Draysey and Henry Markham scoring hat-tricks. England, who had lost to Netherlands 3-5 in their first match, had to not just win but also ensure a healthy margin of victory to stay in contentionforatop-place finishinthe poolanda direct qualification to the quarters. The Austrians surprised England with their defence in a barren first quarter, but the Englishmenreturned from the short break to score five goals in the next 15 minutes to lead 5-0 at half-time. Four goals each in the last two quarters took England’s tally into double figures. Besides Draysey’s four goals and three by Markham, George Fletcher finished with a brace while Ollly Bennett, Alex Chihota, Michael Royden and captain Max Anderson scored once each. “With the tournament’s format, we were obviously very disappointed with the loss against Holland yesterday. So today we knew that we have to come out and score plenty of goals ifwewant to have the opportunity to go to Chennai for the quarterfinals,” said England skipper Anderson. “So, we just wanted to stick to our game plan and go for the goals. Credit to the lads, they did exactly that. If we stay disciplined in our defence, we can go a long way in this tournament.” New Zealand vs Argentina (Full-Time Score:

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30 Nov, 2025 With less than 24 hours remaining until the start of the 11th edition of the FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup, which will take place in City of Santiago, Chile, here are the latest quotes from the participating teams: Tim White, Head Coach Belgium “The Young Red Panthers have prepared thoroughly and are eager to get started. This World Cup will be an important opportunity to measure ourselves against the best teams in the world. With several players already having gained experience with the Red Panthers, we’re setting ambitious goals — including aiming for a podium finish.” Azaylee Philander, Captain Namibia We know we are in a tough pool with strong countries such as Germany and India, but our goal is clear; we’re aiming to place 3rd in our pool and secure out spot in the group stages. We’re putting in the work, staying focused and ready to fight for every point. Tushar Khandker, Head Coach India This is a new generation of players who believe in themselves and in the process. The Junior World Cup will be a stage to showcase their character, skill, and determination. Our aim is to play with purpose and consistency — every match, every moment — and continue building a strong pathway for women’s hockey in India. Nur Shamine Azureen Bt Mohammad Badusha, Captain Malaysia We are very excited to compete in the Junior World Cup. We will try our best to give our opponents a hard time. Seoyeon Park, Captain Korea “I believe this tournament will be an opportunity not only for me personally but also for our entire team to take another step forward. Competing against strong teams on the world stage won’t be easy, but rather than being afraid, I want to approach it with a spirit of challenge. We hope to be remembered as a Korean team that grows and gives our best effort in every single match.” Alyssa Klebasko, Captain USA “We have been working hard to prepare for the Junior World Cup over the past two years, and are really thrilled with the progress we have made as a team, especially coming off of two second place finishes at the Junior Pan American Championship in 2024 and the Junior Pan American Games in 2025. Our roster has a great mix of experienced and young players, and we are looking forward to competing against the best teams in the world with the goal of earning a spot on the podium for the first time in history.” Noor van den Nieuwenhof, Captain Netherlands “We expect a super nice tournament with lots of strong countries and great matches. We will wear our orange shirts with pride and do everything we can to defend our title.” Betsan Thomas, Captain Wales “I am incredibly honoured to be selected as Captain of such an extremely talented squad of players. We are an exciting group of young players, and we are heading to Chile with the intention of putting Welsh Hockey on the map. We are ready to make our country proud, together!” Georgina West, Player Australia “We’re all trying to be great people but also push each other to be great players on the pitch as well, so we’re really excited to see what we can achieve together in Chile. And the goal of a gold medal at the junior World Cup would be amazing” Katharina Proksch, Captain Austria “We feel very honoured to take part in the Junior World Cup and to have another opportunity to compete against the best nations in the world. This is a unique experience for our small hockey nation Austria and we are really looking forward to this exciting event.” Tinodiwanashe Elijah, Captain Zimbabwe “We are a nation rich in spirit and full of heart, and we’re ready to show the world that Zimbabwean hockey is fearless, passionate, and full of promise.” Connie Roxburgh, Captain Scotland The whole squad have put in massive amounts of work over the past few months and we are incredibly excited to show what Scotland can do on the world stage. The World Cup is a brilliant opportunity for us to test ourselves against some of the top ranked nations and we are looking to make our mark in the tournament, putting in performances that reflect our hard work and passion. Ohtsuka Minami, Captain Japan “We will fight tenaciously, never forgetting our gratitude and carrying the pride of representing Japan in our hearts.” Amy Handcock, Captain Ireland “We are all really excited to be a part of this tournament, it’s a great opportunity for us to test ourselves against the best. We as players and our coaches have worked really hard in preparation for this tournament, and this gives us the chance to show how much we’ve developed as a team. It’s such a great opportunity to represent Ireland at this Junior World Cup.” Emma Findlay Captain New Zealand “Can’t wait to represent New Zealand at my second Junior World Cup, we’ve got a strong, exciting group and I’m confident we can make an impact on the world stage.” Esther Canales, Captain Spain “We’re incredibly excited to represent our country at the World Cup. Coming off the European Championship, where we finished as runners-up, we’ve worked even harder to take the next step. Our team has grown stronger, both on and off the field, and we’re ready to show our best version.” Jakob Cyrus, Coach Germany “The anticipation for the World Cup is huge. The final preparations are underway and you can tell that everyone is really looking forward to the adventure in Chile. We are highly motivated and can hardly wait. It is very special for us to meet nations from all over the world at a World Cup. We are particularly looking forward to that.” Ane Janse van Vuuren, Captain South Africa The Junior World Cup is a special opportunity for us to learn, challenge ourselves, and showcase the future of South African hockey. We’re excited to

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29 Nov, 2025 India’s roaring victory over Oman stole the thunder on Day 2 of the FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup Tamil Nadu 2025, which saw the hosts and defending champions Germany putting themselves on the verge of sealing direct qualification for the quarter-finals. Like India, Germany and Switzerland too registered their second consecutive wins in their respective pools, while last edition’s silver-medallist France swept Korea 11-1 to begin their campaign. Here’s how the goal-fest continued on Saturday, with India leading the charts: Netherlands vs England (Full-Time Score: 5-3) Netherlands and England began their quest for a maiden Junior Men’s World Cup title with a keenly-contested Pool E game in Madurai on Day 2, but the Dutch had more gas in the tank towards the end to take home full points with a 5-3 victory. It remained anybody’s game at half-time, with the scoreboard reading 2-2. Jan van’t Land got Netherlands on the board in the second minute, but England levelled things up with Kaden Draysey’s penalty-corner conversion in the 11thminute. Netherlands restored their one-goal advantage at 2-1 through Casper van der Veen’s goal in the 26thminute but Michael Royden’s strike a minute before half-time squaredthingsup once again. The Dutch teamwent aheadin the 39thminute through Joppe Wolbertoff a penalty stroketo make it 3-2 and van’t Land’s second goal of the game stretched the lead to 4-2 in the 49thminute. But England reduced that margin with their third goal, coming from George Fletcher, seconds later. However, Danilo Trieling’s 54th-minute strike gave Netherlands breathing space at 5-3 to ward off English attacks in the remaining six minutes. “I am happy, even though there are a lot of details that we can still work on. I am happy with the performance overall, and it’s a very good start with three points,”said Netherlands coach Jesse Mahieu.“I think we can grow in our defence in the 23 (yard area) and (improve) finishing in the circle. We created quitea fewchances that we did not convert. Even though we scored five goals, there are little things that I think we can change and develop to make sure we keep growing in the tournament.” Malaysia vs Austria (Full-Time Score: 5-1) Malaysia got the better of Austria in their tournament opener on Saturday, blunting the challenge of their opponentsin a comprehensive 5-1 win in Pool E. The Austrian defence held its ground in a goalless first quarter and conceded just once in the second, as Malaysia went into half-time leading 1-0 after Harris Osman converted a penalty corner in the 28thminute. The third quarter also produced no goals, but Malaysia put their foot on the accelerator in the last 15 minutes, scoring four goals. Danish Khairil scored a brace while Adam Johari and Naaveenesh Panicker struck once each. Austria’s consolation strike came off the stick of Julian Kaiser from a penalty cornerin the fourth quarter. “We played well today, so we deserved to win. The players followed all the instructions, (executed) the game-plan and we got three points,” said Malaysia captain and ‘Player of the Match’ Khairil. “Maybe we need to improve in terms of scoring as we missed (a few) chances today.” France vs Korea (Full-Time Score: 11-1) Arthur Plauche’s hat-trick and a brace each by Gabin Lorrazuri and Victor Saint-Martin launched 2023 runners-up France’s campaign in Pool F with an 11-1 rout of Korea. Eight of the 11 French goals came from open play, highlighting their attacking prowess and Korea’s struggling defence. Saint-Martin converted two penalty corners and Plauche added the other. The lone Korean goal was scored by Gyeonghu Lee. The other French players who got their names on the scoresheet were Tassilo Sura, Hugo Dolou, Achille Loussif and Arthur Morcrette. While the Korean team has work to do sorting out its defensive structure, failure to convert any of their six penalty corners added to their woes. “We are really happy with this first game. I think the team played really well. We were focussed from the start of the game, and it’s a very good way to start the Junior World Cup,” said France captain Gaspard Denis, adding that the team will hope to recover well before the big game against Australia. South Africa vs Ireland (Full-Time Score: 2-1) South Africa recovered from their 0-4 defeat against defending champions Germany on Day 1 to register a much needed win against Ireland in Madurai. However, they would have hoped to win with a healthier margin than 2-1. It was Ireland’s first defeat after their narrow win over Canadain Pool Aon the opening day, which leaves both Ireland and South Africa with a win and a loss – giving them three points from two matches each. The game of missed chances remained goalless for 42 minutes, with South Africa breaking the deadlock through Reuben Sendzul’s goal. But before the third quarter ended, Ireland drew level, thanks to Matthew McKee. The decisive goal came in the 54thminute, when Ross Montgomery put South Africa back ahead and they defended the 2-1 lead until the final hooter to bag much-needed points to stay in the raceto advance to the quarters. “Definitely happy to come away with a win but would have liked to win by a few more goals…still happy with the three points,” said South Africa captain, Daniel Neuhoff. “We weren’t as clinical as we should have been. We had a lot of chances, a lot of short corners, but didn’t convert as we would have liked to and hopefully will come back stronger in the next game…Our goal is to push forqualification tothe next round.” Australia vs Bangladesh (Full-Time Score: 5-3) Bangladesh’s penalty-corner specialist Amirul Islam almost stole the thunder in the Pool F match at Chennai’s Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium, but Australia’s five goals proved a bit too much as they hung on to win 5-3. OliverWillscored in the opening minute for Australia; and despite Bangladesh equalising before the end of first quarter with the first of Amirul’s three goals, the Aussiesstruck thricein the second

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November 29, 2025 South Africa kept their Junior World Cup campaign alive with a hard-earned 2–1 victory over Ireland, a result that injects fresh momentum into the group after the disappointment of the opening match. Ireland entered the contest full of confidence after their win over Canada, and with their head coach, a former South African U21 mentor, adding another layer of intrigue to a pivotal Pool A fixture. South Africa knew a win was essential and started with real intent, creating the bulk of the opportunities throughout the first half. They forced four penalty corners before the break, moving the ball well and applying sustained pressure, but the finishing touch once again eluded them. A combination of misfires and strong Irish defending meant the sides reached halftime locked at 0–0, despite South Africa’s far greater threat. Early in the second half South Africa thought they had found the breakthrough when Jamie Seale controlled superbly and smashed the ball home. However, after referral the goal was overturned due to danger in the buildup, a frustrating moment that could easily have unsettled the group. Instead, it only sharpened their resolve. As the third quarter neared its close, South Africa finally received the reward their energy deserved. Reuben Sendzul won the ball high up the pitch, showed tremendous composure, and drilled a brilliant finish into the net to give South Africa the lead. But the joy was short-lived. Ireland hit back almost immediately, capitalising on a failed clearance and allowing McKee to fire home the equaliser. With the game finely poised, South Africa showed character and calmness when it mattered most. Litha Kraai produced a moment of class, slipping a perfectly weighted pass into the path of Ross Montgomery, who delivered a cool, clinical finish to restore the lead and ultimately seal the win for the South Africans. It was a tense, fierce contest, but one in which South Africa created enough chances to fully deserve the three points. The 2–1 victory puts their campaign back on track and sets up a decisive final pool match against Canada. Source: SAHockey.co.za