18 Jun, 2025 Day 3 of the tournament saw both Pools reach their final standings as twelve games of hockey culminated with all the excitement, skill and high-level contest with which they began. In Pool A, Korea joined the already-qualified France after their attritional 1-0 win over South Africa, claiming the only clean sheet of the tournament so far in the process. Wales earned an impressive draw that ended France’s perfect record, a game in which four goals of the highest-standard left the scoreline 2-2. With just two points, however, Wales find themselves third in the group and heading to the 5th-8th place play-offs. In Pool B, New Zealand completed their third win of the tournament and their third resurgence from a losing position to beat Pakistan 4-3. Pakistan, having been 3-1 in the lead, were forced to watch on from the stands as Malaysia played Japan with the chance of hurdling Pakistan on points difference. The hosts gave themselves an excellent chance of qualification for the semi-finals, finding themselves 2-0 up going into the final quarter, but a late Japanese goal dragged Malaysia back down into third in the pool, sending them into the 5th-8th place play-offs. Play resumes on Friday as Pakistan join New Zealand in qualifying from Pool B and France and Korea progress from Pool A, forming an enthralling pair of semi-finals. Korea 1-0 South Africa After two days of frantic goalscoring, both sides began the first game of Day 3 with far more caution and defensive resolve. The first quarter saw Korea hesitant to heavily commit going forward, instead they sat back and opted to counter-attack, hunting in smaller packs. Three penalty corners were as close as they got to creating chances in the first quarter. South Africa were insistent in attack but the Korean defence, led by Kim Jaehan in goal and Lim Dohyun at the back, were confident and highly-skilled in preventing any South African joy. With just a minute to play in the somewhat reserved first-half, Korea found a seemingly innocuous foot five yards outside the circle. After referral, it was deemed an intentional breakdown and Korea were awarded a penalty corner. Lim Dohyun’s drag-flick surgically dissected the space between goalkeeper and left-post defender to find the net and put his country 1-0 up. In quarters three and four, South Africa won five penalty corners but failed to convert any, Korean defences holding strong and eventually doing enough to claim the first clean sheet of this Nations Cup and qualification to the semi-finals. Despite claims of a penalty stroke on the final whistle, South Africa’s attacking impotence leave them with just one point, confining them to the 5th-8th place play-offs. Lim Dohyun’s match-winning flick and martial command of his defence were recognised at the end of the game with the Player of the Match award. Yang Jihun said: “I am happy to have won the match today – it was a very important match to get points in. We wanted to get to the semi-finals and we’re now preparing for the semi-finals. We defended first and then countered fast when we had the ball.” France 2-2 Wales The first-half between France and Wales saw a goal of the tournament contender from both sides. Fourteen minutes into the game, Brieuc Delemazure’s long-range slap was deftly redirected by Amaury Bellenger from the top of the circle, beating Toby Reynolds-Cotterill at his near post and taking a very sudden 1-0 lead for France. Mid-way through the second quarter, Wales responded with some magic of their own. Jacob Draper slammed a ball to Fred Newbold on the right edge of the circle. Newbold charged into the space in front of him, aiming for the baseline and snuck a firm flick over the left shoulder of Edgar Reynaud into the near top corner. The ball rebounded off the far post, crossed the line and drew Wales level. Late in the third quarter, with France reduced to ten, a Welsh overhead pass was collected and played directly into the circle by Stanislas Branicki. Jack Pritchard picked it up on the turn, snapped it back across goal onto his reverse and slotted it beneath Reynaud to take a 2-1 lead. France had not been without chances though, and, at their seventh attempt, finally converted a penalty corner with six minutes to play. Viktor Lockwood’s flat drag-flick was deflected up into the top corner by Bellenger for his – and France’s – second goal. Les Bleus continued to threaten until the final whistle but, ultimately, the two sides cancelled each other out with two fantastic goals each. France remain top of the group but lose their perfect record and Wales double their points tally on their way to the 5th-8th place play-offs. Jack Pritchard was awarded his second Player of the Match award of the tournament and acknowledged his side’s strong showing: “It was a really good performance I think. We started slow in the first ten, fifteen minutes but really pushed through that – [we] went one goal down early but fought back really well. We always have a really good battle with France and today proved it – exactly the same. They’re a top side, so it was a good achievement. It was a shame to let that one in with four or so minutes to go but we can be really proud of our performance looking forward to the next stage.” New Zealand 4-3 Pakistan The first Pool B game of the day saw Pakistan, who needed a win to qualify, meet a New Zealand side who had claimed every available point in the competition so far. The first penalty corner of the game was presented to the Blacksticks in the seventh minute and Nic Woods forced a drag-flick through the left-post defender to kickstart the scoring. From this moment, Pakistan built momentum. With two minutes remaining in the quarter, Abdul Rehman equalised. Rehman poleaxed a drag-flick into the top right of the Kiwi net and

Continue Reading →

17 Jun, 2025 Day two of the FIH Hockey Nations Cup 2 brought another round of enthralling action as teams edged closer to the semi-finals. South Africa came from behind to secure a crucial 3-1 win over Malaysia, Wales got their first win on the board with a composed 2-0 victory against Czechia, France booked their semi-final ticket with a clinical 4-0 triumph over Italy, while hosts Poland and Uruguay couldn’t be separated in a gritty 1-1 draw. Wales 2-0 Czechia Wales earned a hard-fought first win of the tournament, following an opening day draw, with a solid 2-0 victory against a courageous Czechia. The result gives them a wonderful opportunity to progress to the semi-final stage of the competition. Wales survived a quick start from Czechia, which included two early penalty corners, to maintain parity. They slowly asserted their supremacy before scoring the only goal of the first half, as Elizabeth Bingham reacted first to a penalty corner save and slammed home the rebound. In a second half best described as cool and controlled by the Welsh, Czechia gave everything they had but were unable to forge high-quality chances. As they pushed forward, Wales capitalised on a fortunate deflection—Beth Peers fired a shot that was saved by Anna Linkova, only for the rebound to deflect off a defender and into the net. Player of the Match Sarah Jones (WAL) shared her thoughts on the win: “I think we learnt from yesterday, going ahead and managing the game effectively. To see our young side show such maturity is wonderful for Welsh Hockey, and it was great to get the three points.” France 4-0 Italy France delivered another sterling display, securing a second clean sheet and consecutive victory. The 4-0 result confirmed their place in the semi-finals, while Italy’s chances of progressing now hinge on other results going their way. It took France just six minutes to open the scoring via a penalty corner from Mathilde Duffrene—a carbon copy of her opening day strike into the corner of the goal. Despite France creating the better chances, a tight contest saw them unable to extend the lead before halftime, which ended 1-0. They continued to dominate in the second half and were rewarded when Ines Lardeur pounced on a loose ball and fired home. With Italy’s defence disorganised, Pauline Varoqui was left unmarked to tap in the third. Varoqui would then add a fourth, her cross deflecting off a defender to seal a commanding win. Ines Lardeur expressed her delight with the attacking display: “We have a lot of confidence and trust our process. We’re very happy with our efficiency in attack. We’ll use the rest day to watch video and focus fully on Wales before the semi-final.” Malaysia 1-3 South Africa South Africa ignited their FIH Hockey Nations Cup 2 campaign with a resilient come-from-behind 3-1 win over Malaysia, despite missing two penalty strokes. The three points breathe life into their campaign ahead of a crucial final group stage match against hosts Poland. After Nur Zainal saved a penalty stroke from Quanita Bobbs, Malaysia capitalised with a beautifully worked team goal finished by Dayang Abang. Despite creating several chances, South Africa found themselves trailing at the halftime break. The Africans returned rejuvenated in the second half and equalised when Bobbs sent Ntsopa Mokoena through, and the young striker fired low and hard to level. Just minutes later, Onthathile Zulu struck the same spot on the backboard to give South Africa the lead. A third goal came through a penalty corner as Hannah Pearce fired through a crowd into the bottom corner. Nur Zainal would later deny Tegan Fourie from the spot, but South Africa had done enough. South African stalwart Quanita Bobbs praised her team’s resilience: “We started the first half in a manner we didn’t want. We went back to basics in the second half and created chances. We played some great hockey in that second half.” Uruguay 1-1 Poland Uruguay had the better of the first half, but hosts Poland fought back to earn a 1-1 draw and keep both teams in strong contention for the semi-finals. Determined to build on their opening performance, Uruguay came out firing and won a couple of early penalty corners. They made the pressure count when Kaisuami Dall’Orso reacted quickest to a loose ball from the left and slotted home the opener. Despite their dominance, Uruguay couldn’t add to the tally before the break, and the first half ended 1-0 to the South Americans in a compelling contest. Poland came out with renewed energy in the second half and were awarded a penalty stroke after a goalmouth scramble—but Marlena Rybacha fired wide. They eventually equalised in the final quarter as Oliwia Krychniak tapped in after a fantastic run by Julia Balcerzak. Marta Kucharska, Player of the Match for Poland, reflected on the result: “Uruguay were much better than us in the first half. I’m very happy with how we fought back in the second. I think we may have been unlucky not to win. It’s great to play a tournament like this at home.” To see the current standings in the FIH Hockey Nations Cup 2, click here. FIH Hockey Nations Cup 2 – 17 June 2025 Walcz, Poland (POL) Result: Match 1 Wales 2-0 Czechia Player of the match: Sarah Jones (WAL) Umpires: Sarah Craig (IRL), Rob Argent (IRL) Result: Match 2 France 4-0 Italy Player of the match: Ines Lardeur (FRA) Umpires: Jamie Telfer (SCO),Teresa Lipsky (GER) Result: Match 3 Malaysia 1-3 South Africa Player of the match: Quanita Bobbs (RSA) Umpires: Meghan McLennan(CAN), Yogita Pasi (IND) Result: Match 4 Poland 1-1 Uruguay Player of the match: Marta Kucharska (POL) Umpires: Ana Ortega (ESP), Sharne Meyers (ZIM) Source: FIH.hockey

16 Jun, 2025 There were opening-day victories for Poland, France, and Uruguay as the inaugural FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup 2 got underway in Walcz, Poland on Monday, while Italy and Wales kicked things off with a draw. This brand-new tier of the FIH Nations Cup competition provides a structured pathway for developing and emerging teams to eventually climb towards the FIH Hockey Pro League. Just one promotion spot is available from this tournament to the FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup 2026. Italy 3 – 3 Wales Italy and Wales picked up a point apiece in their 3-3 draw in a game of two very different halves. Wales showed better creativity in their attacking third in a dominant first half. They showed good attacking intent to win a penalty corner in the second minute, but found themselves trailing in the sixth minute when Lola Brea collected a rebound off the pads and chipped neatly over the prone goalkeeper. Wales kept applying pressure, though, and equalised in the 23rd minute, when Amy Cradden flicked in from a penalty corner variation to the left of the castle. Italy missed two penalty corner opportunities of their own before Beth Peers gave Wales a 2-1 lead with a scrappy goal in the 28th minute. The Welsh conceded a soft penalty corner in the 36th minute for Italy to restore parity, as Guadalupe Moras pounced on the rebound off the first shot. But four minutes later, the Welsh edged their noses in front again when Millie Holme found the backboard from a recycled penalty corner. The Italians found a much higher gear in the final 20 minutes and created plenty of opportunities. Brea levelled the scores in the 50th minute by reacting fastest to a rebound from a penalty corner, and Italy then had several chances to steal the win, but the final hooter sounded with the scores level.   Lola Brea was named as player of the match for Italy and said: “We are very happy with the game that we did, with how we constructed the game. It wasn’t the result that we hoped for, but we are going to keep fighting to the last game.” France 3 – 0 Czechia France dominated large stretches of their tournament opener and could easily have secured a more emphatic victory than their eventual 3-0 win over Czechia. They looked threatening throughout the first half, but simply could not find the back of the net from a flurry of circle penetrations and penalty corners. The French picked up exactly where they left off at half time, and the inevitable goal finally came in the 34th minute. Ines Lardeur got the first strike away from the top of the circle after a quickly taken free hit, and the rebound fell to Paola Le Nindre, who fed Yohanna Lhopital for a tap-in at the right post. Mathilde Duffrene added a drag flick six minutes later, and Le Nindre then scored a goal of her own with a penalty corner rebound in the 45th. Czechia had a couple of botched PC chances in the final quarter, and France finished strongly without adding to the score.   The player of the match went to France’s Paola Le Nindre who said: “Tough game for the first half, and after that we woke up and scored three goals in the third quarter. We are happy about the reaction of the team.” South Africa 0 – 2 Uruguay Uruguay weathered an early storm before sealing a comfortable 2-0 win over South Africa. The South Africans put themselves under pressure by conceding constant turnovers in the opening five minutes, but once they tightened up, they started to look dangerous on attack for the rest of the quarter. They slipped back into bad habits at the start of the second period, however, and Uruguay punished them in the 19th minute, when Manuela Vilar carried the ball into the circle and leathered it into the net. The Uruguayans went on to dominate play until half time, and Vilar doubled their lead with her 28th-minute drag flick. The South Americans ran a tight ship in a goalless second half, controlling possession and patiently building phases. By contrast, South Africa made too many unforced errors and couldn’t find the form that had made them so dangerous in the opening quarter.   Uruguay’s Manuela Vilar was named the player of the match and said: “It was a tough game. Also, they were higher in the rankings so it’s really important for us to win these kinds of games, and I think we really train hard to be here, so we are really happy.” Malaysia 0 – 2 Poland Hosts Poland survived multiple scares and snatched two late goals as they fought to a 2-0 win over Malaysia. The home side looked lively as they stepped out to boss the first quarter, but the critical touch was missing around the circle. Malaysia then squandered an early opportunity at the start of the second quarter before the match tightened up significantly. Penalty corners were wasted at both ends as the clock ran down on a goalless first half. The Malaysians started the third quarter with a sustained period of attack, but solid defence from Poland denied them a clean shot. The Poles gradually gained the ascendancy and almost found the back of the net after intercepting a dismal Malaysian pass to their sweeper. They then missed from a penalty corner, and Malaysia once again ended the period on the front foot with two penalty corners of their own. Poland survived a torrid start to the final quarter before taking the lead from a penalty corner variation in the 55th minute. The ball was slipped far to the right of the castle and then directed at Sandra Tatarczuk for an excellent deflection in front of goal. Tatarczuk then put the result beyond doubt with a low drag flick in the final minute.   The player of the match was awarded to

Continue Reading →

16 Jun, 2025 Whilst Day 2 of the FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup Malaysia 2025 had a difficult task in following the remarkable opening day, it delivered an enthralling four games of hockey. Masterful deflection goals, a collection of world-class drag-flicking and even a script-tearing comeback of its own, the day provided another fantastic advert for the game. In Pool A, France took hold of the most tangible success, securing qualification with a game to spare in their win over South Africa, despite South Africa threatening to claw back a point as they did yesterday. Korea came back resolutely from their first day loss to France with their first win of the campaign, beating Wales 3-2 and setting up a vital final Pool game against South Africa. After dominating for large periods without reward, Welsh tempers flared towards the end of the game and they find themselves with a mountain to climb at the bottom of Pool A. In Pool B, Pakistan clinched an invaluable three points in their tight contest against Japan to go second in the table and remain unbeaten. Their second loss in two games, Japan earned an unfortunate label: the first team mathematically unable to qualify for the semi-finals of the tournament. New Zealand played out the game of the day against hosts Malaysia, keeping their perfect record. The Blacksticks capitalised on Malaysian ill-discipline to flip a 3-0 deficit into a 4-3 win and secure qualification. New Zealand will play out a Pool-deciding game on Wednesday, one that will be closely watched by Malaysia, who need a New Zealand win and a victory of their own over Japan if they are to qualify. Korea 3-2 Wales With both sides having thrown away wins from commanding positions yesterday, the first game of Day 2 was always going to be a scrappy contest. With three minutes left in the first quarter, a heated Toby Reynolds-Cotterill, the Welsh goalkeeper, was shown a yellow card for dissent. Substitute ‘keeper Rhys Payne was sent on in his place and immediately made an impressive save to keep scores level. Wales’ deep defence survived right up until the final minute of the first half. Gareth Furlong defiantly nailed a flick into the top corner, a release of Welsh frustration that had been building since half-time on Day 1. After a 40-minute rain delay, the second half saw few chances, despite the two sides having scored five and four goals respectively the day before. With a minute left of the third quarter, however, Yang Jihun rocketed home a blistering penalty corner drag-flick from the first real Korean chance. Just 30 seconds later and Korea were gifted an astonishing lead as Benjamin Francis misplaced a defensive pass infield, feeding through Lee Jungjun, who made no mistake from the edge of the circle. With four minutes left to play, Lim Dohyun snuck a drag-flick through Welsh defences and Korea led 3-1. Wales did not do much to hide their exasperation, as three yellow cards were shown and they found themselves with nine players on the pitch. Even with their game collapsing, Wales managed to find a consolation, as Rhys Bradshaw whacked in a rebound from a penalty corner. Wales find themselves bottom of Pool A and may well feel hard done by to have just one point from their first two games, but the Koreans were impressively clinical where the Welsh were not, and it earned Korea their first three points of the campaign. Korean captain Lee Jungjun was awarded Player of the Match after firing home the goal that eventually quashed Welsh efforts and spirits. South Africa 3-4 France Whilst both sides were riding the waves of their remarkable comebacks yesterday, it was France who immediately drew first blood. Thirty seconds in, a French penalty corner gave Victor Charlet a chance to take the lead, which he mercilessly slid into the bottom corner, as is expected of a drag-flicker of his prowess. But, with comebacks all the rage in Pool A so far, South Africa responded a minute later, Jaydon Brooker wrapping his drag-flick round to the bottom left corner to equalise. The remainder of the first-half saw penalty corners exchanged and defended well, to leave the score 1-1 despite a full-contact challenge and ten-minute yellow card for South Africa’s Andrew Hobson. Going into the third quarter still with only ten men, South Africa conceded France’s sixth penalty corner, which Charlet slammed against the backboard to give Les Bleus a 2-1 lead. Even after two PCs of their own, South Africa fell further behind, as Charlet emphatically completed his hat-trick, sending his flick over the right shoulder of Hendrik Kriek in goal. With two and half minutes to go in the game, Xavier Esmenjaud took his tournament goal tally to four, again beating Kriek’s right shoulder, this time with a crisp reverse. South Africa did remind the competition of their ability to tear teams apart from any game situation, however, as Marvin Simons and Jaydon Brooker both scored inside twenty seconds to reduce the deficit to 4-3. The South Africans left their sprint finish too late, however, as the French saw out their second win in as many days and qualified for the knock-outs a game early, marking themselves as solid contenders in this Nations Cup. After Victor Charlet was awarded Player of the Match, he acknowledged his team’s perfect start and what they will hope to achieve in the near future: “My goal is to win the Nations Cup, I don’t care about the goalscoring table. Today, we won not because of my goals – we won because we defended really well, like a team – we have to keep it like this.” Japan 2-3 Pakistan The first game of Pool B saw Pakistan take an early lead, Ghazanfar Ali nailing a reverse hit into the bottom right corner. From then, however, Pakistan struggled. Kazumasa Matsumoto deftly deflected through Muneeb Ur-Rehman in goal to equalise a minute on and Koji Yamasaki also deflected

Continue Reading →

15 Jun, 2025 Under the unpredictable Kuala Lumpur skies, an exhilarating day of hockey opened the Nations Cup Malaysia 2025 with a storm of goals, comebacks and explosive contests that hinted at the fantastic competition that is to come. Twelve final-quarter goals, including five from France in their 6-5 comeback win over Korea, were a mark of the attacking firepower on display and a reminder of how desperate these nations are to earn that coveted prize of a spot in the FIH Pro League. Pool A saw two incredible comebacks: one earning France all three points over Korea to top the standings, and the other seeing South Africa forcibly take a point from a frustrated Wales side. After delays to the Pool B games due to lightning and rain, New Zealand belatedly began their title defence with a well-deserved 2-1 win over Asian Games champions Japan. Surrounded by raucous home support, Malaysia drew 3-3 with a fiery Pakistan side that may well be frustrated to not be matching the Blacksticks’ three points at the top of Pool B. France 6-5 Korea Opening Pool A, Korea started well against France, registering the first goal of the competition inside three minutes. A clinical press put the ball on the end of Jungjun Lee’s stick and the captain finished smartly. The French responded well, finding their way through the guts of the Korean defence before Xavier Esmenjaud equalised with a diving slap shot. The Koreans began the second quarter by registering a flurry of penalty corners before Jihun Yang flicked his side back into the lead. Dohyun Lim converted another corner minutes later, this time from the second castle. The second-half saw the French fall further behind. Korea won the ball high up the pitch and Cheoleon Park made it 4-1 before Yang scored his second to send his side 5-1 up going into the final quarter. Two minutes into the final period, France capitalised on a Korean blunder and Esmenjaud slapped in what appeared to be a consolation goal. However, when Victor Charlet rifled a penalty corner into the roof of the Korean net, the momentum shifted. With two minutes remaining, Esmenjaud improvised his way to a hat-trick and made it 5-4. Charlet won and scored a penalty stroke to equalise and, with four seconds remaining, Louis Haertelmeyer knocked in a rebound and completed an unbelievable comeback for France. From 5-1 down with 15 minutes left to play, the French scored five goals and earned a special three points in a memorable opening game of the Nations Cup. After Xavier Esmenjaud’s hat-trick earned him Player of the Match, he called it a “crazy game [and a] crazy experience”. “We were just focussed on getting to 5-2, then when it was 5-2, the third one, the fourth. The energy to come back, we were winning the duals – amazing.” South Africa 4-4 Wales On the other side of Pool A, Jack Pritchard opened the Welsh account five minutes in, scrapping the ball over the South African goal-line. Wales then beautifully manufactured their second, as a one-time slap into the circle found Joylon Morgan who expertly squeezed the ball over the keeper with just one hand on the stick. In the five minutes before half-time, Pritchard doubled the lead and claimed his hat-trick, putting Wales 4-0 up at the break.   With the first game a looming reminder that four goals isn’t a safe margin, Trevor de Lora found the net after three consecutive South African penalty corners to make it 4-1. Angelo Walstroom finished a smart South African move at the end of the third quarter to further panic Wales. As Victor Charlet had done earlier, Samkelo Mvimbi then won and fired home a penalty stroke with ten minutes left to play. With just ninety seconds remaining, Calvin Davis rocketed a drag flick into the bottom corner and earned South Africa a 4-4 draw that must have felt like a win. An understandably frustrated Jack Pritchard collected his well-deserved Player of the match award and said: “It was a good start in the first half, then we dropped off it slightly in the second and fair play to South Africa they really came back strong. So, disappointing not to hold on but not a bad start.” New Zealand 2-1 Japan As if Pool A wasn’t fast-paced enough, Japan began Pool B with a clinically quick counter-attack as Ryosuke Shinohara put his team 1-0 up inside five minutes. Just ninety seconds later, however, Sam Hiha drew New Zealand level. A back-foot shot squeezed past Takashi Yoshikawa in goal and launched a period of high-pressing domination for the reigning Nations Cup Champions. Japan remained resolute however, seeing off multiple Blackstick penalty corners and taking the game into the final quarter 1-1. After the games in Pool A, the lack of goals provided a relative calm to the game, even with the New Zealand chances raining down upon Japan. In the final quarter, however, it proved too much for the Japanese defence to manage. With four minutes left to play, an overhead pass fell to Sean Findlay, who nutmegged his marker before firing the ball against Dylan Thomas’s stick. Thomas deflected in and secured a deserved three points for the Blacksticks in the first game of Pool B. Scorer of that all-important goal and Player of the Match Dylan Thomas emphasised that “It was really important that we got the 3 points today, it’s been a good build up, we’ve felt really good since getting to Malaysia and we’re really stoked to get the result today.” Malaysia 3-3 Pakistan Closing a fantastic opening day for the Nations Cup, Pakistan took the upper hand in the first quarter, controlling the game and taking a 2-0 lead. Nadeem Ahmad’s acrobatic deflection (and explosive celebration) was followed quickly by Abdul Rehman’s scorching drag-flick from a penalty corner. The second and third quarters were goalless but two green cards and a yellow were signs of creeping ill discipline that

Continue Reading →