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All the news for Sunday 4 March 2018

27th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup (M) - Day 1
Ipoh (MAS)

MAS - IRL 4 - 1
AUS - ENG 4 - 1
ARG - IND 3 - 2

Pool standings

Upcoming 4 Mar 2018 (GMT +5)

16:00     IND v ENG       
18:00     IRL v ARG       
20:30     MAS v AUS

FIH Match Centre

Glorious night for Malaysia

By Jugjet Singh

IPOH: Malaysia started their Azlan Shah Cup campaign in style, when they beat Ireland 4-1 Saturday.

Razie Rahim opened scoring in the fourth minute with an unusual attempt, as the defender-cum penalty corner flicker scored off a field attempt and then added another penalty corner goal in the 24th minute.

His hat-trick came off a 44th minute penalty corner.

Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin scored the other in the fourth minute.

Ireland got their goal in the 53rd minute off Kirk Shimmin, who beats two Malaysians before unleashing a low drive to beat goalkeeper Hairi Rahman.

It was a fantastic first goal from Malaysian skipper Razie Rahim.

Picking up the ball from a counter attack, he beats two defenders before tucking the ball with a reverse hit past an onrushing keeper Jamie Carr.

Sunday, Malaysia play world No 1 Australia.

Meanwhile, World No 1 penalty corner flicker Gonzalo Peillat led Argentina with a hat-trick (13th, 24th, 33rd) to beat India 3-2.

India's goals also came off penalty corners, with Amit Rohidas (26th, 31st) scoring a brace.

Argentina, the 2016 Rio Olympic champions, and ranked No 2 in the world, will next play Ireland Sunday.

For the record, India last played Argentina in the 2017 World League Final in Bhubaneswar and lost 1-0. Both teams have met a total of 26 times since the 1948 Olympics with the Indians winning 11 matches.

Argentina manager Blanco Javier said: "It was important for us to start the tournament the best way we can and also to win this match. We tried to play a good game until the rain can. It was our first game and I am happy we won it."

India head coach Sjoerd Marijne said: "For the first match in the tournament against Olympic champions Argentina I think we did really well.

"There is off course disappointment in defeat, but we did a lot of good things and there will not be changes against England in our next match (Sunday)."

In another match, Australia hammered England 4-1 with goals from Dylan Wotherspoon (15th), Blake Govers (19th), Aaron Kleinschmidt (28th) and Lachlan Sharp (39th) while Phil Roper scored for England in the 25th minute.

RESULTS: Australia 4 England 1, India 2 Argentina 3, Malaysia 4 Ireland 1.

SUNDAY: India v England (4pm), Ireland v Argentina (6pm), Malaysia v Australia (8.30pm).

STANDINGS
                  P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
MALAYSIA          1  1  0  0  4  1  3
AUSTRALIA         1  1  0  0  4  1  3
ARGENTINA         1  1  0  0  3  2  3
ENGLAND           1  0  0  1  1  4  0
INDIA             1  0  0  1  2  3  0
IRELAND           1  0  0  1  1  4  0

Jugjet's World of Field Hockey

Malaysia skipper fires hattrick in convincing first win

By Kng Zheng Guan


That’s mine: Ireland’s Kirk Shimmins (right) vying for the ball with Malaysia’s Azuan Hasan during the opening match of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh yesterday. — RONNIE CHIN/The Star

PETALING JAYA: Skipper Razie Rahim scored a hattrick to steer Malaysia to a convincing 4-1 win over Ireland in their opening match in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.

The 30-year-old found his mark in the fourth, 24th and 44th minutes while Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin scored in the ninth as Malaysia opened in rousing style at the Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh yesterday.

Ireland, ranked 10th in the world, started the match strongly, earning a penalty corner inside the first minute.

But they couldn’t convert and Malaysia swiftly punished them on the counter-attack three minutes later.

Razie intercepted the ball from his half before galloping forward to coolly finish past Irish goalkeeper Jamie Carr in the fourth minute.

Malaysia then doubled the lead as Tengku Ahmad found the net five minutes later in a goalmouth melee.

Razie then doubled his tally in the 24th minute through a penalty corner before completing his hattrick, through another penalty corner in the 44th minute.

Ireland pulled one back in the 52nd minute through a field effort by Kirk Shimmins.

But world No. 12 Malaysia, the lowest ranked team in the tournament, finished strongly for a dream start.

The win will certainly boost Malaysia’s confidence ahead of their clash with world champions Australia today.

Earlier, nine-time champions Australia got off to a flying start by hammering defending champions England 4-1.

World No. 1 Australia were in commanding form and got their goals through Dylan Wotherspoon (15th minute), Blake Govers (19th), Aaron Kleinschmidt (28th) and Lachlan Sharp (39th).

England, who held Australia 2-2 during the World League Finals last December, replied through Phil Roper in the 25th minute.

The win was sweet revenge for the Aussies who fell to a shock 4-3 defeat to England in last year’s final.

“We knew it was going to be a hard game as it’s always very close with the English,” said Australia’s head coach Colin Batch.

“Right now, we’re thinking about recovering and getting some rest before we face Malaysia tomorrow.

“Malaysia are a good team to play and we look forward to that as part of our Commonwealth Games preparation,” he said.

In the first match of the day, Olympic champions Argentina shrugged off a 40-minute delay due to a heavy downpour to edge India 3-2.

Penalty corner specialist Gonzalo Peillat was the star for Argentina as he scored a hattrick (13th, 24th and 33rd) while India replied through Amit Rohidas (26th and 31st). India take on England in their next match while Argentina go up against the Irish.

RESULTS
Argentina bt India 3-2
Australia bt England 4-1
Malaysia bt Ireland 4-1

■ TODAY’S MATCHES
India vs England 4pm
Ireland vs Argentina 6pm
Malaysia vs Australia 8.30pm
(Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium, Ipoh)

The Star of Malaysia

Green Machine Undone By Malaysia In Opening Day Of Azlan Shah



It wasn’t the ideal start to the Azlan Shah Cup as the Green Machine’s opening fixture was delayed by 30 minutes due to torrential rain, accompanied by 30-degree heat and humidity. Ireland picked up their first penalty corner of the game inside the opening 15 seconds but Shane O’Donoghue’s shot was quickly run down and blocked by Marham Jalil. Razie Rahim’s first goal of the day was a sight to behold as the captain poached the ball to set up a 2-on-2 and send a reverse shot into the backboard as Jamie Carr came charging at him. 5 minutes later and Malaysia had doubled their lead courtesy of Tengku Tajuddin. Aiman Nik Rozemi skipped into the crowded circle along the baseline and pulled the pass back for Tajuddin to bundle the ball in at the back post. Eugene Magee showcase superb 3D skills to get past 4 defenders and into the circle but was crowded out and eventually dispossessed. Carr was in fine form all day and made a phenomenal high save with his stick, followed by 2 further saves in quick succession. But Rahim made it 3-0 with a powerful PC drag to give Malaysia a comfortable lead going into half time.

Ireland continued to dominate the possession stats as they retained the 66% figure from the first half but the Malaysian defence were proving resolute and limited the Green Machine’s shots to 7 throughout the match. Malaysia racked up 3 PC’s in a matter of minutes and Rahim got his hat trick at the third time of asking to make it 4-0. But Ireland built more sustained pressure and Kirk Shimmins, drafted into the squad to replace Peter Caruth who couldn’t travel on medical grounds, got them on the scoreboard. He was most alert to pick up a loose ball at pace and volleyed home from the top of the circle, leaving Hafizuddin Othman no chance in the goal. Chris Cargo won 2 PC’s for Ireland in the dying minutes but Magee’s shot skimmed just wide and O’Donoghue’s subsequent effort was saved.

Ireland are next in action tomorrow at 10am (Irish time) against Argentina.

Azlan Shah Cup

Ireland 1(Shimmins)
Malaysia 4(Rahim x3, Tajuddin)

Starting: J Carr, J Bell (Captain), M Bell, C Cargo, A Sothern, E Magee, S O’Donoghue, M Robson, P Gleghorne, S Loughrey, S Cole

Subs: S O’Connor, K Shimmins, S Murray, J McKee, J Dale, L Cole, M Ingram

Ireland Schedule (all times listed are local):

March 3rd at 20:30 Ireland 1 vs 4 Malaysia
March 4th at 18:00 Ireland vs Argentina
March 6th 16:00 Ireland vs England
March 7th 16:05 Ireland vs Australia
March 9th 18:05 Ireland vs India
March 10th Final Placing Matches

Irish Hockey Association media release

Ireland feel the heat at Sultan Azlan Shah opener


Razie Rahim celebrates the first of his three goals. Pic: Malaysia Hockey Confederation

With just a few days of acclimitisation time and a 30 degree swing in temperature, perhaps a slow start was to be predicted as the first three quarters of Ireland’s maiden Sultan Azlan Shah Cup proved a tough outing.

A hat-trick from Razie Rahim and a tap-in from Tengku Tajuddin could have been augmented further but for a string of top saves from Jamie Carr and one off the line from Johnny Bell.

A semblance of Irish ability was shown in the final quarter – capped by Kirk Shimmins’ wonderful hit – and limited the damage ahead of Sunday’s date with Olympic gold medalists Argentina.

Craig Fulton’s side did win a corner in the first 15 seconds with Shane O’Donoghue’s drag charged down. Malaysia, with their trademark hard-running counter game, soon found their stride, using midfield turnovers to propel them forward.

Rahim was the first to cut loose, reading a spin in midfield to nick the ball and he raced forward 40-metres and got enough lift on his shot on the run to lift over the sliding Carr.

On nine minutes, Marhan Jalil wriggled out of some tackles and got the ball across. An unceremonious Irish push on the near post created plenty of scope for a stroke to be given – or a call for a Malaysian foot – but the ball fell to Tajuddin to finish off. A long video review said no need to change the outcome.

Carr kept out a corner late in the quarter and then made three saves in quick succession in the second quarter but Rahim did rip in a 24th minute corner for 3-0 at half-time.

Into the second half, Bell batted away at the left post from a third corner, Carr booted away another while another set-piece went into the net off Paul Gleghorne’s back but was annulled for danger.

Rahim, though, completed his hat-trick on the 44 minute mark with a low push down the stick-side. That came while Ireland were down to nine men as a mistake in trying to sub on a player during a corner, seeing Chris Cargo join Matthew Bell in the bin.

The call from Craig Fulton in the third quarter huddle was to keep plugging away – “two goals and shut the back door” – and they did rally. A first shot for 36 minutes arrived with ten minutes left before Shimmins got Ireland on the board, chipping and charging before shooting early off his right foot in mid-air.

Three incomplete corners came in the last five minutes with Othman Hafizuddin staying strong while the returning Eugene Magee miscued his switch-flick.

Ireland next face Argentina on Sunday with the game available to watch on the FIH Youtube channel for €0.99.

Sultan Azlan Shah Cup
Ireland 1 (K Shimmins) Malaysia 4 (R Rahim 3, T Tajuddin)
Ireland: J Carr, J Bell, M Bell, C Cargo, A Sothern, E Magee, S O’Donoghue, M Robson, P Gleghorne, S Loughrey, S Cole
Subs: S O’Connor, K Shimmins, S Murray, J McKee, J Dale, L Cole

Malaysia: H Abd Rahman, M Jalil, Fitri Saari, Faizal Saari, N Noor, R Rahim, F Jali, A Hassan, T Tajuddin, A Nik Rozemi, N Jazlan,
Subs: O Hafizuddin, N Sumantri, J van Huizen, S Syed Cholan, F Ashari, A Hasan, S Saabah

The Hook

Australia Defeat England 4-1 at Azlan Shah Cup

Alexie Beovich



The Kookaburras have overcome torrential rain to defeat England 4-1 in their first appearance at the Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia.

The start of the match was delayed due to a downpour of rain but once the match was underway it was Australia who poured on the goals. 

Dylan Wotherspoon (15’), Blake Govers (19’), Aaron Kleinschmidt (28’) and Lachlan Sharp (39’) were the goal scorers for Australia. Phil Roper (25’) was the only English player to score. 

Australia looked switched on early as Dylan Wotherspoon opened the scoring in the 15th minute of play.   Some fantastic dribbling and a well-placed pass from Daniel Beale created an open shot for Wotherspoon who converted with a powerful flick into the right corner. 

Ogilvie was everywhere in the first half and he looked to setup each of Australia’s entries into the circle. In the 19th minute he found some space and launched a shot at goal that ultimately deflected off of Govers for the Kookaburras’ second goal. 

England were able to regain some composure and controlled play for the remainder of the first half. A number of attacks, including two shots in as many seconds, were repelled by Australian goalkeeper Tyler Lovell.
 
England were able to sneak their first and only goal through Phil Roper in the 25th minute of the match. Roper duped the Australian defence with a classy double touch before putting the ball in the back of the net.
 
Australia responded to the Roper goal with some classy play starting in the back half, a series of quick passes saw Aaron Kleinschmidt in the perfect position to strike just before halftime. Kleinschmidt converted and Australia entered the half with a 3-1 lead.

The second half started with a flurry of action. England had several shots on goal thanks to some impressive set pieces and Australian Trent Mitton was sent off with a green card for an incident at the center of the pitch.

Young Kookaburras Lachlan Sharp scored the final goal of the game in the 39th minute of action with a rather impressive deflection off an Australian set piece. As his teammates gathered around him in celebration, it was clear that Australia would close out the game. 

England’s Mark Gleghorne received a green card in the 47th minute of the match and Australia was happy to maintain control of the play for the remainder of the match.

Through some impressive defensive work from Captain Mark Knowles, Australia was able to finish the match without conceding another score, defeating England 4-1.

The Kookaburras will next be in action on Sunday from 11:30pm AEDT against hosts Malaysia.

Hockey Australia media release

Clinical Australia see off England in Azlan Shah Cup


England v Australia Sultan Azlan Shah 2018

England endured a disappointing start to the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup as they were defeated by a ruthless Australian side in Malaysia.

Goals from Dylan Wotherspoon, Blake Govers, Aaron Kleinschmidt and Lochlan Sharp saw off Bobby Crutchley’s team as the Kookaburras’ clinical finishing showed why they are ranked number one in the world.

Phil Roper’s superb determination saw him drag his side back into the game when 2-0 down as he barged through three defenders on his way into the circle before tucking the loose ball into the goal.

But that was to be as good as it got for England, who had plenty of chances themselves but were repeatedly denied by an inspired Tyler Lovell.

Speaking after the match head coach Bobby Crutchley said: "I was actually pleased with a lot of our game, there were encouraging signs but we were punished for some basic errors in defence. A team like Australia will always take advantage in the attacking third.

"We need to cut out these errors and build on some of the quality we showed on the ball. We look forward to the challenge of India tomorrow."

Following a 50 minute delay due to torrential rain, Roper fashioned the first clear chance as he nudged a sixth minute effort just off target before Chris Griffiths fired one shot on the turn wide and saw another saved.

Australia then made England pay for those misses as Wotherspoon tucked the ball past George Pinner in the final minute of the first quarter after a great run down the right by Eddie Ockenden, before Govers smartly deflected Flynn Ogilvie’s arrowing shot home in the 19th minute.

Roper’s impressive effort halved the deficit in the 25th minute, shortly after Sam Ward showed incredible athleticism to fashion a shot whilst on the floor, only to be denied by Lovell.

However the Kookaburras restored their lead two minutes before half-time as Kleinschmidt did well to steer a bouncing ball into the net after an onrushing Harry Gibson had smartly denied Tom Craig.

England almost immediately reduced the advantage once again but Henry Weir’s wicked cross was just diverted out of captain Ian Sloan’s path by Ockenden while Mark Gleghorne saw a penalty corner saved by Lovell.

Pinner was rather unlucky in the 39th minute as his save to deny Wotherspoon fell kindly to Sharp who smashed home Australia’s fourth, although he did brilliantly to stop Australia’s number 26 once again just a minute later.

With the game all-but-gone Liam Ansell showed great spirit in the final quarter, going on a number of mazy runs and winning a 56th minute penalty corner. However Lovell was on hand once again to keep out Gleghorne’s effort and then a Ward flick in the penultimate minute of the game.

England are next in action tomorrow against India at 0800 GMT in a game that will be shown on the FIH’s YouTube channel.

Australia 4 (3)
Wotherspoon (FG, 15), Govers (FG, 19), Kleinschmidt (FG, 28), Sharp (FG, 39)

England 1 (1)
Roper (FG, 25)

England Starting XI: Pinner (GK), Weir, Martin, Griffiths, Sloan (C), Ward, Gleghorne, Roper, Middleton, Creed, Sanford

Subs: Gibson (GK), Dixon, Goodfield, Ansell, Condon, Gall

England Hockey Board Media release

India's technical deficiencies come to fore in 3-2 loss to Argentina

Sundeep Misra


India's S Uthappa in action during the tournament opener against Argentina. Image credit: Twitter/@TheHockeyIndia

With his inventive penalty corner flicking, Argentina’s Gonzalo Peillat not only scored a match-defining hat-trick but stood like a colossus between a point gained and a match lost for India.

The Asian Cup Champions started on a pace that scorched the turf in the first 10 minutes. Sumit Kumar dazzled on the flank, cut through the Argentine defence with ease and it seemed that momentum would hold for India. Then, Surender Kumar also unleashed a defence-splitting pass that found Nilam Xess, but Argentina’s Juan Vivaldi, 38-year-old and 18 years as Argentina’s custodian, held off three one-to-one situations with the Indian forwards.

The storm passed. And Argentina, masters at counters and short passes, led 2-0 before India created chances again to equalise 2-2 — Amit Rohidas causing the destruction in this case. But Peillat hovers like a drone waiting for that one opportunity to showcase his skills. It came in the 33rd minute when Suraj Karkera had replaced Krishan Pathak as India’s goalkeeper in the third quarter. The flick was fast and deep in the corner.

Despite a 45-minute break caused by lightning and thunder showers, India couldn’t come back into the match. India would rue the initial missed chances and the amateur manner in which they allowed the South Americans back into the game. The 3-2 score-lined underlined Argentina’s domination but it wouldn’t create too many doubts. They know they can still come back into this tournament.

Indian coach Sjoerd Marijne appreciated the team’s efforts. “I am very proud of the way the boys played,” he said. “One needs to understand that Argentina is the Olympic Champions. And they played like Champions. We had chances but we couldn’t hold the play.” The Dutchman also said that technically India let itself down and there were moments they couldn’t trap cleanly and gave the advantage away to Argentina, leading to counter-attacks.

There was a certain abandon in the game play that India displayed against Argentina. One wonders whether the departure of Carlos Retegui as coach would weigh in on Argentina. But this is a not a team that is the Olympic champion for nothing. Team manager Javier Blanco said after the match that India play fast hockey and they were taken by surprise in the first 10 minutes before the team settled down by killing the pace.

“We know India is an extremely dangerous team and after the initial attacks, we decided to hold the ball and create space in the midfield and attack from the flanks,” explained Javier. The Argentina manager was happy that with a player like Peillat in the team, a victory is always possible as "he is dangerous when it comes to penalty corners."

The surprising factor in the Indian side was the midfield, which didn’t fire. Under Sardar Singh, S Uthappa and the energetic Sumit, it should have held sway, but slowly faded away instead. The unforced errors didn’t help either. Too many loose balls and 32 percent of India’s play went to Argentine sticks, which resulted in counter-attacks. Two of those turned into penalty corners, and Peillat is not the kind who would look down on a gift horse in the mouth.

For a player who scored 10 goals in the 2014 World Cup — all of them through penalty corners — followed by 11 at the 2016 Rio Olympics, he is without a doubt the trump card of this South American team. And they undoubtedly rely on him. Team manager Blanco meant every word when he said, “Peillat is the match-winner of this team.”

But it wasn’t said to undermine the rest. They work towards the goal of creating penalty corners. Pedro Ibarra, Lucas Vila, Diego Paz, Lucas Rossi create space and then with short passes find the feet and legs of the opposition in the striking circle. They found a forest of Indian feet in the striking circle and got seven PCs; three was the least that Peillat would deliver. Even Marijne admitted that when you give seven PCs to Argentina, they are bound “to score two or three.”

Hampered by the lack of mobility in the midfield, the defence was under pressure constantly. And the lack of a structure didn’t help. Xess, Rohidas, Surender and Dipsan Tirkey did their best but didn’t help the cause by falling in on each other, making life slightly easier for Argentina when they attacked. And with the midfield folding over with unforced errors, the sharpness at the front was blunted.

Gurjant Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Talwinder Singh were found wanting. When they had the ball, they played with pace. But as an afterthought, would it have been wise to hold the ball and create opportunities instead of running in blind? Marijne’s answer was of a coach who didn't like the criticism. “Let’s be realistic here,” he said. “This is a side that did well. We almost got an equaliser and the team will look at the mistakes and improve. I am a coach who hates losing and I think the team does too.”

It’s true that India came close in the dying seconds when Talwinder could have been more accurate. But the shot was wild, off the mark; coming from a player of his experience it was surprising.

Argentina’s opening goal in the 13th minute dampened the proceedings for India, who held sway till that moment. It was Argentina’s second penalty corner, one that pegged India back, and suddenly the latter were ultra-defensive. But credit to the South Americans for closing the gaps.

The scoreline read 2-0 off the third PC in the 24th minute, and it suddenly seemed as if India would not find a way back into the match. But then came the surprise — Rohidas rose to the occasion after India had wasted two PCs — his flick from the right of the striking circle flashing past Vivaldi to cut the scores at 1-2. And then off the fourth PC for India in the 31st minute, another flick beat Vivaldi.

    At 2-2, it seemed momentum would build up. But errors followed and India couldn’t hold the pace constantly, giving away the ball as Argentina thankfully accepted the wrong passes to build their own play. And when Peillat scored off Argentina’s sixth penalty corner, it was all but over for India.

It would have taken some extra-ordinary play from the Indian midfield to come back into the match. But it seemed caught between playing defensive and controlling the midfield. Sardar had a subdued match and even had a green card in the 42nd minute after Surender received one in the 24th minute. Sumit had a yellow in the 56th minute and India played with 10 men in the dying minutes of the match.

One can always claim that the opposition is the Olympic champion. But in a match where the technical deficiencies of the Indian team came to the fore, that cannot be overlooked either. A defeat against Argentina is no slump. Of course, it was a different team that beat the Olympic champions 2-1 at the Olympic Games in Rio and a very different side that lost 0-1 to them at the HWL Finals.

Marijne is right in hinting that a siege mentality never helps. In a side that is without 10 of India’s main-line players, an improvement in the match against England on Sunday will not only be a balm, it will also show-case the fact that this team has the requisite skills and resources to bounce back.

Firstpost

India go down 2-3 against Argentina in opener

s2h team



Fighting India went down to Olympic champion Argentina 2-3 in their opening match at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh, Malaysia.

Argentina led India 2-1 at half time, but on resumption Amit Rohidoss converted team's fourth penalty corner to even out the score 2-2. Within a minute, Gonzalo Peillat showcased his vitality with penalty corners to give his side lead third time with an immaculate conversion off the sixth penalty corner(3-2). This lead taken three minutes into third quarter survived till the rains stopped the match ten minutes before the full time expiry.

The remainder of 11 mins and 23 seconds resumed after about 30 minutes of rain-interrupted gap

Till the half-time, Argentina took lead against India, after capitalizing on a goal, courtesy Penalty Corners. Drag flick expert Gonzalo Peillat gave the lead to his team towards the right corner in the 13th minute. He doubled the lead off the third Penalty Corner in the 24th minute.

India were off to a good start, getting at least two quick circle entries in the first three minutes. The first chance at scoring came at the fourth minute when Sumit Kumar entered the D from the right flank, attempting to find the gap. However, his shot was blocked by the alert Argentina goalie. Talwinder attempted from the rebound which was also saved.

After couple of minutes, in a one to one situation, Talwinder’s attack off a scoop, was saved by goalkeeper.

Upping the ante, Argentina hammered the first goal in the 13th minute, when Gonzalo flicked it to the net in his second attempt. Eleven minutes later, in the second quarter, Gonzalo, doubled the lead, courtesy the third penalty corner.

In counter-attack, India earns back to back three penalty corners in a melee of attacks. Amit Rohidas manages to pull down one after finding the nets in the top right corner.

Argentina earns its fourth Penalty Corner, but Peillat is unable to score his hattrick in the first half, as the ball was not stopped properly on the top of the circle. It was a good display of charging by Amit Rohidoss.

Stick2Hockey.com

Stats Speak: Indians denied merry in Golden Jubilee match versus Argentina

By  B.G.Joshi (Sehore-Bhopal,India)

Glorious hat-trick of Gonzalo Peillat helped Olympics champions Argentina defeat India 3-2 in the opening match. Amit Rohidas gave India hope with a brace, thanks to penalty corners. All five goals came through drag-flicks in the match. It was a spirited performance by Indians, having created 8 goal shots, 3 more than Los Leones. Here are the statistical highlights:

Indians have played in 217th tournaments, won 52.

It was match number 1663 for India, won 913 and lost 484.

India lost opening match on 65th occasions, against Argentina 4th time.

It is their 21st appearances in Azlan Shah Cup, having won 5 times (1985, 1991, 1995, 2009 and 2010).

March 3 match was Golden Jubilee of India-Argentina international matches. Argentina won this match 3-2.Head to head are: Played-50, India wins-26, Argentina wins-20, Drawn-4.

It is 9th appearance of Sardar Singh in Azlan Shah Cup. In 2008 edition he was the youngest ever captain of Indian National Team .India won 2(2008,2015) Silver medals and 1 Bronze(2016) under Sardar Singh(as a skipper).

Fieldhockey.com

India lose 2-3 to Argentina in opener

NEW DELHI: India went down fighting against Argentina in their opening match of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup match at Ipoh in Malaysia on Saturday. The sixth-ranked Indian side lost the tie 2-3 to the World No. 2 Argentina.

Gonzalo Peillat scored a hat-trick for Argentina, while India's two goals were scored by Amit Rohidas. All the five goals of the match came through penalty corners. Argentina converted three of the seven PCs they earned, whereas India scored two from the total of four PCs they got.

Just before the end of the first quarter, Peillat put Argentina in the front by converting a PC and doubled the lead in the 24th minute.

Two minutes later, Rohidas pulled one back as India went into the half-time break by a goal down.

Soon in the 31st minute, Rohidas drew the score level at 2-2 through another PC. But the parity did not last long as Peillat completed his hat-trick two minutes later to put Argentina back on lead.

The match was then suspended for almost 45 minutes due to thunder storm in the final quarter. And India failed to score the all-important equaliser when the match resumed as they played their final five minutes with a man down after Sumit was shown a yellow card.

India next play England on Sunday. The other teams taking part in the tournament are Australia, Ireland and Malaysia.

India are fielding a young team in the absence of key players like Akashdeep Singh, SV Sunil, Mandeep Singh, Manpreet Singh and goalkeeper PR Sreejesh. Drag-flick specialists Rupinder Pal Singh and Harmanpreet Singh too have been rested.

The Times of India

Spirited India go down fighting against Argentina in Azlan Shah opener

India loses 2-3 against Olympic champions Argentina in their opening match of the Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament


Indian men’s hockey team members selected for 27th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in New Delhi. (File Photo). Photo Credit: PTI

India found themselves at the receiving end of star penalty corner specialist Gonzalo Peillat’s hat-trick as they lost 2-3 against Olympic champions Argentina in their opening match of the Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament here on Saturday.

All the goals of the rain-affected match came off penalty corners with Peillat sounding the board in the 13th, 24th and 33rd minutes while Amit Rohidas (26th, 31st) scored for India.

Play was stopped for nearly an hour in the fourth quarter due to heavy rain and thunderstorm.

India dominated the first quarter as their young forwards pushed the Argentine defenders to create space in the striking circle. Talwinder Singh and debut player Sumit Kumar were impressive as they attempted to beat Argentina’s experienced goalkeeper Juan Vivaldi early in the match.

India made as many as four circle entries against Argentina’s two and it was Sumit Kumar’s burst into the baseline that gave India hopes of a first goal within the first ten minutes of the match, but Argentine defenders were defiant.

Minutes later, a long ball assist to Talwinder was picked up well but he could not quite make an effective connect to put it past Vivaldi.

Though India did well to limit Argentina’s shots on goal, an infringement in the Indian circle helped Isidoro Ibarra earn Argentina the first penalty corner of the match. With world-class drag-flicker Peillat in their ranks, giving away PCs meant trouble for India.

Peillat’s first attempt was blocked by first runner Amit Rohidas. But the second PC was superbly converted by Peillat in the 13th minute to give Argentina a 1-0 lead.

It was the PCs that Argentina rallied on and it did not help India’s cause when they conceded another penalty corner in the 24th minute. The mistake was punished by Peillat yet again as he broke no sweat to convert. A diving Indian goalkeeper Krishan Pathak could do little to save the powerful dragflick.

Two minutes later, India won three back-to-back PCs. After the first two attempts had to be re-taken due to infringement, India were third-time lucky as Amit Rohidas improvised on Ramandeep Singh’s injection, keeping low, finding the left pocket of the net.

The 26th minute goal narrowed the deficit to 1-2 and India did well in the following minutes to keep Argentine forwards in the hunt. Though they forced India to make an error in the circle, winning yet another PC in the 27th minute, the attempt was brilliantly blocked by India’s first runner.

Coming into the third quarter, India struck early as forward Sumit Kumar was aggressive in the baseline to fetch India their fourth PC of the match. Previous goal scorer Amit Rohidas made no mistake as he converted in similar fashion giving India the much needed 2-2 equaliser in the 31st minute.

It was all about PCs for Argentina as Peillat struck his third goal in the 34th minute, taking Argentina’s lead to 3-2.

With rain trickling down in the fourth quarter, the match was stopped for nearly an hour. After resumption, India fought till the final hooter but their desperate attempts to score went in vain with Argentina keeping the lead.

The Hindu

Commonwealth Games 2018: Australia hockey under pressure to keep up golden times over England

BY ROD GILMOUR



Australia’s team chief at the Commonwealth Games, Steve Moneghetti, has upped the ante on the Hockeyroos and Kookaburras to continue their superb record at the Games on home territory.

Australia men are gunning for a sixth straight gold medal since hockey was introduced at the Games in 1998, while the women have gleaned four titles from five Games.

“For one sport, making the finals or the quarter-finals might be a success,” Moneghetti told the AAP news agency.

“But for sports like hockey, basketball, netball – they would think of nothing but getting to the gold medal match.

“Seize the opportunity now because it’s a home Games in a beautiful place where everything is set up for them to perform well.”

While Australia men will again be favourites for the title – a 4-1 win over England at the Azlan Shah tournament on Saturday underlining their form – the Hockeyroos will again be under threat from England.

At Glasgow 2014, England women were 17 seconds away from gold until Australia’s late rally and shoot out victory.

Two hockey golds on the Gold Coast will also prove important as Australia aims to oust England from table-topping the final medal table after claiming bragging rights in Glasgow.

“Bring it on. We’re ready. You want to be a part of this because it’s life-changing,” he added.

“And we should never lose sight of the power of the Commonwealth Games and a home Games.”

The Hockey Paper