Hockey: Devastated Black Sticks contemplate bronze medal match

8.20am

MANCHESTER - New Zealand's women hockey players shed tears of despair as they scuttled off a rainswept Belle Vue Arena with their Commonwealth Games gold medal hopes blown away today.

The Black Sticks were consigned to Saturday's bronze medal match when they were upset by India 1-2, having beaten them 3-1 in pool play earlier in the week.

"The team are devastated," coach Jan Borren said after veteran goalkeeper Helen Clarke broke down sobbing and other stern-faced players refused to discuss the shock loss.

The win came amid controversy with the scores locked at 1-1 with 10 minutes left, when England umpire Dawn Henning ruled India's Jyoti Kullu had used delaying tactics when lining up a penalty stroke.

When Kullu twice didn't respond to Henning checking she was ready, the stroke was strangely disallowed, infuriating the Indians and firing them into a team possessed.

"I clarified that with her and she knew exactly what I was talking about. I've no idea why she didn't respond," Henning explained.

Captain Surja Waikhom was yellow carded soon afterwards for dissent but it didn't matter as India stormed back, and two minutes later Mamta Khorab nailed the winner in a goalmouth scramble from a penalty corner.

The Black Sticks barely fired a shot in the dying minutes and the final whistle signalled unbridled joy from the Indians, ranked 17th in the world to New Zealand's sixth.

Borren, surprisingly, said the "unusual" decision may have worked against his team.

"I'm not sure whether that was good for us, it spurred India on. There was a lot of pressure on the stroke-taker and she may not have scored."

New Zealand began confidently, with Jaimee Provan and Moira Senior making inroads. Provan's excellent run set up Suzie Pearce for the opener after just five minutes.

The Black Sticks though had penalty corner woes and they failed to convert five of them, all average efforts, in the first half. India stayed in the game when the outstanding Kullu pounced on a loose ball after a parried shot and levelled the scores just before halftime.

New Zealand had chances in the second half, with Senior and Niniwa Roberts-Lang both being denied from close range, and Roberts-Lang watching a late deflection off a Rachel Sutherland shot fly just wide.

India though were worthy semifinal opponents whose speed sometimes caused New Zealand problems at the back. Their record at major tournaments was poor but Borren always rated them a danger.

Borren rued the early penalty corner misses and said the game should have been safe at halftime.

"They played pretty well and didn't falter under pressure in the first half. We probably should have taken the game at that stage and we're particularly disappointed at that," he said.

"It's a young side, we've four or five players who've never been to Europe before let alone play in a major tournament.

"I'm sure they were nervous."

The loss was particularly hard to take for Clarke, the 11-year veteran of the side who has stayed on through the retirements of prominent players Anna Lawrence and Mandy Smith this year.

She was part of the bronze medal-winning side at the Kuala Lumpur Games four years ago and was intent on securing a different coloured medal this time.

"Helen has been around for a long time and she particularly wanted to do well in this tournament. She was pretty upset at not getting in the final," Borren said.

New Zealand's task to win bronze though got a lot harder when Australia were sensationally upset by England 2-1 in the other semifinal.

The Hockeyroos had racked up 25 goals and conceded just one in three pool matches, but were no match for a fired up home side who raced to a 2-0 halftime lead then held off a late charge from the defending Olympic champions.

Womens Semi-final:

India 2 (Mamta Kharab, Jyoti Kullu) bt New Zealand 1 (Suzie Pearce). HT: 1-1

England 2 (Helen Grant, Kate Walsh) bt Australia 1 (Louise Dobson). HT: 2-0

Womens Classification 5th/6th:

South Africa 4 (Pietie Coetzee 2, Sophie Mayer, Jennifer Wilson) bt Scotland 3 (Samantha Judge, Emma Rochlin, Rhona Simpson) South Africa win on golden goal. HT: 2-1. FT: 3-3

Classification 7th/8th:

Canada 5 (Aoibhinn Grimes, Jenny Johnson, Kristen Taunton, Sue Tingley 2) bt Malaysia 0. HT: 3-0

- NZPA

Full coverage:
nzherald.co.nz/manchester2002

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