Hockey: NZ's goals already surpassed

By TERRY MADDAFORD

For a team who left New Zealand 10 days ago more worried about security and health issues than playing hockey, the victories over higher-rated opponents have caught the national men's team, and the national body, by surprise.

The 3-2 win over South Korea in their third match at the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament in Malaysia rates as one of the best for the New Zealanders and shows their build-up towards next year's Athens Olympics remains firmly on course.

While the results at the tournament can do nothing to their world ranking of ninth, the confidence they will take from the tournament will count for plenty.

"The matches were something of a secondary consideration when the team arrived in Malaysia," New Zealand Hockey Federation chief executive Ramesh Patel said yesterday. "There were more concerns about the war and the health scare.

"To their credit they have bounced back from that first-up loss to Pakistan and played some good hockey."

In their latest match they overcame what coach Kevin Towns described as a "pretty brutal" South Korean side, who are ranked fourth in the world. That win follows their earlier success over the eighth-ranked Malaysians.

"The Koreans are a difficult side to play," Towns said. "They play a similar style to the Germans in trying to run you off the ball. I was not surprised they had two players sin-binned during the match.

"To their credit, our players stood up to it. While the umpires were not very good, the incidents which led to the yellow cards were so blatant they could not ignore them.

New Zealand went ahead with an early Bevan Hari field goal.

Then early in the second half Hayden Shaw fired a drag flick from a penalty corner high into the Korean goal.

The Koreans got one back from open play before Shaw scored his second from a penalty stroke after a Korean defender had used his head to keep out another Shaw penalty corner attempt.

The New Zealanders defended well right to the finish, Towns said.

"We were under tremendous pressure in the last 10 or 15 minutes, but all they could manage was one goal from a penalty corner."

The team had surpassed their goal of picking up five points at the tournament.

"We already have six. If we can get at least a draw in our last game against Germany [11 o'clock tonight] we could make the final.

In the only change from the regular starting line-up, Dion Gosling, hampered by a tight calf muscle, was rested until just before halftime. Dean Couzins started in his place.

Towns singled goalkeeper Paul Woolford out as his best player, but added Wayne McIndoe, too, had shown out.

There was no rest for the team. They were back training by 7.30 the next morning determined to make the most of the cooler conditions.