South Korea came out scathed as Spain triumphed 8-2 to register a third consecutive Men’s Hockey Junior World Cup (JWC) win at the National Hockey Stadum in Bukit Jalil this morning.
The Spaniards top the Pool C table standings with nine points, while the Koreans endured their second defeat in three matches and moved down to third place with three points in the pool.
Forwards Pol Cabre Verdiell (5th and 6th minutes), Nicolas Alvarez (18th and 26th minutes), and Pablo Espino (32nd and 35th minutes) have been consistently scoring goals since the Four-Nations Cup in Dusseldorf, Germany. The trio pinned down the Koreans with double-digit scores, while Enriq Miralles (14th minute) and Bruno Font (16th) added one apiece. For the South Koreans, Seunghwan Lee and Park Geonwoo scored in the 29th and 58th minutes, respectively.
It was the second time the Spaniards won with a big score over the Koreans in the JWC. At the 2021 Bhubaneswar event in India, Spain won 9-0 in a Pool C match.
Oriol Puig Torras, Spain coach, said: “We are happy with our performance in this match. It was a difficult match because we had two tough games earlier. For the quarterfinals, we are not too concerned about which team we are going to play because Belgium, Pakistan, or the Netherlands are very strong oppositions. So, we have to wait until evening to know our opposition when these three teams complete their fixtures.
At the moment, we need to recover well and be ready for the quarterfinals. The temperature is hot today and difficult to play. It’s the same for both teams, but no worries. We need to drink a lot of water.”
Young Seo Jang, South Korea coach, said: “The players started off nervously and were stressed playing against a formidable team like Spain. It is a normal phenomenon among youngsters in this age group. That is why they gave away quick goals.
We are in the development process, and I am still proud of the way the players played to score two goals. Our players do not have much international exposure, unlike the other teams. Our participation in the JWC is a good learning experience, watching the stronger teams play. “
The continental champions of the EuroHockey Junior Championships 2022 defeated New Zealand 3-1 in their last Pool D match to go top of the points standings at this moment with seven points. Another crucial Pool D clash scheduled later in the evening between Pakistan and Belgium will decide the final table standings.
Midfielder Oliver Hortensius once again rose to the occasion to score two field goals (19th and 32nd minutes) – his third in the event, and Casper van der Veen scored the third goal in the 22nd minute. James Nicolson scored for New Zealand three minutes into the third quarter.
Ironically, the Dutch are yet to win a men’s Junior World Cup title, something they will be determined to change this time around. The silver medallists from 1985 and 2009 finished fifth at the Bhubaneswar 2021 event.
Jesse Mahieu, Netherlands coach, said: “We are happy to have reached the quarterfinals after the group stage. I’m very happy with the first half, and we managed to score from many chances we created and should have converted more against Belgium and Pakistan, like 4 or 5 more. I am happy how we came out after the break.
We will come back in the evening to watch the Pakistan-Belgium match. We are not sure if we will top the pool or second until the Pakistan-Belgium match is over. As for the quarterfinals, it does not matter whom we meet. We have to play better and move forward.”
Aaron Ford, New Zealand coach, said: We know that the Dutch did not put too much energy into this game as they are through to the quarterfinals. I am happy with our performance. The guys were excited to play against Holland, and I think we played well. We had a couple of chances and scored.
“Our next match is against South Korea in the classification match. We still need to put in more work on the penalty corners, which was missing today. After a good rest on Sunday, the team is ready for the next task. The Koreans are a good side too, and we don’t take any team easy.”
