New Zealand surprised Pakistan with a 3-2 victory in a hard-fought match
in the Sultan of Johor Cup on Wednesday (15 Oct) at the Johor Hockey
Stadium.
The game started with both teams cautiously probing for chances with
Pakistan goalkeeper Muhammad Janjua called into action early as Rocco
Ludolph, Patel Milan and captain Gus Nelsn were dangerously on the prowl.
New Zealand led 1-0 in the second quarter, courtesy of a 19 th minute strike
from Rocoo Ludolph. Drag-flick specialist Sufyan Khan scored the equalizer
in the 26 th minute and then took the Green Shirts to a 2-1 lead nine minutes
later.
Having lost all three earlier matches, New Zealand was sitting at the bottom
of the table standings with no points. They were determined to win this
fourth match and went on the offensive in the third quarter and earned a
penalty corner. Jakarta Klebert converted to level score at 2-2.
As India looked to press for the winning goal, Jordan Whittleston scored a
field goal in the 53 rd minute as the Kiwis worked their way to a 3-2 lead.
Pakistan and New Zealand were under pressure towards the end of the
fourth quarter with both teams creating a couple of chances. The Pakistanis
were hoping the find the equaliser. The defeat was Pakistan’s second time
in the tournament.
This was New Zealand’s first win against Pakistan in the last two
encounters. The Pakistanis won 4-0 at the 2023 Junior World Cup in Kuala
Lumpur, and 3-2 at the 2023 SOJC.
Unlike Tuesday’s action-packed encounter between Pakistan and India that
drew a big number of fans from both sides, the Green Shirts and Kiwis were
cheered on by students from SMK Kota Masai in Johor Bahru waving the
flags of both countries.
New Zealand coach Mile Delaney, said after the match: “After the last game,
we had to take a hard look at ourselves. The coach has been really good; he
straightened us out as he should. Today we came with a new mindset and
we got the result.”
“Yeah, more points. It felt good out there. We played exceptionally well
today.” he added.
