WCT: All Smiles for Desperate Hockeyroos
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| Hockey Australia |
November 12, 2004
Hockey Australia
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Hockeyroos 1 defeated China 0 (Half time 1-0)
Goals: Australia ? Hope Brown FG 3m
A third-minute goal by striker Hope Brown gave the Hockeyroos a desperate 1-0 victory over China at the BDO Hockey Champions Trophy in Rosario today.
The Hockeyroos were aggressive in defence and more assured and confident on the ball than in their previous matches, with Emily Halliday?s desperation and drive typifying a resolve to win for the first time in the tournament.
?I thought our players were led well by Emily Halliday, who had the best game I?ve seen her play for a while.
Cindy Morgan was very good in the net and Madonna Blyth held her own in the middle. Hope Brown also played well and gave us a focus up forward,? Hockeyroos coach David Bell said.
The match was barely into its rhythm when Suzie Faulkner?s persistence in the forward half of the pitch won possession for the Hockeyroos. Faulkner?s quick off-load gave Brown the space she needed inside the circle to produce a great finish under heavy pressure and give Australia the lead.
?I thought our strikers set the tempo for the game in the first 35 minutes. The build-up to the goal was an area we?ve been working on with the forwards leading and continuing to lead instead of stopping and watching,? Bell said.
The goal gave Australia an important early boost and made China work hard for every possession. The Hockyeroos? desire to play-on quickly from free hits forced the pace of the match and made the Chinese adjust to Australia?s tempo.
China looked most dangerous when Ma Yibo was given time to find striker Fu Baorong with long passes and isolate the last line of the Hockeyroos defence. However after some early scares, Australia tightened their play through the midfield and began to intercept or challenge for possession.
While China was able to break through at various stages during the first half, the Hockeyroos defence combined well to limit their best opportunities to a pair of penalty corners.
Chinese goalkeeper Zhang Yimeng was required to make a number of saves in the half, with Nikki Hudson, Peta Gallagher and Ngaire Smith all peppering the goals. However the rebounds from Yimeng?s pads fell wide of the strikers? sticks and the Hockeyroos weren?t able to build on their best half of the tournament.
Australia nearly gave away their advantage soon after the break, but Morgan?s alertness in the net and a lastditch clearance by Halliday stopped China drawing level.
Gallagher had a chance to seal the win with exactly seven minutes remaining, but her slap shot from three metres out hit the crossbar after Faulkner had again provided the lead-up.
The Hockeyroos absorbed enormous pressure in the final five minutes as first Morgan stopped Baorong?s charge and then Halliday swatted the ball away from a penalty corner. Four saves by the Hockeyroos goalkeeper in three minutes to finish the match ensured Australia secured maximum points.
To demonstrate the closeness of the competition, the victory vaulted the Hockeyroos into fourth place on the points table with only Saturday?s match against New Zealand to complete the round robin phase.
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