Muscat: Netherlands outclassed resilient Ukraine 4-2 to book their spot in the semifinals of the inaugural edition of the FIH Hockey5s World Cup (Oman 2024) on Friday at Oman Hockey Stadium. Netherlands secured spot to the knockout stages as they ended as topper of pool A with nine points from three matches against Malaysia, Fiji and the hosts Sultanate of Oman.
Led by the head coach Dekker Mark, Netherlands started the match strongly as De Baat Noor scored an early goal in the first minute through filed goal. Benninga Sosha doubled the lead within seven minutes from the opening goal and then Van Der Veldt Bente managed to score the third goal from filed goal.
Ukraine felt the danger and pressed hard to reduce the scoring gap as they created many attempts. Within two minutes, Popova Kateryna and Shokalenko Kateryna found the target and made the result to 3-2 before end of the first half. Van Der Veerdonk Danique confirmed the win for Netherlands as she completed the game at 4-2.
Benninga Sosha, who scored one goal in the game, expressed her joy on the team’s progression to the semis round as the first team to qualify into this round. “The victory confirmed the hard work made by the players and top technical team performance from all. Ukraine were very tough and they delivered top game,” she said.
Responding to an inquiry on the team’s areas of improvement, she said, ”I believe we need to be sharper in our defence and develop the communication and harmony between goalie and defending line to avoid receiving any goals. We will be working very hard for the forthcoming matches.”
“Oman is very amazing country. It is mixture of nature beauty and mountains. The stadium is great and equipped with all the facilities and team’s requirement,” she added.
She affirmed that the team has good chances to qualify into the final match. “All the qualified teams are very good. If we did our level best, I believe we will make good chances in the final,” she signed off.
Poland, India in semis
Poland stunned Uruguay 5-3 in quarterfinal match on Friday at Hockey Oman Stadium to confirm their place in the semifinals. Goalie Marta Kucharska stands tall against the Uruguayan attackers while Amelia Katerla scores a hat-trick for Poland.
South Africa made powerful comeback to seal a semifinal spot at the 2024 FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024 following their 6-4 win over Malaysia. The South African players managed to bounce back strongly as they came from behind at 1-4 to make it 6-4.
Phume Reabetswe, who scored two goals out of six, expressed her happiness after registering a tough win against Malaysia. “It was a tight clash and we fight in the game in order to finish on a winning note. In the beginning, the team lack to the confidence but we could manage to revert quickly into the match. I am very proud of the team performance and looking for more in the forthcoming games,” she said.
Responding to their chances in the coming games, she answered that the chances are very high. “We need to analyse the team who will play against them. We need also to show our top level skills and performance to register a win and move to the final match,” she concluded.
India pummelled New Zealand 11-1 to book their place in the semifinals. It was much deserved win for the Indian players after they excelled an outstanding show. Rutaja Dadaso Pisal was the star of the match after she scored super hat-rick (9, 22, 26 and 28). Also, goals from Deepika Soreng (2, 25 and 29), Rutaja Dadaso (9, 22, 26 and 28), Khan Mumtaz (10, 11) and Kujur Mariana (13, 14) propelled India to the huge victory. New Zealand players faced difficulty and struggled to reduce the scoring gaps after they netted a single goal only.
In the position matches, Thailand thrashed Zambia 9-3, Paraguay defeated the hosts Oman 6-3, Namibia won against Fiji 9-3 and USA blanked Australia 8-4.
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