Germany rallies to beat Australia

ROTTERDAM, NOV. 4. Germany came from behind to beat Australia 2-1 in the final match on the opening day of the 23rd Champions Trophy here on Saturday.

It was Germany's fourth successive victory over the Olympic bronze medallists. It fell behind after only eight minutes when Jeremy Hiskins made space for himself and let fly a superb reverse stick shot.

The quality of play in the first half was the best seen during the day and Australia, much improved since the Azlan Shah tournament in August, just about deserved its lead.

The Germans stayed focussed and kept up constant pressure, eventually forcing an error in the left defence of the Australians which led to the equaliser, another fine reverse stick shot by Oliver Domke in the 41st minute.

Germany's winning goal was scored by its captain Florian Kunz with a perfectly executed penalty stroke in the 60th minute.

Earlier, the Netherlands, the Sydney gold medallists, was held to a 1-1 draw by the original host Pakistan. An inspired display by goalkeeper Muhammad Qasim made sure Pakistan gain the draw. Both the teams scored off penalty corners. Taeke Taekama putting the Netherlands ahead after nine minutes and Sohail Abbas levelling 18 minutes later.

The Dutch had more penalty corners and far more scoring chances but every time they seemed certain to score, up popped Qasim in the right place. However the Dutch who had won a Test series in Holland against the Pakistanis earlier this year, would have won if the final shot of the game had not been saved on the line by defender Muhammad Saqlain.

Korea loses to England

Sydney Olympic silver medallist South Korea lost to England (4-3) in the opening match. England dominated the first half hour and opened the score after 25 minutes when Duncan Woods gave Jimmy Wallis a clear shot in the circle after Mark Pearn had rushed through the Korean defence. South Korea recovered after Woon Kon- Yeo scored out of a penalty a few minutes before halftime. In the second half, South Korea seemed to have taken over the game with goals from Seung Tae-Song and Jong Hyun-Hwang. But its supremacy didn't last long, as David Mathews led England to victory, scoring three goals in barely 10 minutes.

The results:

Germany 2 (Oliver Domke, Florian Kunz) bt Australia 1 (Jeremy Hiskins).

Pakistan 1 (Sohail Abbas) drew with Netherlands 1 (Taeke Taekama).

England 4 (Jimmy Wallis 1, David Mathews 3) bt South Korea 3 (Woon-Kon Yeo, Seong-Tae Song, Jong-Hyun Hwang).

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Section  : Sport
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