Hero Hockey Junior World Cup Men 2013 kick-starts with a clash between Korea and Canada

Hero Hockey Junior World Cup Men 2013 kick-starts with a clash between Korea and Canada

Korea had a convincing win over Canada and closed the game with 7-4

New Delhi, 6 December 2013: Korea and Canada opened the 2013 Hero Hockey Junior World Cup and it only took a couple of minutes for the Koreans to make the first dent on the score-sheet when Seo Inwoo deflected in goal a free hit driven in the circle by Hwang Weonki. They maintained their pressure on the nervous Canadian defense and doubled their tally in the 7th minute when You Seungju powered a penalty-corner out of reach of Tristan Burgoyne in the Canadian goal.

The Canadians settled their nerve and soon had their first incursion in Korean territory by Gabriel Ho-Garcia, cutting decisively through the Korean defense. He was tackled before managing a shot and the subsequent penalty-corner was deflected by the fast Korean runners. Korea did not waste any time and the counter-attack found Seo Inwoo alone in the circle for an easy deflection and his second goal of the match in the 16th minute.

Canada reacted well, forcing two penalty-corners and opening their tally by Vikramjeet Sandhu on hand to deflect in goal a bouncing ball that had eluded a couple of defenders. Momentum of play switched for a while and it was the turn of the Korean defense to be under pressure. The Canadians displayed some good skills, creating some swift collective counter-attacks, but Lee Seyoung stood tall in the Korean goal.

Korea added a fourth goal before half-time with an unstoppable penalty-corner by You Seungju perfectly slotted in the top corner of Burgoyne’s goal, and the Canadians were facing a steep deficit on the scoreboard going into the break.

Once again, Korea started at full speed and a high ball found two high forwards behind the Canadian defense for a quick exchange of passes ending with an easy tap in the empty goal for Seo Inwoo, completing his hat-trick in the 37th minute. You Seungju was not far behind, completing his own hat-trick on yet another penalty-corner, this time with a low shot that shaved the right post.

The offensive festival continued with a quick exchange of goals, You Minyoung and Gordon Johnston scoring within a few minutes of each other. Then Canada pushed up their pace, and Jannu Mahal and Oliver Scholfield scored in the same minute, bringing back Canada within 3 goals on the scoreboard with still ten minutes to go on the clock. The final minutes were hotly contested, but the final Canadian surge was too late to change the result and Korea earned the three points of a high-scoring win (7-4).

Speaking post the win Coach Kim Young Kyu said, “the boys dominated the game from the start of the game and kept attacking during the match. While the defense was strong in the first half of the match but the boys could not continue with it in the second half, but this has come as an eye opener and I am happy we realized this in the very first match of the tournament. Our match tomorrow with Netherlands is very important and we are look forward to it”.

Speaking post the practice session Coach Paul Bundy said “the boys gave a strong fight but unfortunately we lost. While the team found its momentum in the second half of the game but the Korean team played a better game today. Our next game is with India and we understand that they will be a tough team to beat”.