On the opening day at the BDO Hockey World Cup Qualifier in Quilmes, Argentina, Belgium defeated Chile, Ireland imposed themselves on the US team, and Argentina stumbled to victory over the Czech Republic.
Belgium - Chile 4:1 (2:1)
In the morning game of the first day of action at the National Hockey Stadium in Quilmes, the tournament's highest ranked team Belgium recorded their first win of the competition against the lowest ranked contender, Chile. Despite the rather clear result however, it was nowhere near an easy ride for the Belgians, who until the end of the match had to be careful against an energetic and highly motivated Chilean side.
The Southamericans gave the Red Devils a good fright when Andres Fuenzalida put them on the scoreboard after less than two minutes, but laying down a solid, concentrated effort, the Belgians soon regained control. A double hit midway through the first half, with Belgian Captain Max Luycx putting away the equalizer, and Thomas Briels adding another within less than four minutes, pushed Belgium ahead. They had a number of opportunities to extend the scoreline before the break, but to no avail.
In the second half, Chile regained their footing and put up a good resistance against their Belgian counterparts, but they couldn't make their efforts count, even wasting a penalty stroke. Ceaselessly attacking, the Chilean team went all out to take points from this match, but all their efforts were in vain as another double hit by the Belgians raised the bar out of reach, this time with a field goal from Jeffrey Thys, and Jerome Dekeyser sinking his trademark flick on a penalty corner.
The game ended 4-1 fo Belgium, to the great disappointment of the Chileans, but the team from Chile have made it clear today that while they may be the lowest ranked side in the competition, they are certainly no easy walk-over and may well be able to spring a surprise in this tournament.
Ireland - USA 6:1 (5:0)
Next up were Ireland and the USA. With both teams in the middle of rebuilding their national teams, it was not clear which way the game was going to lean, but Ireland put their stamp on the proceedings early, swiftly, and unequivocally. A trio of goals from Michael Watt and a Stephen Butler penalty corner conversion saw the boys in green up by four goals after less than twenty minutes, and when Butler added his second goal of the day in the final seconds of the first half, it seemed like a two-digit disaster was on the cards for the US team.
After the break however, the Americans returned a changed side, suddenly putting up a fight they had never managed in the first half. Ireland struggled with the change of pace, conceding the USA's consolation goal to Nate Coolidge in the 53rd minute, but having to pick the ball out of their net jolted the Irish awake again, and they immediately restored the five goal lead with a goal from Mitch Darling.
The rest of the match rolled past without much worthy of mention - the game was hard fought, but neither team was able to gain any significant advantage or create much danger. The game thus ended 6:1 for Ireland, making them the highest scoring team in the competition and the day 1 table leader.
Argentina - Czech Republic 1:0 (1:0)
In the final match of the day, the Argentinean home team struggled much more than expected, and were lucky in the end to be able to count on an early goal from flamboyant striker Mario Almada to not disappoint in their tournament opener.
Argentina were the dominant team throughout the match, but missed the finishing touch, creating many opportunities but ending up denied by Czech goalkeeper Filip Neusser, the post or the crossbar time and again. To the lack of luck, they added a certain sloppiness, which saw their efforts not only fruitless but making them vulnerable to Czech counterattacks.
An early goal by Mario Almada, deflecting a Lucas Vila pass across over the line, however, steered the Argentines to a successful start of the World Cup Qualifier campaign, past a barrage of Czech attacks in the dying minutes of the game when the second-lowest ranked team in the event suddenly seemed to realize that a draw against one of the tournament favorites was within reach, but Argentina's experience and superior individual skills sailed them past the storm and had the Czech helplessly watch the impending surprise slip from their grasp.
These results put Ireland at the top of the table after one day of play, with Belgium following close behind. Their narrow win against the Czech Republic puts Argentina in third plave, while the Czech occupy 4th place, followed by Chile and the USA.
Play continues tomorrow Sunday with the match between Chile and Ireland, the European clash between Belgium and the Czech Republic, followed by the home team from Argentina facing the team from the USA.
For all information on the tournament, please visit our tournament site http://www.quilmes2009.sportcentric.com/.
Belgium - Chile 4:1 (2:1)
2min CHI Andres FUENZALIDA (FG)
15min BEL Max LUYCX (FG)
19min BEL Thomas BRIELS (FG)
57min BEL Jeffrey THYS (FG)
60min BEL Jerome DEKEYSER (PC)
Ireland - USA 6:1 (5:0)
4min IRL Michael WATT (FG)
7min IRL Michael WATT (FG)
13min IRL Michael WATT (FG)
18min IRL Stephen BUTLER (PC)
34min IRL Stephen BUTLER (FG)
53min USA Nate COOLIDGE (FG)
55min IRL Mitch DARLING (FG)
Argentina - Czech Republic 1:0 (1:0)
10min ARG Mario ALMADA (FG)
