The Hindu : Sport : Australia reaffirms its supremacy

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Monday, May 14, 2007
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Sport

Australia reaffirms its supremacy

S. Thyagarajan

Ipoh: Amidst the festive ambience, Australia annexed the Azlan Shah Trophy for the fifth time in the invitation hockey tournament here on Sunday.

The 3-1 triumph against Malaysia — all the four goals came in the second half — reaffirmed the stature of Australia as the Olympic champion.

For Malaysia, which figured in the title round after the last appearance in 1985, the final had some moments to relish. That the defence, headed by Megat Azariq, managed to keep the marauding Aussies from scoring in the first half reflected the enthusiasm and spirit to rise to the big occasion.

The emphasis on defence was quite understandable given the power and punch of the Australian attack, which was persistent although success came only early in the second half.

Smith shines

The gangling Andrew Smith caught the eye the most with his repeated incursions into the rival area with Grant Schubert and Rusell Ford threatening to open up any time. Two veterans, Livermore and Hammond, were solid in the mid-field, engineering the continuous flow of the attack.

The Malaysians, it must be admitted, defended with palpable gumption. In the mid-field Jiva Mohan, who had an excellent tournament, and pivot Jivan Mohan strove manfully to keep the Aussies under check almost throughout the first half. Goalkeeper Kumar Subramaniam performed his part well.

Australia hoisted the lead shortly after the break when Ed Ockenden scored from a move initiated by Andrew Smith and carried forward by Grant Schubert. Within a minute, an adroit forward pass by Bevan George broke the defence for Ockenden to score again.

The 0-2 score did not diminish the fervour of the Malaysians. They moved up whenever the Aussie defence slowed down. But midway through it was Australia again, Russel Ford netting the third that put the issue beyond a shadow of doubt.

Malaysia's crowning moment came in the final second with two penalty corners surfacing. Jiwa Mohan sent the packed stadium into a delirium of delight with a delectable grounder to beat Stephen Lambert after the regulation time.

Commendable effort

India's podium finish was the second in succession. The victory was by far the narrowest of margins. But the manner in which the Indians demonstrated the value of ball possession was commendable. The defence was tight throughout. Harpal and Xalco left no space for the Koreans, repulsing all their attempts at probing.

In the mid-field Bimal Lakra was prominent, supported admirably on the left by Prabodh Tirkey and on the right by Gurbaj Singh. Whatever shuffling Joe Carvalho made functioned impressively.

For all the system and consistency maintained by the attack, in which Sardara Singh, who notched up the match-winner late in the second half, the frontline failed to make capital of the chances created. Rajpal Singh and Prabhjot Singh infused a modicum of co-ordination. Sardara Singh produced several defence breaking moves with Roshan Minz. It was eventually the pass from Minz that culminated in Sardara Singh slotting the winner.

Fine goalkeeping

Any evaluation of the tie would be incomplete without a tribute to goalkeeper Bharat Chetri. The three saves he made off the dangerous Jeong from penalty corners were eye-catching. They not only underscored Chetri's athleticism but also his sense of anticipation.

For the major part of the match, the Koreans were subdued, largely on account of the impressive Indian defence. Even after Harpal Singh left with an ankle injury, it exuded a touch of assurance. India had four penalty corners. Raghunath was a trifle slow in taking the shots and the variations tried for the other two did not work as programmed.

For the Koreans, skipper Kim Chul, was prompter. His through passes created space for the frontline to sally ahead but the Indian mid-field and deep defence were equal to the task.

Target achieved

"I would have been happier if we had reached the final. But the target of a podium finish has been achieved. The platform has been set and we have to move forward from here," observed the chief coach Carvalho.

Sultan Azlan Shah, President, Asian Hockey Federation gave away the prizes.

The results:

Final: Australia 3 (Ed Ockenden 2, Russell Ford) bt Malaysia 0. HT 0-0.

Third place: India 1 (Sardara Singh) bt Korea 0; HT 0-0.

Player of the tournament: Andrew Smith (Australia); Player of the match: Ed Ockenden (Australia); Highest scorer: 6, Lee Sung Min (Korea); Best goalkeeper: Kumar Subramaniam (Malaysia); Fair play: Argentina.

Final placings: 1. Australia, 2. Malaysia, 3. India, 4. Korea, 5. Argentina, 6. Pakistan, 7. China, 8. Canada.

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