KUALA LUMPUR – New Zealand have found itself as the punching bag in Group D following their recent 4-0 defeat at the hands of Pakistan at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil today.
The Black Sticks have now conceded a total of eight goals in their last two matches at the FIH Men’s Junior World Cup, placing them at the bottom of their group.
However, head coach Aaron Ford believes that his young team, with an average age of 18 years old, are on the right track to gain as much exposure as possible on the World Cup stage.
“Majority of the players in our squad are part of our national hockey youth development programme, initiated a year ago.
“This is a five-year programme, and we are still in our first year. The best part is that we qualified for the World Cup in our first attempt using these fresh players.
“Our programme focuses on building a group of young and experienced hockey players for the future, and we are not expecting instant success.
“My players are gaining the best experience by rubbing shoulders with some of the best teams in the world.
“As a coach, I truly trust the process of our five-year plan, and I’m confident that these young players will one day play in the Olympics or even perform better in the next World Cup with the experience they are gaining,” said Ford in today’s post-match conference.
Ford also said that he hopes to end their final group match against the Netherlands on Saturday on a positive note.
He hopes his players will learn as much as they can from the reigning European champions.
“I have instructed my players to play with less pressure and just give their best in our final group match. We are not expecting a miracle to happen in the match, as the Netherlands will also be a tough opponent, similar to our opening match against Belgium.
“I just want my young players to expose themselves to the European giants so that they can draw inspiration from them and improve their gameplay,” Ford added.
Arshad Liaqat scored the opening goal for Pakistan in the 19th minute.
The 20-year-old attacker then scored in the 30th minute and completed his hat trick in the 54th minute.
Deep-lying attacker Hannan Shahid contributed to Pakistan’s four-goal margin with a goal in the 32nd minute.
Pakistan temporarily top Group D with four points, while Belgium sit in second place with three points, with the Netherlands in third with one point.
The Belgians will take on the Dutch side later today. – December 7, 2023