HOCKEY
Sunday, 28 Jul 2019
On target: Faizal Saari scored Malaysia’s second goal in the 4-2 win over Germany on Friday.
KUALA LUMPUR: An unexpected win against two-time world champions Germany is a confidence booster for the national hockey team before they head to Spain for a four-nation tournament from Aug 2-4 in Barcelona.
The team pulled off a 4-2 win during a test match against Germany in Krefeld on Friday.
Razie Rahim got the ball rolling for Malaysia through a penalty stroke attempt in the sixth minute and Faizal Saari doubled the score in the 13th minute.
The Germans fought back through Tim Grambusch in the 23rd minute but goals from Shahril Saabah (53rd) and Meor Azuan Hassan (55th) gave Malaysia a 4-1 lead before Timm Herzbruch reduced the deficit for German in the 60th minute.
“The weather was dry and the temperature soared to 40°C but the boys played with great discipline and confidence,” said the 60-year-old Stephen.
“The participating nations in the upcoming four-nation tournament are Spain, Ireland and England. The matches against the European teams will be a good preparation for us before the all-important Olympic qualifiers.”
Malaysia will meet one of these teams – Germany, Spain, New Zealand and Canada in the final Olympic qualifier in November.
Read more at https://www.thestar.com.my/sport/hockey/2019/07/28/malaysia-stun-two-time-world-champs-germany-in-hockey-test/#zv7TLgWzhLMvfWt8.99
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