Canadian men defeated by South Africa

Field Hockey Canada - Press Release
June 23, 2009

The Canadian men’s national field hockey team lost to South Africa 1-3 on Tuesday afternoon in Elektrostal, Russia, in the second official test match in prelude to the Four-Nations Tournament scheduled to start on Wednesday.

The two teams last met at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, with a Canadian victory 5-3. But it was a very different Canadian outfit that lined up on Tuesday, with half the roster having played less than 10 international games, in a deliberate effort by Coach Alan Brahmst to widen the group preparing for the 2010 World Cup. The South Africans, on the other hand, are in the final stage of preparation for the Africa Cup, scheduled for July in Accra (Ghana) where they hope to win an automatic berth for the world Cup.   

Canada scored first with a field goal by Mark Pearson after a great individual effort. South Africa scored half way through the period to reach half-time tied at 1-1.

South Africa then took control of the game in second period, scoring early to take the lead, then again half way through the period. Canada reacted well in the last ten minutes, building two good opportunities, but the score remained unchanged at 1-3.

Coach Alan Brahmst commented “With so many players with less than ten caps, we were lacking experience and it created challenges in our defensive structure and in the attacking zone. It was nevertheless an excellent learning experience and a good preparation heading into the 4-Nations Tournament tomorrow. I was happy today with the performance of Geoff Houghton who earned his first international Cap in goal for Canada”.