Today was shaping up as the most critical day thus far in determining the fate of our quest towards a semi-final berth. A win against Hong Kong would mean a much easier crossover match against Malaysia, a loss would consign us to the much tougher opponent of China with the winner progressing to the semi-final and a spot at the World Championships.
Despite the breakfast buffet being the same each day, there is so much choice that no one can get bored with what they are eating. Although for our coffee craving contingent, the bitterness of the machine grind continues to leave a bitter taste in their mouths.
For our recovery session today, Bevan took the team through a stretching/yoga session. Once again we dominated the hotel hallway, creating a challenging obstacle course for all of those who dared to attempt to pass. Some of our players demonstrated their ability to get into contorted positions with ease, while others, especially some of Y chromosome origin proved that flexibility was certainly not their fortes.
Koru had a rough ride the previous day with his minder Mikey leaving him behind twice. Needless to say there will be consequences! Prior to training, Mikey chose the pass Koru on to our superstar from the previous day. Rosa becoming Koru's carer, just reward for her five goals the previous day.
There was more confidence growing in the kiwi camp after a solid training which built on a more controlled game the previous day. The requirement for today......score more goals!
Before departing the hotel, Coach Garrett pulled out one of his special Coach Carter like speeches. Certainly after that there was no question about the determination that was growing as game time neared.
We arrived at the stadium early to once again support our Australian friends as they completed another victory, this time against Malaysia. This means our trans-tasman neighbours should top their group and automatically progress to the semi-finals.
The Korus took to the court adorned in our silver shirts for the first time and looking rather smart we think! Once again the starting attack was Bevan (c), Carl, Bateup and Loralee, and in defence were Simon, Mikey, Rosa and Rachel.
Hong Kong began with the ball and scored from their first attack through a spectacular long short from Carl's childhood friend, Kwok Kuen Ham. After a stable attack, Carl scored in reply, much to our jubilation. With strong defence from both sides and limited scoring opportunities, it was another seven minutes before the scoreboard changed. A goal a piece, Simon converting a penalty chance left the scores tied at 2-2 in what was shaping up as a tight battle. Hong Kong then turned up the pressure a notch further, scoring four of the next five goals to take a 6-3 lead, Rosa scoring a nice and hard earned distance shot. The final three minutes of the half produced four more goals, unfortunately again the Korus struggled to convert the attacking opportunities, Bevan managing to score the final goal before half time from well worked team play. Down 9-4 at half time, the game was far from over but a stiff battle into a Hong Kong headwind awaited.
Needing to score early to maintain touch, Spencer was substituted into the game for Mikey and scored our first goal of the half after Hong Kong had once again scored from their first attacking opportunity. The next two goals were shared, Bevan scoring again from medium range to keep the lead to five goals. From here the mistakes and fatigue began to set in. Hong Kong took full control scoring the next six goals while there was a missed penalty for the kiwis. During this time both teams made a number of substitutions as the result became a forgone conclusion. Hong Kong showed greater squad depth and continued their scoring momentum, winning 21-7.
Despite the breakfast buffet being the same each day, there is so much choice that no one can get bored with what they are eating. Although for our coffee craving contingent, the bitterness of the machine grind continues to leave a bitter taste in their mouths.
For our recovery session today, Bevan took the team through a stretching/yoga session. Once again we dominated the hotel hallway, creating a challenging obstacle course for all of those who dared to attempt to pass. Some of our players demonstrated their ability to get into contorted positions with ease, while others, especially some of Y chromosome origin proved that flexibility was certainly not their fortes.
Koru had a rough ride the previous day with his minder Mikey leaving him behind twice. Needless to say there will be consequences! Prior to training, Mikey chose the pass Koru on to our superstar from the previous day. Rosa becoming Koru's carer, just reward for her five goals the previous day.
There was more confidence growing in the kiwi camp after a solid training which built on a more controlled game the previous day. The requirement for today......score more goals!
Before departing the hotel, Coach Garrett pulled out one of his special Coach Carter like speeches. Certainly after that there was no question about the determination that was growing as game time neared.
We arrived at the stadium early to once again support our Australian friends as they completed another victory, this time against Malaysia. This means our trans-tasman neighbours should top their group and automatically progress to the semi-finals.
The Korus took to the court adorned in our silver shirts for the first time and looking rather smart we think! Once again the starting attack was Bevan (c), Carl, Bateup and Loralee, and in defence were Simon, Mikey, Rosa and Rachel.
Hong Kong began with the ball and scored from their first attack through a spectacular long short from Carl's childhood friend, Kwok Kuen Ham. After a stable attack, Carl scored in reply, much to our jubilation. With strong defence from both sides and limited scoring opportunities, it was another seven minutes before the scoreboard changed. A goal a piece, Simon converting a penalty chance left the scores tied at 2-2 in what was shaping up as a tight battle. Hong Kong then turned up the pressure a notch further, scoring four of the next five goals to take a 6-3 lead, Rosa scoring a nice and hard earned distance shot. The final three minutes of the half produced four more goals, unfortunately again the Korus struggled to convert the attacking opportunities, Bevan managing to score the final goal before half time from well worked team play. Down 9-4 at half time, the game was far from over but a stiff battle into a Hong Kong headwind awaited.
Needing to score early to maintain touch, Spencer was substituted into the game for Mikey and scored our first goal of the half after Hong Kong had once again scored from their first attacking opportunity. The next two goals were shared, Bevan scoring again from medium range to keep the lead to five goals. From here the mistakes and fatigue began to set in. Hong Kong took full control scoring the next six goals while there was a missed penalty for the kiwis. During this time both teams made a number of substitutions as the result became a forgone conclusion. Hong Kong showed greater squad depth and continued their scoring momentum, winning 21-7.
Despite a better performance again, the lack of goals certainly has hurt us during this tournament. Hopefully over the next couple of games our stats can improve significantly.
Congratulations must be given to Sarah and Alice for making their NZ debuts.
The path ahead is now the steeper and bumpier one. Tomorrow we have our final pool game against world number three Chinese Taipei, which will likely be followed by a crucial cross over match against China. The winner of that game will qualify for the semi-finals and the loser will be fighting for the minor placings. China have performed strongly in the tournament so far and will be a tall challenge, both in height and skill,