Italy keeps Hungary at bay

HUNGARY 8 ITALY 9
Italy and Hungary are the oldest adversaries at the elite level and that dour struggle continued here in Zagreb today. It was the closest of ties and even the extra-man count was tempered by the strict defences of each team. The match was tied at one, and two by the first break, then at four by halftime after Hungary’s 4-2 lead was struck out by the in-form and man-of-the-match Lorenzo Bruni from the deep right with a pair before the buzzer. Bruni made it three in a row with a centre-forward backhand to go 5-4 ahead on the first attack of the third period. Goals were traded until 7-6 in Italy’s favour and then two Francesco Di Fulvio goals had Italy perched high at 9-6. His first was from the penalty line and the second with a deft six-metre-free-throw lob. Hungary had the better of the final quarter with Daniel Angyal and Gergely Burian converting extra-man plays by 3:06. With the match in the balance, both teams made steals and pressured shooters with Hungary not being able to shoot its last throw of the dice. Eduardo Di Somma must have scored the fastest goal of the tournament when he snapped in a shot from deep left for 6-5 on extra. The ball hardly seemed to be on his hand when it was in the back of the net.

Match heroes
Bruni’s three-goal haul to take Italy into the lead was inspirational, especially the two-metre goal that had advancing Magyar goalkeeper Marton Levai caught unawares. Burian and Vendel Vigvari scored twice each for Hungary with Burian’s last goal coming off a rebound on extra.

Turning point
Bruni’s hat-trick, for sure. It set the stage for the remainder of the match.

Stats don’t lie
Such was the defence that the extra-man stats showed little satisfaction for either team with three from 14 for Hungary and three from 10 for Italy. Hungary made one more turnover (14-13); Italian goalkeeper Marco Del Lungo was excellent in the frame with 10 saves to six and the shooting was similar at 27 to Hungary and 26 to Italy.

Bottom line
Italy has held the stick over Hungary in the past year and their contests are keenly watched. This was no different. It was a stout display by both teams with Italy looking like it was going to win most of the time.

 

USA overcomes four-minute man down to stun France

FRANCE 9 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 12
USA had to come back from a four-minute period of being a man down in the second quarter to swim away with the match in the dying minutes. The uproar came early in the second period as USA heavyweight Alex Bowen allegedly struck centre forward Thomas Vernoux (pictured above) after the Frenchman had shot the ball. The match progressed, but the VAR officials pulled up the match and it returned to 6:45 and captain Ugo Crousillat converted the penalty as Bowen left the pool with the violence foul. That penalty and two following goals in the four-minute suspension period, gave France a healthy 4-2 margin, which USA struggled to bridge. By halftime, France still held a 5-4 margin. Both teams converted a penalty foul in the third as the margin remained one goal heading into the last period (7-6). Enzo Kharz left the pool with blood streaming from a cut over his right eye, but returned in the final period heavily bandaged. USA brought the score to 7-7 when Crousillat was fouled out, but France responded with a pair, including another penalty goal. Emil Bjorch left on three majors and Ben Hallock dragged down an extra-man goal off a cross pass. Then Charles Canonne became the fifth Frenchman to be fouled out and player-of-the-match Hannes Daube collected the equaliser. He drilled another from a six-metre foul for his fourth on the next USA attack and the score was 10-9 in his team’s favour. A French timeout came to no effect and when Chase Dodd muscled in a goal on counter at 2:25, the match was lost. Ben Stevenson scored his second of the quarter at 1:08 on extra and France rued a winnable match slipping through its fingers.

Match heroes
Daube, the tall USA shooter with the tattooed right arm, netted two of his four goals from six-metre fouls, such is his power. The second was from a penalty goal and the third on extra from the top. Captain Hallock crossed the line three times with the match opener from two metres, fading to his right and taking the high ball to score.

Turning point
Bowen’s exclusion for the three-goal advantage from those four minutes and then USA’s control of the final minutes, scoring five unanswered goals.

Stats don’t lie
The extra-man goals counted for USA, converting seven from 19. France scored three from 11 and scored twice in the suspension period when a man up. France sent in three penalty goals to USA’s one.

Bottom line
USA had the temperament not to allow the suspension to define the match and played patiently until the end when the attrition rate of Frenchmen leaving the pool for three fouls or injuries proved too much. The 6-2 final period was a huge tick for USA’s programme and ensures the team will go far in the competition. France will need to reboot its defence and try not to give away so many fouls.

 

Group A points:

Croatia 6, Italy 6, USA 6, Hungary 3, Japan 0, France 0.