USA blows wind out of Hungary’s sails and sails away

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 15 HUNGARY 9
USA claimed a huge scalp in Hungary and with such aplomb that the Hungarians were stupified. Hungary looked on target with a good start at 2-1, but then USA scored three straight by quarter time for 4-2, sent in four more for 8-2 and finished the half an incredible 9-3 ahead. This included a saved penalty shot. Maxwell Irving converted a penalty for 10-3 to start the second half and progressed to 12-4 and 13-5 by the final break. Hungary won the final quarter 4-2 thanks to two Daniel Angyal strikes as Maxwell added two more to his five-goal haul.

Match heroes
Irving (Pictured above) had a match to remember against a class opposition with his five goals — two on extra-man attack, one from the penalty line and two on action. Luca Cupido netted three with one on counter, the second from a lookaway shot and the third on extra-man attack. Gergo Zalanki hit four goals, including from the penalty stripe.

Turning point
From 2-1 down to 10-3 at the start of the third, Hungary had no answer and could find no way back.

Stats don’t lie
USA had the better of the extra-man stats with four from eight compared to Hungary’s less-efficient three from 12. USA made eight saves to two and replacing goalkeeper Daniel Szakonyi at 7-2 down did not make a big difference. Both teams converted two from three from the penalty line and USA made one more turnover and Hungary shot 26 to USA’s 23.

Bottom line
USA, as the host of the finals in Los Angeles, wanted to prove it was worthy of qualification, not just as the host nation. It sits third on the ladder and faces ladder lead Italy on Tuesday. Even if it loses and Hungary beats Croatia bringing both teams to a tie, the result between the two would mean USA finishes third, which is a moot point as the top three have already qualified.

Spectacular opening quarter helps seal French fate

JAPAN 18 FRANCE 15
Japan gained its first win of the tournament and France suffered its third three-goal loss. The Japanese victory was built on one of the highest-scoring quarters in World Cup history (probably) as Japan emerged an incredible 10-5 up at the first break. This was backed up by a two-goal second period. Then came an 8-4 third period for an unassailable 18-11 advantage at the final break. Hungary, who scored the last goal of the third quarter, then made a statement by denying Japan a goal in the last while throwing in four of its own for a flattering 18-15 loss. The Hungarian pressure in the last included two steals, forced three turnovers, made two goal saves, forced a missed shot and made Japan dump the ball twice. Japan was not worried as the margin was too huge for Hungary to equalise, let alone win.

Match heroes
Taiyo Watanabe displayed a full range of shots with his five goals from six attempts. He drilled from eight metres, snapped in on extra from four metres, scored from centre forward and generally had a marquee day. Seiya Adachi was equally as effective with four goals, two coming on counter. However, the top scorer was French captain Ugo Crousillat (above) with six goals — four from the penalty line. His second penalty strike came after Charles Canonne had his penalty attempt rebound and was fouled immediately, gaining a second penalty one second apart.

Turning point
The 1-1 to 7-2 stanza for Japan was crushing. With France bouncing back to 10-7 behind, Japan pushed the margin beyond doubt at 16-8.

Stats don’t lie
Japan gave up five penalty attempts and saved one while scoring two of its own. Japan was better on extra-man attack with five from eight and Hungary was not far behind with four from eight. Both teams saved nine shots and Japan turned the ball over 18 times to 15.

Bottom line
Japan’s best before today was a two-goal loss to USA, so scoring big against France — the most winnable match — would have been comforting. France is thereabouts and on track for better results in the coming year.

Group A points:

Italy 12, Croatia 9, USA 9, Hungary 6, Japan 3, France 0.