Italy, Spain, USA and Hungary win in top groups

MATCH REPORTS

Match 16, Group B, HUNGARY 17 NEW ZEALAND 4 (4-0, 3-1, 5-1, 5-2)

Hungary picked up its first win of the week and it won’t be the last, judging by its ability to control an opposition.

Hungary gained a four-goal advantage by shutting out the Kiwi attack and not allowing any big shots while being strong at the other end. The score could have been 5-0 if VAR had not shown Zoe Lendvay’s shot failed to cross the line. It was a sad start for her as her penalty attempt earlier was smacked away. Kata Hajdu finished the period with a counter goal to give her team plenty of confidence. Katie Marshall scored the Kiwis’ first goal on extra to start the second quarter. New Zealand was working hard on defence and did not allow a Hungarian goal until 4:44 when Kata Hajdu threw a penalty goal. Eszter Varro netted her second at centre forward and Natasa Lendvai nailed an extra-play goal from the top for 7-1. Dominika Kardos hit the post with her penalty attempt, much to the relief of New Zealand.

Goals continued to elude New Zealand as Hungary sent in four more in five minutes with Varro netting her third and Lendai her second. Varro’s goal came from a poor goalkeeper pass, stolen by Varro, going on counter. Lendvai sent her shot in off the right post and the goalkeeper’s head, requiring VAR for confirmation. Bailee Swindells earned an ejection and gained the ball to score for 11-2 inside the final two minutes and at 13 seconds, Hajdu converted a penalty foul for 12-2 at the final break.

Hungary bolted to 17-2 in the fourth quarter and gave up two penalty goals in the final minute for the 17-4 winning margin.

Match Heroes
Hajdu (above) collected four goals to go with the three from the USA match. Lendvai was named player of the match with her three goals and Varro also claimed three. Tunde Schmuck shut down eight Kiwi shots in goal.

Turning Point
The goal-less first quarter for New Zealand and the 12 barren minutes leading up to the final break.

Stats Don’t Lie
Hungary converted four from seven on extra to New Zealand’s two from six. Hungary sent in three from five on penalty to the Kiwis’ two from two. Hungary made a magnificent 14 steals to two and shot 34 times to 23.

Bottom Line
Hungary is a powerful team with good water polo genes. It is easily one of the top teams here and the second-day shootout loss to USA was an aberration. New Zealand must have learned lessons today, much needed if it wishes to remain in the top eight of the world.

Match 15, Group D, TURKIYE 10 CHINA 16 (1-3, 4-5, 1-5, 4-3)

China won three periods, but those three gave it an unassailable lead heading into the last, registering its second victory.

It was great to see Sun Yating, a triple Olympian, assisting the Chinese team. Sun played the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games with two fifth placings.

China turned it on for the home crowd, covering the first quarter and screaming away in the second. Shi Yitong scored on counter to start the Chinese onslaught. This was equalled by Eda Moroglu on extra. Han Wen at centre and Zhang Yumian on penalty had the first quarter sewn up. Arik Bilge produced three centre-forward goals and Zhang Yumian one from the field as the match shot to 4-4. Then China went on a roll with four unanswered goals. Turkiye took a timeout with no goal, but on the next attack it scored from deep right through Mina Bozkurt for a halftime score of 8-5 in China’s favour.

China scored the first three goals of the third period with Shao Yixin gaining a further two to go with the first in the previous quarter. Han gained a second and it was 11-5. Bilge swam up for the penalty and needed VAR to get it across the line. Li Xingming and Shao for her fourth, pushed the margin out to 13-6 at the final break. There was stubborn resistance from the Turks in the final quarter, taking the period 4-3 with Bilge bringing up her fifth goal as did Shao.

Match Heroes
Shao, with her five goals, followed by captain Zhang Yumian and Han with three each were on the shooting end but it was goalkeeper Lin Qinfeng who was named player of the match with her 12 saves. Han and Zhang have nine goals each. Dura Ilter made 10 saves for Turkiye and Bilge hammered in five goals.

Turning Point
The four-goal surge in the second quarter and the three unanswered goals in the third gave China the impetus.

Stats Don’t Lie
China managed three from nine on extra but, more importantly, denied Turkiye seven of eight attempts. On penalties, both scored one from one. China made eight steals to six and had 36 shots to 28.

Bottom Line
China has the potential to be a class team and Turkiye is proving a valuable asset at this level of the world game.

Match 14, Group B, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 16 AUSTRALIA 12 (4-2, 3-2, 7-4, 2-4)

World champion USA, fresh from a penalty shootout victory over Hungary the previous day, collected a second victory with much more ease and aplomb. Combinations clicked and Allison Cohen went six goals better than her first-day effort of one goal.

USA cruised through the opening two quarters to cement a three-goal margin. USA shot out to 2-0 through Charlotte Raisin and Sydney Lowell, from the penalty line, before Australia rectified the situation and scored through Saskia Dunn and Bless Daly, who gave the assist to Dunn’s goal. Raisin drilled one from the top and Allison Cohen began her remarkable run from the top left for 4-2 by the first break. Sienna Owen converted extra for 4-3 and then Cohen scored three of the next USA goals with Christina Digiandomenico replying at 5-4. Cohen converted two penalty goals with the second 47 seconds from halftime and 7-4.

Lily Palma doubled Australia’s score on extra from plumb in front to start the third period and Aussie captain Chelsea Isaac replied after two quick passes. Daly had a penalty attempt saved, but she pounced on the rebound and sent it in for 8-6. Cohen and Dunn swapped penalty goals — Cohen’s third from the five-metre line. An Aussie timeout came to nought and at the other end, Cohen bounced in her sixth goal from nine metres for 10-7. Rosalie Hassett and Dunn traded goals before Cohen sent in her seventh with Lowell and Hassett crashing the Aussie defence for 14-8 at the final break.

Katherine O’Dea converted double extra to start the final period for USA. A USA timeout did not produce a goal, but it did set alight the Aussies who rammed in three goals — two from Isaac (counter-attack lob and a penalty) and another from Dunn (extra). At 15-11 it was interesting, until Hassett cleaned up a messy extra-man play at 1:44 for a five-goal differential.

Match Heroes
Player of the match Cohen with her seven goals and Hassett with three. Goalkeeper Keri Glad made 10 saves for USA. For the Aussies, skipper Isaac and Dunn struck four times each.

Turning Point
Lifting to three ahead at halftime and then that fantastic third period.

Stats Don’t Lie
USA converted four from 10 on extra and Australia four from nine. USA scored all four penalty goals and Australia three from four. USA made eight steals to six and Australia shot seven more times than the more accurate USA.

Bottom Line
USA is here to defend its crown and a after a shaky start against Hungary, proved that it has the talent to go all the way. Australia was plucky throughout as winning the last quarter 4-2 proved.

Match 13, Group A, GREECE 14 SPAIN 15 in sudden-death penalty shootout. FT: 7-7. Pens: 7-8 (1-2, 2-0, 3-2, 1-3)

It was like medals were on the line, so tight was this encounter, going to the shootout and taking 16 shots to decide Spain as the victor.

Spain had the better of the opening quarter, even denying Greece its first chance to score on penalty. However, Despoina Drakotou robbed the ball from the Spanish goalkeeper and backhanded the ball into the empty goal for 1-0. Queralt Anton fired one in from the top on extra and Itziar Almeda converted extra from the top right for 2-1 at 0:37. Greece kept a firm grip on the second quarter with a 10m shot from Efstathia Kovatsevits at 2:31 and Niki Piovan putting away a penalty shot for 3-2 at 1:47. Spain had few chances to impress.

Come the third period and Spain levelled through Anton, although some time later, VAR kicked in and an earlier violent action was detected and Martina Claveria was red-carded with substitution. The clock was wound back and the Spanish goal erased. Ariadni Karampetsou scored from deep left on extra and Greece had a two-goal differential. Estel Ramon nullified that on extra, also from the deep. Drakotou had her penalty attempt rejected but Piovan converted hers soon after for 5-3. Greece went to a timeout and subsequently, Piovan grabbed her third on action from the top right for a three-goal advantage. A minute or so later, Ariadna Temprano pulled one back for Spain, from the top on extra, leaving Greece with a 6-4 lead at the final break.

Temprano added another from the same position on action to start the final quarter as Spain was setting itself to reel Greece in. Greece took a timeout to no effect and soon after, VAR decided that Almeda’s shot on extra was good for 6-6. Karampetsou  converted a penalty and Carlota Penalva drilled one from the top into the top right for the equaliser at 2:49. Spain went to a timeout at 0:23 and the ball worked around to an open Rita Gurri at deep left. But she fumbled and the chance went begging. Where the ball went was not as good and it was saved, giving Greece a timeout with two seconds left but the shot was not taken in time, forcing the shootout.

No one wanted to miss. But the dubious honour went to Drakotou who had her shot tipped into the crossbar on the sixth shot in sudden death, meaning there were 15 successful shots before her attempt.

Match Heroes
Spanish goalkeeper Maria de los Reyes was best in water with her 13 saves. Temprano and Almeda scored two each. For Greece, Piovan netted three goals.

Turning Point
Spain’s three goals in the final quarter to enforce the shootout.

Stats Don’t Lie
Spain converted four from 12 on extra and Greece one from four. Greece scored three from five on penalty to Spain’s zero attempts. Greece had three more shots and one more steal than Greece.

Bottom Line
Either side could have won. It should not prove too much of a hindrance for Greece, although a little harder than expected after being three ahead in the third period.

Match 12, Group A, NETHERLANDS 8 ITALY 11 (1-1, 3-4, 1-2, 3-4)

Italy won the second half 6-4 to gain a three-goal margin over Netherlands in a tense encounter that opened up in the final eight minutes.

Pien Gorter started proceedings on counter for Netherlands on the third attack and it was not until 1:53 that Italy responded through Bianca Rosta on extra from the bottom right. Both teams were splendid on defence with both goalkeepers only having to stop three shots in total. Tess van der Meer from the top right and Gorter with a lob from the deep left, took Netherlands out to 3-1 early in the second quarter. Emma Bacelle from deep right and Giulia Bozzo off a cross pass to the left post, which needed VAR clarification, regained the level playing field. Kiara Heerink and Rosta traded goals before Malika Bovo gave Italy the ascendancy at 5-4, 0:35 from the halftime break.

Italy made a break in the third period after van der Meer equalised from the top right. Beatrice Cassara used her strength at centre forward, offset to the right, and Cecilia Grasso made sure of a penalty conversion at 0:21 for 7-5 ahead of the final break. Italy pulled away in the early stages of the fourth quarter after Linde Haksteen had given Netherlands some hope on extra at 7-6 behind. Italy shot out to 10-6 with Gorter and Cassara trading goals for 11-7 at 1:54, too late for Netherlands to come back. The last goal was into an empty cage as Dutch goalkeeper Caitlin van Leeuwin (below) came up twice and even had a shot, although the second visit caught her stranded and Cassara has an easy shot. Van der Meer slipped one in for 11-8 and a final penalty attempt by the Dutch was saved, leaving the three-goal margin.

Match Heroes
Gorter and van der Meer led all scoring with three each for the Dutch while Cassara, Rosta and Grasso netted two each for Italy as eight players made the sheet.

Turning Point
The three goals early in the fourth quarter that stole the match from Netherlands.

Stats Don’t Lie
Italy scored its only extra-man attack and defended five from eight. Italy gained one penalty goal and the Dutch missed one. Netherlands gained five steals to one and shot 33 times to 24 but could not win the match.

Bottom Line
Italy was more controlled and made the most of fewer opportunities. From 3-1 up, Netherlands could not hold back the advancing Italians.

Match 11, Group D, MEXICO 7 ISRAEL 16 (0-4, 3-3, 3-5, 1-4)

Israel backed up its first-day victory over Turkiye with a solid effort against Mexico with the 5-0 lead early in the second quarter setting the pace of the match.

It took two minutes to get the ball rolling, on penalty to Miya Tirosh. Yuval Raz slotted a pair and Mika Koren scored from deep left on extra for 4-0 by the first break. Koren started the second period and then goals were traded to 7-3 at halftime. Mercedes Feliciano scored twice on extra for Mexico.

The third quarter was busy with eight goals and Tirosh scored her third with her second penalty strike, followed by an extra-player goal to Teva Dorfman. Mia Brondo converted extra twice and scored from close in for three goals as Dorfman converted a penalty and Carmel Rahum netted from two metres and then off the left-post position on extra to bring up the 12-6 scoreline at the final break.

Raz and Victoria Feliciano, at centre forward, traded goals and then Rahum turned at two metres for the easiest of centre-forward goals, followed by Tirosh with a lob from deep left for 15-7 at 1:47 for her fourth and seventh in Chengdu. Rahum also collected her fourth goal, swimming up and receiving a pass on the right to score easily.

Match Heroes
Tirosh and Rahum scored four each for Israel (seven each in total) with Tirosh gaining the player-of-the-match award. Brondo scored three for Mexico and Mercedes Feliciano two. Alma Luna made nine saves in goal.

Match Heroes
Tirosh and Rahum scored four each for Israel with Tirosh gaining the player-of-the-match award. Brondo scored three for Mexico and Feliciano two. Alma Luna made nine saves in goal.

Turning Point
The 5-0 lead in the second quarter was all that mattered.

Stats Don’t Lie
Mexico went five from eight on extra and Israel three from three. Israel sent in three from four on penalty and made a whopping 15 steals to five.

Bottom Line
Israel deserved a second victory and Mexico should be happy with periods of that encounter.

Match 10, Group C, CANADA 18 SOUTH AFRICA 7 (5-1, 7-3, 1-1, 5-2)

Canada brought up win number two while South Africa had a second loss.

Canada put its stamp on the match quickly with the first-attack goal to Abigail Folk, who collected five goals on day one against Thailand. Penny Cowan countered with a lob finishing the 2-0 score. Confusion reigned as Simphiwe Zulu was excluded on a red card, with substitution, and a penalty awarded against South Africa, which is normally kept for a violence foul and no substitution. Cianne Benjamin converted the penalty and scored on extra for 4-0. Sprinter Tori Voke converted an extra opportunity from the top left for 4-1 and Benjamin turned at centre forward to bring up the 5-1 margin just before the first break.

Voke won the second swim-up and Inge Southey scored off a rebound from the right side of the pool. Sadly, for her, she was ejected on her second major soon after and interfered with the player in the corner, gaining a penalty and exclusion from the match on a third major. Sydney Krushen converted and Brooklyn Plomp followed up on counter, having her initial shot rejected and slamming in the rebound for 7-2. Alexa de Villiers drove into centre and scored for 7-3. Canada then blazed four goals, one on extra and two with deft lobs before South Africa went to a timeout. No goal came until a minute later when Hannah Banks took a pass at centre on extra for 11-4. Benjamin scored her fourth goal and seventh for the tournament, accepting a long cross pass to the left-post position for 12-4 heading into halftime.

South Africa’s defensive structure came good in the third period as both teams scored just the one goal with Jaya Basu taking in a cross pass on extra for 11-4 and Amy Smith converting a penalty foul three minutes later for South Africa. There was some confusion several minutes into the final quarter when Canada called a timeout on extra and it went unheard. VAR decided the call was legal and had occurred and Canada went into the extra play, scoring through Folk. Plomp scored from a penalty and on counter either side of a Mikayla Ulmer-Lutudromu counter for 17-5. Smith rifled one in from the top for South Africa and Ulmer-Lutudromu struck from the penalty line. Banks slipped into the bottom right to score for 18-7, her second. Both teams went to a timeout with no rewards.

Match Heroes
Benjamin (above), with her four goals, gained the player of the match and Plomp, also scored four goals. Banks and Smith had a pair each for South Africa.  

Turning Point
The 4-0 start and shifting from 7-3 to 11-3 were the major breaks for Canada.

Stats Don’t Lie
Canada converted four from six on extra plays and defended five from seven. It sent in all four penalty shots to South Africa’s one. South Africa had the edge on steals at 10-9

Bottom Line
Canada has a balanced team of shooters and excellent attacking play. South Africa makes it two losses, but more goals.

Match 9, Group C, CROATIA 18 THAILAND 7 (3-3, 4-3, 5-0, 6-1)

Croatia gained its second victory thanks to a 5-0 third quarter that had Thailand on the back foot for the remainder of the match. Thailand was playing well in the first two quarters, but tired and allowed Croatia to penetrate from outside far too often.

The first quarter was even with Croatia opening the scoring and Thailand taking 2-1 and 3-2 advantages before Nika Alamat took a six-metre foul and scored with just three seconds left on the clock. There were six different scorers and Croatian captain Jelena Butic, who scored three on the first day, slotted a penalty goal. Croatia gained the edge in the second quarter coming from 4-3 down to 5-4 ahead and then goals were traded until Lara Srhoj blasted one in from the top at 1:14 for 7-6. Thanidakarn Kwontongtanaree scored her second to start the period and Yanisa Turon gained her second at 5-5 and Nattamon Khamma her second of the tournament at 6-6. Neli Jankovic scored the fourth and sixth goals for Croatia.

After tied at all the numbers to six, Croatia gained a two-goal advantage, starting the third period on extra with Ria Glas converting from deep left. It started a trend as Alka Lulic shot from wide left, bouncing in off the right post and Srhoj on counter-attack, lifting the score to 10-6 at 4:04. It was not until 0:40 that another goal came with Jankovic converting a penalty and 34 seconds later she fired in from the top left for 12-6.

Glas, for her seventh in total, and Srhoj scored on extra and lob for 14-6 and a Thai timeout came to nothing, losing the ball, allowing Jankovic to score her fifth of the match.  Alamat and Butic both lobbed from deep left in consecutive goals and Jankovic went on counter for her 10^th goal in two matches to bring up 18-6 at 0:46. Thailand responded with a corner throw to a charging Panita Pukkaman who scored at 0:15 for 18-7.

Match Heroes
Jankovic was dangerous with her six goals  from seven attempts while Srhoj claimed three and goalkeeper Lana Korac, a first-day scorer, made 14 saves. Thailand goalkeeper Nareenun Kittipolpuwarag was awarded best in pool for her 10 saves against such a rampaging team.

Turning Point
The third period.

Stats Don’t Lie
Croatia only scored two from five on extra but stopped five from seven; converted both penalty goals while Thailand missed one;  made 13 steals to five and took 41 shots to 29.

Bottom Line
Croatia now has two victories and getting better giving it an excellent chance to break through to the top eight. Thailand is gaining from the experience.

Progress Points         

Group A: ESP 5, GRE 4, ITA 3, NED 0
Group B: USA 5, HUN 4, AUS 3, NZL 0
Group C: CRO 6, CAN 6, THA 0, RSA 0
Group D: CHN 6, ISR 6, TUR 0, MEX 0

Day 4 Schedule

Match 17. 09:00. Group C, South Africa v Thailand
Match 18. 10:30. Group C, Canada v Croatia
Match 19. 12:00. Group D, Mexico v Turkiye
Match 20. 13:30. Group A, Italy v Greece
Match 21. 16:00. Group A, Netherlands v Spain
Match 22. 17:30. Group B, Australia v Hungary
Match 23. 19:00. Group D, Israel v China
Match 24. 20:30. Group B, United States of America v New Zealand