Canada and Australia continued their winning runs by winning crossover matches against New Zealand and Israel respectively on a day when the leading nations had a rest day.
Overview
In the crossovers, Canada beat New Zealand 10-9 and Australia dumped Israel 15-6 to set them up with so-called “easier” matches in the crossovers that determine who will advance to the medal quarterfinals.
The bottom eight teams contested ranking matches that will ultimately gained he final classification 13-20.
In Group G, Turkiye thrashed Malta 22-6 and Brazil defeated South Africa 17-11.
In Group H, Germany hammered Colombia 21-6 and Serbia crushed Zimbabwe 21-1.
Day-five action sees the teams ranked 13-20 continue their competition while the bottom two teams from Group A and Group B — Netherlands, Italy, China and Croatia enter the mix, playing the four lower-group teams —New Zealand, Canada, Israel and Australia. Winners of these matches will play the top two teams from Groups A and B in the quarterfinals on Friday.
Match Reports
Match 25. Group G, TURKIYE 22 MALTA 6 (8-0, 5-2, 5-3, 4-1)
Turkiye gained its first victory of the final group stage and looks on target for 13th position should the run continue. Turkiye made sure of victory with a bewildering start that had Malta on the defensive all the time. Four Turks scored with two on penalty before Naz Ozdemir became the first double scorer, when she lobbed on counter. Two more players scored for the first time, on penalty and counter. The final shot came from Eda Moroglu, who had the fourth goal on penalty in the bag, drilling from a six-metre shot on the buzzer. Malta came into the picture in the second quarter when Kaylen Cutajar and Kyra Portelli had swaps with Dora Polat for 13-2 at the long break. A triple involving Keremoglu and Ozdemir took Turkiye to 16-2 before Ella Miceli and Marierose Tully added to Malta’s score. Moroglu fired in consecutive goals and Miia Clarke responded on extra for Malta and 18-5 at the final break. Mina Bozkurt lifted her tally to 10 with a pair for Turkiye in the dying minutes before Chloe Amato scored a consolation goal at 1:25 and 22-6.
Match Heroes
Moroglu with five goals, captain Ozdemir with four and triples to Bozkurt and Keremoglu who now has 14.
Turning Point
That first quarter set the tone for the match.
Stats Don’t Lie
Turkiye managed two from four on extra and Malta three from five. On penalties, Turkiye struck paydirt with six goals. Turkiye made the steals 10 to eight and the shots 36-22.
Match 26. Group G, SOUTH AFRICA 11 BRAZIL 17 (2-5, 4-3, 3-3, 2-6)
Brazil held off South Africa in the first their “second-half” proceedings and the journey to 13th position. Brazilian captain Maiah Nascimento set the scene when she converted a cross pass into a goal from deep left for her 11th goal of the week. Ane du Plessis scored from the top for South Africa and later in the match her twin, Esme du Plessis would also score (from the top for 7-6 down). Brazil gained two two-goal moments with Lyvia Vaz scoring twice on extra from top right. Janey Wood started the second quarter with a short drive to the right post to accept a cross pass when heavily guarded, to score. She scored the fifth goal on counter after June Stander’s penalty strike. Goals were traded to 8-7 and Nicolly dos Santos grabbed a pair for Brazil and 10-7. Isabella Duffy scored either side of a Nascimento extra-player score for 11-9 at the last break with her team in with a chance. Maya Moura netted twice on extra to start the fourth period with dos Santos bringing up her third. Stander had her penalty attempt stopped at 3:14 with Nascimento responding. She was in a trade with Duffy, from the penalty line, and scored a penalty goal herself as Brazil finished at 17-11.
Match Heroes
Nascimento was the best in water with five goals for Brazil and dos Santos with a hat-trick. The goalkeepers combined for seven saves. South Africa’s Duffy scored four.
Turning Point
The first quarter gave Brazil the edge to fend off South Africa in the middle stages. Brazil had the extra energy in the final quarter.
Stats Don’t Lie
Brazil scored an incredible 10 from 13 on extra and stopped three of four. The match was won there. South Africa made four from five on penalty and Brazil scored twice. Brazil took the steals at 10-six and the shooting at 63-34.4 per cent.
Match 27. Group H, COLOMBIA 6 GERMANY 21 (2-5, 4-3, 3-3, 2-6)
Germany gained the win as expected and started strongly at 5-1 and pushing through to 10-2 early in the third period. Nele Politze, Emma Fehmel and Bianca Mitterbauer had a pair each at this stage. Madelyne Ciro, who scored the 5-2 goal for Colombia, netted twice in the third period for 12-4. Germany surged to 16-4 by early in the fourth period as Leni Harms scored either side of the last break. Ainhoa Velez scored her second for Colombia before the margin ballooned to 15 (20-5) thanks to Emma Dietze’s second, Mitterbauer’s fourth and Fehmel’s third. Mitterbauer closed all scoring from top right with her left arm skimming the ball into the bottom left with one second left on the clock.
Match Heroes
Mitterbauer fired in five goals for Germany and Fehmel three as 10 players made the sheet. The goalkeepers combined for seven saves. Ciro was Colombia’s best with a hat-trick.
Turning Point
The 5-1 start proved a bridge too far for Colombia.
Stats Don’t Lie
Germany converted three from four on extra and stopped four of seven. Colombia missed one of two on penalty and Germany two of four. The steals were locked at seven and Germany’s overall shooting was superior at 61.8-21.4 per cent.
Match 28. Group H, ZIMBABWE 1 SERBIA 21 (0-7, 0-4, 1-5, 0-5)
Serbia was far too strong for Zimbabwe and let down its defences just the once when the break was coming. Nika Ratkovic started twice for Serbia and Jana Pejic rammed home the last three in the period for 7-0 at the first break. It was tighter in the second period as Zimbabwe put up stout resistance, Ratkovic and Masa Cuk adding to their scores. Ratkovic and Masa Cuk began the second half with Pejic and Jana Jankovic scoring twice. The final say in the period was from Zimbabwe’s Loyiso Mahobele who lobbed from top left with 10 seconds left on the clock. Ratkovic, Pejic and Masa Cuk brought the score to 19-1 as Serbia eased home 21-1.
Match Heroes
Pejic and Ratkovic drilled five goals each for Serbia and Cuk four.
Turning Point
The writing was on the wall from the start.
Stats Don’t Lie
Serbia nailed all five extra-man chances and blocked both Zimbabwe’s. The steals favoured Serbia 16 to five and the shots 67.7 to 10 per cent.
Match 29. Crossover, CANADA 10 NEW ZEALAND 9 (2-2, 1-0, 3-5, 4-2)
New Zealand blew a two-goal advantage in the third period and a one-goal lead at the last break to lose to Canada 10-9. The final score was close but Canada turned 8-8 into 10-8 in the blink of an eye in the last two minutes and the Kiwis scored with nine seconds left on the clock. It was exasperating ats the scored was locked seven times; New Zealand seemingly had the edge but the skills of McKenna Pineda-McLean and the support among her team was incredible. The belief to win stayed until the final moments. There was some exceptional individual displays with Ava Kyfiuk, a twin of Adelyn Kyfiuk (the third set of sisters in three matches), scoring a brilliant centre-forward goal for 2-2. Belle Imlah did the same for the Kiwis, turning strongly with head under water to score for 5-4 ahead. Then equally fantastic was Clara Milleker Shyiak’s muscling in from the bottom left to score the 10-8 goal at 1:00. There were two counters each; there were brilliant outside shots, but neither team panicked despite the closeness of the match. Pineda-McLean started all scoring on extra, put away two penalty goals, scored from top right and then on counter for the go-ahead 9-8 goal at 1:52. India-Rose Scholes and Isabella Lambie came into the match with nine goals each for the Kiwis, Scholes leaving with four goals and Lambie two after a missed penalty attempt in the one-goal second quarter. Scholes countered twice and scored twice on extra. It was a thrilling match and one of the best of the tournament.
Match Heroes
Pineda-McLean blasted five goals for Canada and Scholes four goals for New Zealand.
Turning Point
There were many. The match was tied at one, two, three, four, six, seven and eight. Canada had the lead at one, three, eight and nine. New Zealand led at two, four, five and seven. The nine and 10 goals were critical to Canada’s victory.
Stats Don’t Lie
Canada converted three from six on extra and New Zealand two from two. Canada scored two penalty goals and New Zealand missed one of three. The steals favoured Canada 11-10 and the shooting 40-37.5 per cent.
Match 30. Crossover, ISRAEL 6 AUSTRALIA 15 (0-3, 2-1, 3-8, 1-3)
Australia is shaping as a team worth watching later in the tournament and the big win over Israel showed that with its all-round shooting prowess, counter-attacking ability and defensive skills. The Aussies started with the first three goals — two on counter — as Israel was kept scoreless in the quarter. Shani Yakabovic scored her first goal of the tournament with a 12m lob and Teva Dorfman shot from deep left for 3-2 midway through the second quarter. Claudia Booth lobbed from deep left at 3:22, the last goal of the half, for 4-2. Dorfman was in a trade at the start of the third period and Bless Daly nabbed her second with an excellent turn at centre forward. Her opening goal was similar, stealing the ball off the point attacker, turning the player and smashing the ball in the net. Booth converted extra off the right-post position and the near pass. Goals were traded again with Aussie captain Kiera Mironova. Ali McCarthy and Daly, for her third, both finished counters off a cross pass. Dorfman and Booth swapped goals before Israel assistant coach Orestis Anastasios was red-carded. Emmersen McEwan closed the period at 12-5 from deep right as she looked like passing. McCarthy from the top; Mironova with a deft lob and Sienna Walker, with a centre-forward backhand, lifted the score to 15-5 at 2:44. Israel called a timeout and the subsequent shot pierced the goal thanks to a bouncer from Gili Borenstein.
Israel is coached by Eftychia Karagianni, one of the many Greek exports leading teams around the globe. She knows what winning is about, earning silver at the 2004 Olympic Games and gold at the FINA World League Super Finals in 2005 where she scored 19 goals.
Match Heroes
Booth, captain Mironova and Daly (bringing up 20 in three matches) scored three apiece for the Aussies. Dorfman netted three for Germany.
Turning Point
The first-quarter lead was the springboard for success.
Stats Don’t Lie
Australia scored only one from three of extra and Israel two from five. Israel scored the only penalty; Australia won the steals 16 to eight and the shots at 53.6 to 28.6 per cent.
Progress Points
Group G: Turkiye 3, Brazil 3, South Africa 0, Malta 0.
Group H: Serbia 3, Germany 3, Colombia 0, Zimbabwe 0.
Day 5 Schedule
09:00, Group G, South Africa v Turkiye
10:30, Group G, Brazil v Malta
12:00, Group H, Zimbabwe v Colombia
13:30, Group H, Serbia v Germany
15:00, Crossover, New Zealand v Netherlands
16:30, Crossover, Israel v China
18:00, Crossover, Canada v Italy
19:30, Crossover, Australia v Croatia