Korea 4 defeated England 2
Goals: ENG ÔÇô Crista CULLEN FG 9m, Kate WALSH PC 70m
KOR ÔÇô Hye Jin SEO FG 10m, Jung Hee KIM FG 12m, Eun Sil KIM PC 30m, Seul Ki CHEON PC 67m
Korea continued their fine form at this tournament with another impressive display in their defeat of England.
With both teams gaining victories in their Saturday matches, much was expected of this game and it did not disappoint. England defender Crista CULLEN surged forward to join the attack in the ninth minute, before picking up a pass and burying her shot into the bottom corner to give her side a 1:0 lead. It was, however, short-lived. Just a minute later Korea had equalised, with Hye Jin SEO scoring from open play. Korea took the lead with their second goal in three minutes when Jung Hee KIM put another field goal past England keeper Katy ROBERTS. England looked as though the warm temperature was affecting them, but managed to keep Korea at bay until a 30th minute mistake from Kate WALSH led to a penalty corner, which was scored by Eun Sil KIM.
The second half saw England survive more excellent attacking work from Korea, but a fourth goal always looked likely and came from Seul Ki CHEON's drag flick. England scored a consolation goal, thanks to a penalty corner from WALSH, but Korea were deserving winners of the contest and sit comfortably at the top of the table.
USA 2 defeated China 1
Goals: USA ÔÇô Rachel DAWSON PC 33m, Michelle KASOLD FG 53m
CHN: Song QING LING FG 65m
USA produced the shock of the day with an excellent 2:1 victory over an out-of-sorts China in the second match of the day.
China began the match in typical style, with high work rate and quick passing, but came up against a USA team much improved from Saturday's poor showing. China were frustrated by USA's outstanding defensive play, with Rachel DAWSON in particular standing out. It was DAWSON who fired the USA into a surprise lead just two minutes before half time with a thunderbolt of a penalty corner which gave the Chinese players on the line no chance.
China started the second half with real intent, and looked likely to get an equaliser, but USA keeper Amy TRAN was in sparkling form, blocking out everything that came her way. In the 53rd minute USA moved into a two-goal lead, when Michelle KASOLD raced onto a through-ball and scored clinically. With just five minutes left to play, the USA defensive unit was finally cracked, with Song QING LING finishing of a superb multiple pass move to set up a thrilling last five minutes. However, the USA defence was not to be beaten again, and the team held on for victory.
New Zealand 1 defeated Azerbaijan 0
Goal: Caryn PAEWAI PC 27m
A solitary goal from Caryn PAEWAI was enough to defeat Azerbaijan in the last game of the second day here in Baku.
Another large crowd filled the stadium, hoping that they would watch their side secure their first win of the tournament. The opening stages of the game were cagey, with neither team wanting to give the opposition the chance to take the lead. The best chances came from penalty corners, with Azerbaijan going close on at least two occasions. However, it was New Zealand who scored what turned out to be the only goal of the game, thanks to a penalty corner which did not go as planned, but had the desired result. Lizzy IGASAN found herself with the ball and played an superb pass for Caryn PAEWAI to deflect into the net in the 27th minute. The goal completely changed the nature of the match, with Azerbaijan coming forward in search of an equaliser. There were many chances for the home team to put the ball in the back of the net, with arguably their best falling to Zeynab NURIYEVA directly in front of goal, but she hit Beth JURGELIET's pads rather than finding the corner. Azerbaijan continued to chase hard in search of that elusive goal immediately after the break, and created numerous opportunities that they could not convert. Zarifahon ZEYNALOVA's hopeful reverse stick flick was the closest to finding the target, but flew over the bar and not under it, much to the disappointment of the crowd. New Zealand secured the victory, moving themselves level on points with England, USA and China.
Tomorrow is a tournament rest day, with matches resuming on Tuesday 12 June. For more detailed information about the matches above, please visit the 'Official Match Sheets' and 'Commentary Archive' sections on the tournament website.
http://www.ataholdingchampionschallenge2007.sportcentric.com/
