Hockey World Cup, 2018 | Australia vs England| AUS vs ENG Who Will Win
As the caravan of the Hockey World Cup rolls on defending champions Australia will square off against perennial arch-rivals England at Bhubhaneshwar.
The defending champions, who are vying for a hattrick of titles after having won the 2010 and 2014 editions were made to toil hard in their first game against Ireland.
The World No.1, who came into the tournament as favourites were far from impressive against the Irish.
The Kookaburras were particularly abysmal in penalty corners, converting just one of the five against an Irish side, who were impressive in both defence and attack.
Blake Govers (11th minute) scored the first goal for the Aussies after he converted a penalty corner with a flick that found the back of Irish nets. But, their lead lasted just two minutes, as Ireland struck back to score an equalizer after Shane O’Donoghue pounced on to a pass from Eugene Magnee at the end of the first quarter.
But, Australia went on the offensive at the end of the second quarter- securing two penalty corners but failed to convert either of them as the game approached the halfway mark. Finally, it was Tim Brand, who helped Australia restore their lead [2-1], and notch up a hard-fought win to start their 2018 campaign.
They’ll now face perennial rivals England, who were held to a stunning draw [2-2] by debutants China.
England started the game as overwhelming favourites but the Chinese stunned their opponents early in the game when Xiaoping Gao [5th minute] scored a brilliant goal after dribbling past three defenders.
Shocked by the goal, the English went on the offensive to equalise a minute from the first quarter when Mark Gleghorne successfully converted a penalty corner.
A defensive error by Yang Ao allowed England to take a lead in the 48th minute but the Chinese held the fort to draw an equalizer in the closing moments of the game to shock the English, making their road ahead with the likes of Australia next, bumpy.
Match Details
Venue:- Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar
Match Timing:- Tuesday, December 04, 2018, 05:00 PM IST
Australia:– Stay Connected
England:– Stay Connected
Australia
Matthew Swann, Corey Weyer, Jake Whetton, Dylan Wotherspoon, Aran Zalewski, Timothy Brand, Andrew Charter, Daniel Beale, Trent Mitton, Eddie Ockenden, Flynn Ogilvie, Tom Craig, Matthew Dawson, Blake Govers, Jake Harvie, Jeremy Hayward, Tim Howard, Tyler Lovell
England
James Gall, Phil Roper, David Condon, Will Calnan, Sam Ward, Adam Dixon, Liam Sanford, Mark Gleghorne, George Pinner, Harry Gibson, Harry Martin, David Ames, Ian Sloan, Barry Middleton, Zach Wallace, Jack Waller, Michael Hoare, Luke Taylor
Australia
Jeremy Hayward, Jake Whetton, Flynn Ogilvie, Blake Govers, Trent Mitton, Andrew Charter, Eddie Ockenden, Aran Zalewski, Daniel Beale, Dylan Wotherspoon
England
Harry Martin, Michael Hoare, David Condon, George Pinner, Sam Ward, Barry Middleton, Mark Gleghorne, Adam Dixon, Ian Sloan
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Australia Fantasy Picks
Blake Govers and Tim Brand helped Australia escape with a tense 2-1 win over Ireland in the first game while Charter was imperious in denying Ireland their penalty corner. Jake Whetton and Trent Mitton will also hold the key for the Kookaburras.
England Fantasy Picks
Mark Gleghorne and Liam Ansell were the spearheads in England escaping a 2-2 draw against minnows England. Barry Middleton will be one to watch out for.