Korea edge New Zealand 1-0 thanks to Darae’s stunning deflection
A sensational strike from Kim Darae gave underdogs Korea a 1-0 triumph over New Zealand’s Black Sticks in an exciting Pool A encounter in the Greenfields Stadium. Kim’s angled deflection in the 30th minute, which rocketed into the net via the bar and the post, was enough to settle the contest as the world number 8 overcame a team that sits three places above them in the FIH World Rankings. The result gave Korea their first points of the tournament, drawing them level on points with the Black Sticks after two matches each.
Despite New Zealand being the match favourites, it was Korea who looked the livelier for the majority of the first half. The Asians forced their opponents from Oceania deep into their own half for pretty much all of the opening ten minutes, and could easily have taken the lead were it not for some smart defending from the Black Sticks.
Korea captain Kim Jongeun and ace forward Park Mihyun both went close, with the former cracking a shot into the pads of Kiwi goalkeeper Sally Rutherford before Park’s goal-bound shot was deflected over the target by a covering New Zealand defender.
It was clear to all the fans in the Greenfields Stadium that the Koreans would need to produce something special if they were going to unlock the Black Sticks defence, and they did exactly that five minutes before the half time break. A ripping cross from the left was brilliantly deflected into the goal by Kim Darae, with the ball cannoning off both the bar and the post to give Korea the advantage at the break.
Korea came close to doubling their advantage with two clear-cut scoring opportunities early in the second half, although they were almost punished for their missed chances when Anita Punt brought goalkeeper Jang Soo Ji into action with a backhand shot destined for the bottom left corner.
Punt also went close with a low penalty corner with 16 minutes remaining, while Korea’s Kim Hyun Ji came within a whisker of sealing the victory when she failed to get a touch on a cross-pass from the left. These proved to be the last genuine opportunities of the game, with Korea running down the clock to take the win. Official Match Report (PDF)