China came from behind twice to clinch an incredible 3-2 win over Spain as FIH Hockey Pro League action continued in Sydney on Friday, their first over the Spanish in seven years.
Earlier in the day, the Netherlands men bounced back from their surprise loss to Australia on Thursday with a 2-1 win over Spain to climb to the top of the table.
(Women’s) Spain 2 – 3 China
Spain opened the scoring in the third minute when Patricia Alvarez dived at full pace for her deflection on the right post, but the Chinese slowly gained the ascendancy and Jinzhuang Tan levelled from a penalty corner in the sixth minute. There were no further opportunities in the half and the scores remained locked on 1-1 at the break.
China really got on the front foot in the early stages of the third period and Spanish goalkeeper Clara Perez did sterling work to keep them at bay. She first made an excellent penalty corner save before scrambling to the baseline to shut out recycled ball, and later made a fully stretched foot save from open play. Spain were still aggressive, earning a couple of circle entries and penalty corners before reclaiming the lead with a 45th-minute PC variation from Candela Mejias.
China again showed their willingness to pursue a result by pulling their goalkeeper off early, this time with 13 minutes remaining. Perez made three huge saves before she was finally beaten by two perfectly placed penalty corner slaps. The first was by Ou Zixia in the 57th minute and the second by Tan with just 70 seconds remaining as China wrapped up a remarkable win.
The player of the match was awarded to China’s Liu Yang who said of coach Alyson Annan: “As a Chinese player our inside is a little bit shy, but Alyson taught us and showed us to be confident on the pitch, so it’s a really good way to build our belief and confidence.”
(Men’s) Spain 1 – 2 Netherlands
The Netherlands raced into the lead in the second minute, Pepijn van der Heijden finding the back of the net with a well-executed drag flick. They went on to boss the quarter with numerous opportunities while Spain had a solitary attempt from a penalty corner.
The Red Sticks worked their way into the game in the second quarter, making some good intercepts and fast counterattacks, but the Dutch remained 1-0 up at half time.
The Dutch doubled their lead in the 34th minute from a poor Spanish clearance, intercepting on the 23-yard line and finding Koen Bijen in the circle for a first-time strike. Maurits Visser then denied Spain with an excellent save from open play, but a sublime deflection from Gerard Clapes in the 41st minute closed the gap. Rafael Revilla then made a couple of vital saves while a Spanish player served a five-minute suspension to keep his team in contention with 15 minutes to play.
The Netherlands turned up the heat in a high-paced final quarter as they went in search of a two-goal cushion. Revilla was excellent in Spain’s goal, making two high-quality penalty corner saves and one from open play through the middle of the period. The Spaniards pushed hard in the final two minutes, but they couldn’t find an equaliser and the victory sent the Dutch to the top of the table.
The player of the match was Koen Bijen for the Netherlands who said: “We’re quite a new team here in Australia, we’re missing some big players, but we’re doing well.”
Current Hero Top Scorers:
Women – Freeke Moes (NED), Yibbi Jansen (NED), Jinzhuang Tan (CHN) (4 goals)
Men – Tom Boon (BEL), Sam Ward (ENG) (8 goals)
To see the current standings in the FIH Hockey Pro League, click here.
FIH Hockey Pro League – 7 February 2025
Sydney Olympic Park Hockey Centre (AUS)
Men
Result: Match 16 (M)
Spain 1 – 2 Netherlands
Player of the match: Koen Bijen (NED)
Umpires: Amber Church (NZL), Hyosik You (KOR), Xiaoying Liu (CHN-video)
Women
Result: Match 16 (W)
Spain 2 – 3 China
Player of the match: Liu Yang (CHN)
Umpires: David Tomlinson (NZL), Minami Inamoto (JPN), Hyosik You (KOR-video)