Surprise Goal Sparks Kookaburras
The Sunday Age
Sunday July 28, 2002
MANCHESTER
IT was hard to know who celebrated louder - giant New Zealander Hayden Shaw or his compatriot perched in the press box high above the Belle Vue pitch.
With a stick custom-made in Pakistan for the task, the 194-centimetre full-back crunched the first goal of the men's hockey tournament to give New Zealand a shock 1-0 lead against Australia last night.
As the ball blazed past Australian goalkeeper Mark Hickman, the excitable scribe leapt from his seat with a bloodcurdling ``Yesssss", while Shaw ran towards the sideline, stick aloft, after a booming penalty corner in the 18th minute of a match the Kiwis were not expected to win.
The Bledisloe Cup it was not, but any trans-Tasman encounter, even one against teams ranked two and nine in the world, holds a special place for both nations.
The pity for Shaw - who has played first-class cricket in New Zealand for Canterbury - and his teammates is that a minute later the Australians hit back via NSW striker Matthew Smith, who found himself unmarked at the top of the circle and cracked the ball home. From then on, the Kookaburras ran away with it, winning 6-1 in a fast-flowing opener to the men's tournament.
The young Australians have enormous strike power, and it was scrawny South Australian Craig Victory who led the way last night, proving too slippery for the Kiwis' defence.
He combined with Sydney duo Smith and Michael McCann in a series of raids.
Australia's second goal, in the 32nd minute, came after Smith stormed the circle from the right wing and cracked the ball across goal, where Victory knocked it high into the net.
The 22-year-old - ``Jiggy" to his teammates - celebrated by kissing the camera in the back of the net.
Australia led 2-1 at the break but suffered a blow a minute after the resumption when captain Paul Gaudoin was forced off after a clash in the circle. Gaudoin, who was troubled by a neck strain in the days leading up to the match, did not return.
The Kookaburra's third goal came via a penalty corner after a New Zealand defender was disciplined for an outburst in the circle.
While Shaw had taken the high road into the net, Australia's flick specialist, Troy Elder, took the low one, imparting such velocity on the ball that the keeper had no chance of stopping it.
Elder made it a double 10 minutes later when he finished off a smart team movement.
Victory grabbed his second goal in a counter attack after Smith passed to Ben Taylor, whose shot across goal allowed him to grab a smart deflection.
Australia's final goal came from a penalty stroke to Brent Livermore, the man who missed the vital stroke at the Olympics. He smiled wryly when he put the ball away.
The Kookaburras, who are ranked second in the world, came to Manchester in top form, having thumped world champion Germany en route.
© 2002 The Sunday Age