A determined England outsmarted Ireland 4-2 in its final Pool B encounter to secure a place in the crossovers of the Hockey World Cup at the Kalinga Stadium here on Friday.
The seventh-ranked England collected a total of four points to claim the second spot behind pool-topper Australia, which directly reached the quarterfinals.
The English victory also ensured China’s entry into the knockout stage at the expense of Ireland. China had two points, while Ireland had just one.
England will meet New Zealand and China will take on France in the crossover matches on Monday.
The Englishmen, who controlled the pace and put constant pressure on Ireland, went 1-0 up in the 15 minute. Zachary Wallace took it on the right and passed it on from the back line to David Condon to complete the formalities.
Ireland showed a lot of patience to defend its post sturdily and mark the Englishmen diligently.
The third quarter produced a goal-show, with both sides scoring four goals within three minutes.
Ireland’s organised attack, consisting of short passes, brought the equaliser when Chris Cargo found the target.
Liam Ansell’s blazing hit restored England’s lead, while Shane O’Donoghue’s penalty corner conversion made it 2-2.
Liam Sanford’s long hit was deflected in by James Gall in the third quarter and Mark Gleghorne’s 60 minute strike completed the tally.
Earlier, defending champion Australia rode on Blake Govers’ triple strike and Tim Brand’s brace to rout China 11-0 and finish its pool engagements with an all-win record. The top-ranked team, which posted the biggest win of the event so far, was one goal short of its World Cup record of 12-0 victory over South Africa in Delhi eight years ago.
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