The Kookaburras have stunned hosts Belgium in the most dramatic of circumstances to win the World Hockey League Semi-Final tournament, with defender Chris Ciriello firing home the game’s only goal with its final play.
The short-corner specialist flicked low and hard with two seconds remaining in regular time to secure the remarkable 1-0 win in the tournament final after a tense and dogged clash, and stun the Antwerp crowd on Sunday.
Ciriello’s last-gasp winner ended nearly 60 minutes of stalemate and robbed Belgium of a chance of taking the game to a shoot-out.
“We didn’t plan to bring it down to the wire like that but it’s always good to win,” coach Graham Reid said.
“I felt that our second half performance was pretty tops – the pressure that we had on them. Our defence was really good.
“We created a lot more of the opportunities but unfortunately didn’t put the ball in the net.”
Blake Govers, the younger brother of star Kieran and who turns 19 on Monday, finished as the tournament’s top scorer, with seven, and was named best junior player after only making his senior international debut in May.
“He’s had a good start to his career,” Reid said.
He’s the sort of guy who listens, he’s very coachable. And, of course, he’ll come away from this tournament with lots of good memories and lots to learn.”
The Kookaburras will have the chance to meet Belgium again in the World League Finals tournament at the end of the year in India, which will also feature Germany, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Argentina, India and Canada.
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