Malaysia fall to England as Gleghorne & Jackson seal win
5th June 2014MALAYSIA 0 (0)
ENGLAND 2 (1)
Mark Gleghorne 4 (FG)
Ashley Jackson 67 (PC)
England secured another three points today from their third Pool A match against Malaysia at the Rabobank World Cup. A goal either side of half-time from the East Grinstead duo of Mark Gleghorne and Ashley Jackson sealed the 2-0 victory and kept England on track for a semi-final spot.
The result leaves England top of Pool A having played the extra game; rivals Australia and Belgium face each other later on today.
England were also boosted by the return of Iain Lewers, making his World Cup debut, as he continues to recover from a leg injury; the defender managed around 25 minutes on the pitch and is a key player to have back in Bobby Crutchley’s side.
Mark Gleghorne gave England a dream start to the game after just four minutes with a perfectly placed reverse stick shot past Kumar Subramiam in Malaysia’s goal; the attacking midfield duo of Barry Middleton and Ashley Jackson provided the perfect build up play. England continued to attack throughout the half with chances for Tom Carson, Nick Catlin and a handful of others, but it remained 0-1 at the break.
The second half continued in much the same fashion to the first, but Malaysia’s defence and Subramiam kept everything out until the 67th minute when Jackson unleashed a sensational drag-flick to secure the 2-0 victory and three points. Jackson’s flick was even more impressive as the number seven continues to recover from a shoulder strain he’s been suffering with throughout the World Cup.
Quotes – England Head Coach Bobby Crutchley
On the performance today: “I was really pleased with the performance. I thought we were strong and defended as well as we have done so far. We controlled the game for large periods and although they had a lot of possession we created the better chances. It was typical of us keeping it a bit closer than I would have liked. If we could have taken a few more of the chances we created it would have been a bit more comfortable but generally it was a good performance and another step up.”
On the score line: “It would have been better to score a few more, but overall we played some good hockey and it was good to get the three points. We conceded a corner with four minutes to go and we were thinking if that had gone in we’d have paid for the chances we wasted. We defended the corner well and then obviously scored a good one of our own at the other end which made the last four minutes better than the rest, for me, anyway!”
Quotes – England Captain Barry Middleton
Looking ahead to playing Australia and Belgium: “We’ve played them [Australia and Belgium] enough over the past 18 months to know what is going to come at us, and they probably know what to expect from us as well. It’ll come down to whether we can play our game the way we want to and put our chances away. It’ll be different to today’s game with the way they play; I’d imagine we won’t have quite so much of the ball. We’ve proved against them in the last twelve months we can hurt them if we play well and we’ll be looking to do that in our next two games.”
On having Iain Lewers back on the pitch: “It’s big for all of us having Iain [Lewers] back. Just having him on the pitch gave us a lift. We’re now playing with 18 not 17 which helps give people a rest and makes the rotations that bit easier. Everyone knows how good he is and he showed it again today. Even though he hasn’t played for over a week he’s come straight back in and done what he does. Hopefully he’ll pick up more minutes now and be a big player for us coming through the rest of the tournament.”
England men’s next game is against Australia on Saturday at 1500 (BST). England’s women play tomorrow in their third Pool B game against South Africa at 1330 (BST). All matches will be shown live on Sky Sports with expert analysis from a host of international stars including Kwan Browne, Richard Mantell, Helen Richardson-Walsh and Chloe Rogers.