KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s young guns were no match for France’s attacking prowess as they fell to a 3-1 defeat in their second Nations Cup match in Gniezno, Poland today.
France, who came into the tournament with their full squad preparing for this year’s Paris Olympics, made the Speedy Tigers burn their calories through the attacking trio of Viktor Lockwood, Charles Masson and Gaspard Baumgarten.
The attacking trio, who each have more than 100 appearances for France, kept dominating the Malaysian midfield and defence with their explosive runs in the opening three minutes.
Etienne Tynevez showed his dominance a minute later, nearly beating goalkeeper Zaimi Mat Deris in a one-on-one after easily sprinting past the Malaysian defence.
The 25-year-old, who has scored 16 times for Les Bleus in all competitions, came close to opening the scoring, only for his shot to be intercepted by Syed Mohamad Syafiq Syed Cholan.
Under the guidance of Frederic Soyez, who coached the Spain national team at the 2016 Rio Olympics where the team finished fifth, the world number nine France showed a glimpse of what they have in their locker for this year’s Paris Olympics as they won four back-to-back penalty corners in the fifth minute.
Timothée Clément then scored through his side’s fourth penalty corner with a fierce shot that easily beat goalkeeper Zaimi.
Sarjit Singh’s charges showed no room for error upon conceding as they dominated the rest of the first quarter, trying to prevent France from scoring more goals with their defensive performance.
The Speedy Tigers were rewarded for their counter-attacking play in the 28th minute through veteran striker Faizal Saari, who tapped into the goal after receiving a fine pass from his younger brother Fitri Saari in the penalty box.
Tempers flared among the French team upon Malaysia’s equaliser as Tynevez and Baumgarten could be seen shouting at each other and throwing their hockey sticks on the ground after missing two golden opportunities to put their side back in the lead in the dying minutes of the second quarter.
The third quarter saw a different Malaysian side, with the Tigers charging forward and showing a more attacking display in their bid to take the lead.
However, fitness and stamina issues became apparent for the Speedy Tigers, allowing Francois Goyet to score in the 43rd minute to put France 2-1 up.
Nur Rahull Hrsikesa Thaitchana Muruthi, who was making his second appearance for his country, was clearly lacking confidence in his play, which angered Sarjit, who could be seen shouting at the 26-year-old attacker from the touchline.
Les Bleus then shattered Malaysia’s hopes of mounting a comeback in the last few seconds of the final quarter through Tynevez’s penalty stroke, a fierce shot that sent Zaimi flying.
Malaysia’s last victory against France came in the 2015 Hockey World League semi-finals.
Sarjit’s charges currently rank third with one point in Pool B and will take on Canada in their third match on Wednesday. – June 3, 2024
