New Delhi [India], September 8 : The Asian Champions Trophy got off to a rollicking start here at the picturesque Moqi Hockey Training Base on Sunday, with Japan and Korea engaging in a goal-fest with 10 goals being scored in a thrilling encounter.
The passionate hockey fans of the region who turned up in large numbers were enthralled with the match going down to the wire as Korea held Japan to a 5-5 draw.
For Korea, goals were scored by Jihun Yang (3', 38', 53'), Junghoo Kim (31') and Hyeonhong Kim (58') while Naru Kimura (7'), Kazumasa Matsumoto (18'), Yuki Chiba (25'), Yusuke Kawamura (36') and Kosei Kawabe (54') scored for Japan.
In the opening quarter, Korea set the pace with a fierce attack that resulted in a penalty stroke within the first three minutes of the game.
Jihun Yang was on-target, sending the ball past Japanese goalie Yosei Oba, fetching an early 1-0 lead in only the 3rd minute of the match. Japan was quick to respond with a 7th minute field goal through Naru Kimura. Ahead of their opening match, the Japanese captain, Fujishima Raika had emphasised on his team's structured defence and counterattacks, and that's exactly what his team displayed against Korea.
They rallied on short passes to break into the striking circle and were quick to extend the lead when Kazumasa Matsumoto scored in the 18th minute. The second quarter belonged to the Japanese as they made little errors as they blitzed their way to a fine 3-1 lead when Yuki Chiba struck a splendid field goal in the 25th minute, putting the Korean defence under serious pressure.
After the ten-minute half-time break, Korea bounced back with a well-converted field goal by Junghoo Kim in the 31st minute, thus helping his team to narrow down the goal deficit to 2-3. The goal-fest continued in the third quarter with Japan's Yusuke Kawamura sending one past Korea's Jaehan Kim in the 36th minute, taking their lead to a strong 4-2 but a resilient Korea reduced Japan's lead to 4-3 in the 38th minute with Jihun Yang's brilliantly-executed PC. While Korea ended up earning a couple of penalty corners (PCs), the Japanese defence held strong in this quarter.
With the scoreboard reading 4-3 as the game went into the final quarter, the two teams did well to hold their nerves and produce entertaining hockey. Tactical attack by Korea helped them early a crucial PC in the 53rd minute, and Jihun Yang was on-target for the third time, scoring the much-needed equaliser.
Unfortunately, their defence allowed a goal in the very next minute as Kosei Kawabe scored through a quick-fire counterattack. With just about three minutes left for the final hooter, Korea earned back-to-back PCs. Hyeonhong Kim came up with perfect execution to score Korea's fifth goal and thus successfully held Japan to a draw and split the winning points.
Man of the Match, Chiba Yuki of Japan, expressed happiness on winning the award.
He said, "It was a fantastic match today and it was our efforts in counter attack that resulted in so many goals. Although we did not win, we will bounce back tomorrow against India. I am also very happy about winning the Hero of the Match title."
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