South Africa’s men hockey team conceded four goals in a row for a second time in their FIH Nations Cup campaign in Kuala Lumpur, but this time were unable to complete the comeback and lost 4-3 to France. On Sunday they had staged a rousing fightback to draw 4-4 with Wales.
South Africa came into the clash full of belief after taking a point off Wales after being 4-0 down and celebrated a special milestone for Matt de Sousa, who earned his 50th cap. But the mood was quickly checked when French captain Victor Charlet opened the scoring in the first minute with a drag flick from a penalty corner.
South Africa responded with Jaydon Brooker netting his maiden senior international goal in the same venue where he starred at the Junior World Cup. Brooker showed composure to drive the ball low into the bottom-left corner to level matters at 1-1 – a scoreline that held until half-time.
France surged ahead in the third quarter with a Charlet double, and when Etienne Esmenjaud added a fourth, it looked like the result was sealed.
But South Africa weren’t done yet.
From the restart Marvin Simons marked his first senior international goal with a delicate deflection off a De Sousa pass. The momentum swung further when Brooker fired home his second to cut the deficit to one with 90 seconds remaining.
For South Africa, the equation is now simple: Wednesday’s clash against Korea is a virtual quarter-final. Only a win will keep their title hopes alive and avoid the 5th–8th place playoffs.
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