In one of African hockey’s most fiercely contested rivalries, South Africa and Egypt played out a pulsating 3-3 draw in Ismailia – a result that perfectly reflected the intensity and drama of the occasion at the Africa Cup of Nations.
The defending champions made a strong start and opened the scoring through Calvin Davis, who fired a low, powerful drag flick into the bottom corner from a penalty corner to give South Africa an early lead.
As the game grew in physicality and tempo, South Africa were forced to absorb pressure and navigate several card suspensions that made the task even more demanding. Despite this, the visitors continued to threaten, earning a series of penalty corners that went unconverted before Egypt were awarded a penalty stroke. However, debutant Cullin de Jager produced a superb save to preserve the advantage.
The lead was soon doubled as captain Dayaan Cassiem showcased his trademark flair, finding a sliver of space and unleashing a brilliant reverse-stick strike to make it 2-0.
Egypt, though, hit back immediately through Mostafa Ragab, capitalising on a lapse in defensive focus to halve the deficit before halftime. The hosts carried that momentum into the second half, levelling through a Mohamed Adel penalty corner and then completing the turnaround when Mamdouh struck from another set piece to make it 3-2 heading into the final quarter.
Refusing to yield, South Africa dug deep, and it was once again Dayaan Cassiem who led from the front — blasting home another superb reverse-stick effort to restore parity at 3–3.
Both sides pushed for a winner in the closing stages, but neither could find the decisive moment, leaving the spoils shared in a pulsating encounter that once again underlined why this fixture remains the pinnacle of African hockey rivalry.
Photo: Jan van Zyl
