Relentless New Zealand crushed Pakistan 6-2 in the final of the FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.
The Kiwis overwhelmed Pakistan with five first-half goals, rattling Pakistan’s fragile defence.
The dominant Black Sticks added one more goal in the second half to secure a 6-2 victory, and with that, their second consecutive title and the opportunity to step up to the top-tier FIH Hockey Pro League.
Pakistan must fix defence to beat New Zealand in FIH Nations Cup final: Hassan Sardar
The tone was set early, with New Zealand twice finding the back of the net in the opening minutes, only for both goals to be disallowed.
Still, they kept up the pressure and eventually broke through when Scott Cosslett converted a penalty corner to open the scoring.
Just as Pakistan began to find their rhythm and enjoy some possession finally, New Zealand struck again, Jonty Elmes setting up Sam Hiha to double their lead.
Early in the second quarter, a long pass into the circle found Dylan Thomas, who reacted quickest to a rebound off the keeper to make it 3-0.
Sean Findlay then blasted in a fourth after receiving an aerial pass just inside the circle and somehow slotting it in from the sharpest of angles.
Just under 10 minutes later, the Black Sticks were at it again when a lifted ball came off the Pakistani goalkeeper, and Scott Boyde was on hand to swat it home, sending the New Zealanders into the half-time break with a commanding 5-0 lead.
Left with a mountain to climb in the second half, Pakistan finally got off the mark in the 33rd minute when Moin Shakeel found the back of the net from close range.
Suddenly, the men in green sprang to life, creating far more chances and looking threatening. But the New Zealand defence stood firm.
The Kiwis added one more goal from a penalty corner in the final three minutes of the match, Cosslett’s second successful drag flick, to rub salt in Pakistan’s wounds.
Sufyan Khan then found one last consolation for Pakistan off a penalty corner of their own to make the 6-2 scoreline slightly more respectable.
France finished in third place, prevailing 3-2 in a shootout against South Korea after the match had ended 3-3 in regulation time.
The French had lost in a shootout to Pakistan in the semi-finals on Friday.
Hosts Malaysia ended sixth after falling 2-1 to Wales while Japan edged South Africa by the same score to avoid finishing bottom.
Despite a crushing defeat in the final, Pakistan have impressed with resilience and improved structure throughout the tournament. The Green Shirts qualified for the final after beating France in the semifinal that was decided on a penalty shoot-out.
Earlier in the tournament, Pakistan had lost a crunch match 3-4 against New Zealand, before registering a 3-2 win against Japan and playing out a 3-3 draw with hosts Malaysia.
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