France and Wales men move on to semifinals at World Cup Qualifier in Santiago<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After another full slate of games, the two teams secured their semifinal position, while Chile, Australia, and France kept their World Cup dreams alive in the women\u2019s division.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Men\u2019s Pool A finished out pool play with France and Wales grabbing semifinal spots by the slightest of margins. With a 3-3 tie against Chile, France secured the top spot in Pool A, while Wales powered to second with a 5-0 shutout over Scotland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the teams advancing to the semifinals in men\u2019s Pool B already sorted prior, Ireland and Poland played for final placement, with Ireland taking first after a 4-1 win. Canada defeated Korea to finish third.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In women\u2019s Pool B, France stayed in semifinal contention with a 2-1 win over Switzerland, while Chile put themselves in a good spot with an exciting 2-1 upset of Australia. The two matches tomorrow will determine which two teams will make it to the semifinals, with only Switzerland out of contention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Men\u2019s) Ireland 4 \u2013 1 Poland<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n With the tension eased after both teams secured a spot in the semifinals yesterday, the duo was fighting for the first-place pool finish. It would be Ireland who claimed this position with a 4-1 win over Poland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ireland had the first goal of the game, striking at the end of the first quarter with a reverse shot by Louis Rowe. They kept up the offensive pressure through the match, tallying a goal in each quarter. Lee Cole claimed a second-quarter goal off a penalty corner, Benjamin Walker hit one out of the air in the third, and Matthew Nelson capped the scoring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Poland avoided a shutout by converting a set piece in the 52nd minute, splitting Ireland\u2019s third and fourth goals. Wojciech Rutkowski fired a high flick into the back of the net.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ireland\u2019s Louis Rowe was named player of the match. \u201cIt\u2019s what we came to do,\u201d said Rowe. \u201cComing after the first two games, it was good to come here. We just wanted to win and top the group and then we\u2019ll see our opponent for the semifinal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Men\u2019s) Canada 7 \u2013 2 Korea<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n With a different kind of pressure lifted after failing to advance to the semifinals, Canada and Korea were looking for a win to boost their world ranking points. In a scrappy, high-scoring match, Canada took a 7-2 win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first quarter was a doozy, featuring a penalty stroke save, a goal for each side, and both team referrals lost. Korea\u2019s Chankyu Choi scored first via a hard shot, but the lead didn\u2019t last long as Matthew Sarmento tallied for Canada shortly after the whistle restarted play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rowan Childs gave Canada the go-ahead goal early in the second quarter by tucking away a rebound. With a powerful strike several minutes later, Robin Thind doubled Canada\u2019s lead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To start off the third frame, a penalty stroke was missed for the second time in the match, this time by Korea. Later on in the quarter, a perfect cross from Kirin Robinson found Sean Davis to put Canada up, 4-1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the final 15 minutes, a penalty corner flick from Korea\u2019s Jonghyun Jang brought the scoreline to 4-2. Canada quickly reestablished its three-goal lead when Thomson Harris tipped in a set piece. Sean Davis and Jude Nicholson helped make it an emphatic win for Canada by both scoring in the final ten minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Canada\u2019s Sean Davis was named player of the match. \u201cIt\u2019s a good match from us,\u201d said Davis. \u201cWe started a bit rough in the pool, losing our first two, but to come back like this against Korea, a team that we\u2019ve had some good games against recently, I\u2019m really happy with how we performed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Women\u2019s) France 2 \u2013 1 Switzerland<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In a crucial Pool A match-up, France picked up its first win, while Switzerland was eliminated from a chance at the semifinals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n France was on the prowl in the first frame, so it was no surprise when it took the first lead in the 12th minute. France\u2019s L\u00e9opoldine Coppin sent a ball in that Mickaela Lahlah deflected in over the goalkeeper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A minute into the following frame, Switzerland brought the scoreline back to level when Stephanie Weber tipped in a set piece shot. It would stay 1-1 heading into the halftime break.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After back-to-back penalty corner chances for Switzerland in the third, it was France who struck next, scoring via a connecting pass to Paola Le Nindre who<\/p>\n\n\n\n finished it in goal. France nearly scored again after being awarded a penalty stroke, but a save from Switzerland\u2019s goalkeeper Ursina Fazis kept it 2-1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n France\u2019s Mickaela Lahlah was honored as player of the match and said: \u201cIt was the team effort that really worked today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Women\u2019s) Chile 2 \u2013 1 Australia<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the most balanced matches of the tournament so far ended in dramatic fashion, as Chile scored the go-ahead goal with time expired on a penalty corner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It took less than a minute for Las Diablas to earn a penalty corner opportunity, which was defended by Australia. The Hockeyroos would have their own set piece chance to end the period, which also was fruitless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite a few good looks, Australia could not break through Chile\u2019s defense, in part to the stellar goalkeeping from Chile\u2019s Natalia Salvador. It was raucous cheers all around when in the 42nd minute, Chile converted a penalty corner. Josefa Salas was the hero, finishing and giving Chile its first lead of the match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not long after the start of the final frame, Stephanie Kershaw finally found the goal Australia had been so close to getting for the initial 45 minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just when it seemed that the game would end with a draw, Chile made an offensive push, earning three penalty corners, including two with time expired. Maria Maldonado found the golden goal off the post to claim victory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chile\u2019s Fernanda Flores was named player of the match. \u201cIt was a really hard game,\u201d said Flores. \u201cBut I think we did all the staff told us to, so it was a win for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Men\u2019s) Scotland 0 \u2013 5 Wales<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The chaos continued into the next match, where Wales fought back from the bottom of the group by tallying enough goals to secure its place in the semifinals. Despite its late efforts, Scotland was unable to overcome the deficit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Knowing what it needed, Wales got straight to work, scoring in the fourth minute when Jack Pritchard tapped in a crossed ball. It didn\u2019t take long for Fred Newbold to double the lead on a penalty corner flick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Scotland settled in, but not enough to withstand a counter late in the second stanza that ended with Rhys Bradshaw tipping in a third goal for Wales. Fred Newbold and Sam Welsh finished the deal for Wales with two more goals in the third quarter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As if suddenly acutely aware of the peril of their situation, Scotland picked up their intensity in the fourth quarter. Despite employing an extra field player and generating some chances, Scotland could not find the three goals they needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fred Newbold of Wales was chosen as player of the match. \u201cFantastic,\u201d said Newbold. \u201cIt\u2019s the kind of game you want to play\u2026to get to the semifinal to have a chance to qualify for the World Cup. Fantastic, brilliant for both sides. You can see in the quality of hockey the whole game was fantastic, and it was honestly so fun to play.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Men\u2019s) France 3 \u2013 3 Chile<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n With everything on the line, it was a tense match from the start between France and Chile. A back-and-forth first quarter ended with a celebration of Chile fans after Juan Amoroso converted on a penalty corner chance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n France would not back down easily, earning its own set piece in the second frame and seeing Victor Charlet convert. Then in the third, finding himself in the right position at the right time, Vicente Go\u00f1i tapped in Chile\u2019s second goal to the roar of the crowd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Following the first half script, France leveled the score via a Victor Charlet set piece goal in the fourth quarter. It was time for something new in the 56th minute, as France took its first lead of the match via Benjamin Marqu\u00e9\u2019s incredible reverse hit goal. Chile\u2019s Juan Amoroso followed it up quickly with a penalty corner tally to tie up the scoreline yet again. Needing more than a draw, Chile pushed hard, but was unable to find another goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n France\u2019s Benjamin Marqu\u00e9 was named player of the match. \u201cIt was a very tense game,\u201d said Marqu\u00e9. \u201c…Chile kept fighting until the end, but we made it and we\u2019re happy that we\u2019re through.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Men\u2019s) Ireland 4-1 Poland<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Player of the match: Louis Rowe (IRL)<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Men\u2019s) Canada 7 \u2013 2 Korea<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Player of the match: Sean Davis (CAN)<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Women\u2019s) France 2 \u2013 1 Switzerland<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Player of the match: Mickaela Lahlah (FRA)<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Women\u2019s) Chile 2 – 1 Australia<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Player of the match: Fernanda Flores (CHI) <\/p>\n\n\n\n (Men\u2019s) Scotland 0 \u2013 5 Wales<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Player of the match: Fred Newbold (WAL)<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Men\u2019s) France 3 \u2013 3 Chile<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Player of the match: Benjamin Marqu\u00e9 (FRA)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" France and Wales men move on to semifinals at World Cup Qualifier in Santiago After another full slate<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10169,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[60],"class_list":["post-10168","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","tag-hockey"],"aioseo_notices":[],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey.webp",1000,562,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey-150x150.webp",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey-300x169.webp",300,169,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey-768x432.webp",640,360,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey.webp",640,360,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey.webp",1000,562,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey.webp",1000,562,false],"morenews-large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey-825x562.webp",825,562,true],"morenews-medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey-590x410.webp",590,410,true]},"author_info":{"info":["admin"]},"category_info":"International<\/a>","tag_info":"International","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Hockey.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10168","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10168"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10168\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10170,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10168\/revisions\/10170"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10169"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10168"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10168"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10168"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}