Belgium makes clean sweep of wins, plays India in quarters
Olympic runners-up and World number three Belgium has emerged the only team to make a clean sweep of wins in all its three pool games in the Odisha Hockey World League Final at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar today. It ended its pool engagements with a comprehensive 3-0 win over the European champions Holland. Like defending champions Australia, Olympic champions Argentina, the Asia Cup champions India, Holland also ended without a win in the pool games. Pool A leaders Belgium with a maximum of nine points from three games will now take on the hosts India in the quarter-finals while Germany will play the Olympic champions Argentina. It will be a repeat of the Rio Olympic quarter-finals where India had gone down to Belgium. Will India avenge the Rio defeat is a million rupee question. The last pool game, featuring World number three and four teams, not only witnessed some superb pulsating hockey but also had moments of excitements with both Holland and Belgium missing goals that should have been scored. First, it was Holland's turn to get its goal scored from its third penalty corner disallowed for the ball not being stopped outside the circle. A minute later, Red Lions muffed a stroke through the tournament's top scorer Loick Luypaert who scooped wide of the target after scoring first of the three goals for his side from penalty corners to take his personal tally to six goals in the tournament so far. Red Lions opened its scoring in the 19th minute when Luypaert made no mistake from the first penalty corner. In all Belgium got 10 penalty corners and scored three from them. Besides two by Luypaert, third one came from Tom Boon, another rising star. Holland, who were among one pre-tournament favourites, were unable to get past the solid defence of the Red Lins. In fact in the last European Cup, Holland had beaten Belgium to win the gold. But today it was the Red Lions day.
