"VAN" (Sports Desk - 05.03.2026) :: After another full slate of games at the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 Qualifier in Santiago, Chile, two more men’s teams secured their semifinal position, while Chile, Australia, and France kept their World Cup dreams alive in the women’s division.
Men’s 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.
With the teams advancing to the semifinals in men’s 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.
In women’s 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.
(Men’s) Ireland 4 – 1 Poland
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.
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.
Poland avoided a shutout by converting a set piece in the 52nd minute, splitting Ireland’s third and fourth goals. Wojciech Rutkowski fired a high flick into the back of the net.
Ireland’s Louis Rowe was named player of the match. “It’s what we came to do,” said Rowe. “Coming after the first two games, it was good to come here. We just wanted to win and top the group and then we’ll see our opponent for the semifinal.”
(Men’s) Canada 7 – 2 Korea
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.
The first quarter was a doozy, featuring a penalty stroke save, a goal for each side, and both team referrals lost. Korea’s Chankyu Choi scored first via a hard shot, but the lead didn’t last long as Matthew Sarmento tallied for Canada shortly after the whistle restarted play.
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’s lead.
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.
In the final 15 minutes, a penalty corner flick from Korea’s 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.
Canada’s Sean Davis was named player of the match. “It’s a good match from us,” said Davis. “We started a bit rough in the pool, losing our first two, but to come back like this against Korea, a team that we’ve had some good games against recently, I’m really happy with how we performed.”
(Women’s) France 2 – 1 Switzerland
In a crucial Pool A match-up, France picked up its first win, while Switzerland was eliminated from a chance at the semifinals.
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’s Léopoldine Coppin sent a ball in that Mickaela Lahlah deflected in over the goalkeeper.
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.
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 finished it in goal. France nearly scored again after being awarded a penalty stroke, but a save from Switzerland’s goalkeeper Ursina Fazis kept it 2-1.
France’s Mickaela Lahlah was honored as player of the match and said: “It was the team effort that really worked today.”
(Women’s) Chile 2 – 1 Australia
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.
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.
Despite a few good looks, Australia could not break through Chile’s defense, in part to the stellar goalkeeping from Chile’s 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.
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.
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.
Chile’s Fernanda Flores was named player of the match. “It was a really hard game,” said Flores. “But I think we did all the staff told us to, so it was a win for us.”
(Men’s) Scotland 0 – 5 Wales
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.
Knowing what it needed, Wales got straight to work, scoring in the fourth minute when Jack Pritchard tapped in a crossed ball. It didn’t take long for Fred Newbold to double the lead on a penalty corner flick.
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.
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.
Fred Newbold of Wales was chosen as player of the match. “Fantastic,” said Newbold. “It’s the kind of game you want to play…to 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.”
(Men’s) France 3 – 3 Chile
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.
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 Goñi tapped in Chile’s second goal to the roar of the crowd.
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 Marqué’s incredible reverse hit goal. Chile’s 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.
France’s Benjamin Marqué was named player of the match. “It was a very tense game,” said Marqué. “...Chile kept fighting until the end, but we made it and we’re happy that we’re through.”
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