South Korea crush Pakistan U21 to clinch consolation victory in Hockey Test series

ISLAMABAD: Lim Dohyun's brace helped South Korea register a thumping 6-2 victory over Pakistan U21 in the fourth and last match of the away Hockey Test series here at the Naseer Bunda Hockey Stadium on Friday.

In a match, the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) had opted to field the U21 side since the hosts had already clinched the series by winning each of the first three fixtures; the visitors made a dominant start as Rim Jinkang opened the scoring for them in just the fifth minute by successfully converting a penalty corner.

Kim Hyeonhong scored the following minute in a similar manner and doubled South Korea's lead, which remained intact until the conclusion of the opening quarter.

The home side eventually managed to open their scoring in the second quarter through Mohammad Ahmad, who netted a sensational field goal in the 19th minute, and the two sides consequently went into the halftime with the scoreline reading 2-1 in South Korea's favour.

South Korea came out all guns blazing in the penultimate quarter as the visitors bolstered their lead to 5-1 by netting three goals in quick succession.

Leading their third-quarter outburst was Dohyun, who struck twice in the 37th and 40th minutes, respectively, while Kim Hyeonhong scored in the 42nd minute, with all three goals coming through the penalty corners.

Pakistan then pulled one back in the final quarter, courtesy of a field goal from Ghulam Mustafa, but Kim Yong Bok struck in the 54th minute to restore South Korea's four-goal advantage, which persisted until the final whistle.

Notably, the recently concluded home series against South Korea served as a crucial preparation for the Green Shirts for their drought-ending FIH Hockey World Cup participation later this month and came after their winless run at the FIH Pro League, which saw them lose each of their 16 matches.

Pakistan are scheduled to kick off their World Cup campaign on August 15 by locking horns with England before taking on Wales on August 17 in their second group-stage match.

In their last league-stage match, the Green Shirts will collide with traditional rivals India on August 19.