Olympics glory: Pakistan edge South Africa in nine-goal thriller
Waseem Ahmed's field goal three minutes from the end clinched victory after captain Sohail Abbas had converted a penalty corner in the 64th minute to neutralise South Africa's lead in the Pool A contest.
The victory took Pakistan's points tally to seven from four matches.
Abdul Haseem Khan scored two goals for Pakistan in the encounter that saw the lead change hands frequently.
South Africa had earlier ascendency through a second-minute open play strike by Thornton McDade, but Pakistan equalised in the 20th minute on Khan's first goal.
Justin Reid-Ross converted two penalty corners (22nd and 35th minutes) for South Africa, while Shafqat Rasool (23rd) and Khan (25th) fired for Pakistan as the two teams were tied 3-3 at half time.
South Africa seized the lead again three minutes into the second half on Wade Paton's field goal and held sway until the two goal burst from Pakistan in the last six minutes.
"If our strikers play well, we're in the game. The forwards seized the chances," said Akhtar Rasool, chief coach of the Pakistan team.
Australia leads the Olympic men's hockey pool A with 7 points.
Britain is currently second with 7 points and Pakistan is third after todays match.
Pakistan had earlier drawn its inaugural match against Spain 1-1, won the second match against Argentina 2-0 and lost against Great Britain 4-1.
Team Green will play Australia on August 7.
Correction: "Two" was erroneously spelled as "to" earlier in the photo caption. The typo has been fixed.
COMMENTS (53)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
1732503274-0/Untitled-design-(43)1732503274-0-405x300.webp "article")
1732501636-0/Untitled-design-(42)1732501636-0-165x106.webp "article")
1732498967-0/Outer-Banks--(1)1732498967-0-165x106.webp "article")
1732086766-0/BeFunky-collage-(74)1732086766-0-165x106.webp "article")
1732492357-0/PG12-Anchor-(1)1732492357-0-270x192.webp "jaiswal kohli hit tons as aus stare at defeat")
I think we better ignore the trolls, they have miserable life so its understandable why they come here to bash us. Sanity must prevail on both sides.Good luck team Pakistan! Peace out
@Amit ...Thanks for your kind words buddy. We need some sanity from both sides.
It was an absolute delight to watch and well done Team Green.
Some people here are so pessimistic that they ALWAYS spoil the celebrations almost about anything by either starting their own analysis about what is success or what is important OR they go for the most easiest one i.e. taunting Indians. Now the thrilling triumph which supposed to be celebrated by all hockey lovers from both sides of the border on this board has now turned to be a war zone where some haters from both sides trying to win the argument. Get a life!!!!
Team Green missed many chances, we were lucky to win. A message to our team, just dont harass the umpires, protest in a professional way. We used the referral for a doubtful foul but could not use it when it was surely a penalty stroke.
@Syed Shah: www.liveptvsports.com there you go brother !
Calm down guys, it was a good win by pakistan....i really do hope pak reach the semis and gives a good fight.....REMEMBER - neither India nor pak have done well since 1992 and its disappointing...a Pak medal in hockey will bring a lot of cheer and boost to our region. As for India - we have won 3 medals and there is still a week to go and we have 3 boxers (2 male and 1 female including a Beijing bronze medalist ) in the quarter finals - all 3 within 1 victory of a medal (may bring one gold). We have 5 wrestlers still to start (4 male and 1 female including a Beijing bronze medalist) - with a possibility of 3 meals...so the competition is not over yet guys, India may still finish in the top 25 at-least with a total of 6-7 medals. This may not be great for a nation with 1.2 bil ppl out it represents a good trend from 1b (96), 1b(00), 1S(04), 1G2B(08) and now who knows.... so lets enjoy the olympics
Great News!!!
@Singh: While I agree for most of your point, but bragging for just three medals ( Not a single Gold ) for a nation of over a billion people, puts you in the same mind set of people like Adnan.
The AUS-GBR match has ended 3-3. This means that we must beat Australia to qualify for the semi finals regardless of the outcome of the ESP-GBR match.
If We lost the match we will out of the tournament now its hope that pakistan win against australia
I am an Indian and i feel really happy to see pakistan in this position. Remember, it was the people of subcontinent who invented hockey, and it will be shame if we don't have a medal. If not India, it has to be pakistan or the other way around. Remember, in Asian games (i dont remember which year), the goal keeper of pakistan helped indian goal keeper (gave some useful tips about the strategy of the korean team) to defend the goals from the south korean team and india ended up winning the gold. Such should be the spirit.
I feel really ashamed to see indians and pakistanis fighting here nothing more than "street dogs" and this is the reason why we are struck without the number of medals we really deserve for the talents we have.
The BRITISH have won by their divide and rule policy and we have lost comprehensively. Thats the truth.
@iTroll:
3 medals WOW! Congratulations to the world's greatest sporting under-achievers!
@Pungi: Please use internet for enhancing knowledge also. India appeared in medal tally of each summer Olympic including and after 1996. @all other "3 medal vs 1 billion" guys. Pakistan has not won a single medal after 1992, does that imply Pakistan has no population at all? Going by your logic, don't you think in worst of worst case, you should expect to win at least 1 bronze medal in 4 Olympics. Of course, 3 medal is not very satisfactory result for India but "Adnan" started comparing Pakistan with India and the fact is that India is way ahead of you guys. @Usman Malik: Oh that means we are good even here :)
The Pakistanis here shouldn't make fun of the Hindustanis for only getting three medals - since half of Hindustan is plunged in darkness, they can tell their people they won 200!
Hasan
Can someone please give me a link by which we can watch Pakistan matches outside Pakistan. Thanks in advance.Put the link in reply please.
Well done Pakistan. A match won is a match well played!! I am saddened by the fact that the pakistanis are using this victory to gloat about themselves to the indian trolls.The indian trolls on the other hand should be ashamed to be talking of the 3 medals coming from a nation of 1.2 billion people and a respectable economy.All in all a poor show from the sub-continent.It would be better to cheer each other rather than rub salt into each others wounds.
@Singh: Have a nice flight home.... aww stop crying...
@iTroll: a nation of over a billion people and you are puffing your chest out on 3, i repeat three, medals. shows your desperation really.
@Pinto: yes, we are now trying to overtake the IPL as the greatest fixing scam in the history of all mankind. it will take some time, give us another 20 years
@Adnan: C'mon!! this a Pakistan win...lets not spoil the fun with fighting. I take pride in Pakistan/India medals and we all should. Friendship is the key to success for the region.
Great !!! go team green ... shabaash !!!!
@Singh: Come on you know what Adnan was talking about it! We all are collectively sick and tired of wailay-Indian-trolls on this website who have nothing good to do except for bad mouth about Pakistan. Makes you wonder where all the war hysteria really is and who is obsessed with whom!
@iTroll Well its good if the world's Second most populated Nation is happy after winning 3 Medals, & those too when their opponents got injured(If u r aware of Saina Nehwal's Badminton Match) For your kind Information you trolls were Medal-less from 1980-2004 when Pakistanis were clinching few Medals...So don't worry we will strike back soon!
Dear indians its nice to see you topping the olympic table and the hockey pool b table. All the millions of dollars spent on team india is showing. A nation of 1billion ppl and only 3 Medals surely tells us where u stand.
Insha-allah Pakistan will win the gold medal.Allah bless our country and our people. Ameen
@Amit:
With all due respect, most of 'your' people do not want anything to do with you. Try looking up the events of 1947.
Best of luck Team Pakistan - give it your heart, that's all we could ask for!
Hasan
This game proves that both teams have very weak defense :)
Anyways welldone Pakistan!
MUBRAK HOO...GREEN SHIRTS WE R HAPPY TO C U IN TIGER ACTION...MASHALLHA.
@iTroll: @Singh: Happy landings
Thanks dude, we have landed happily on 3 medals already (stay tuned for more). btw what happened to your medal flight? Did you guys make sure it was running on revolutionary "water technology"?
Go Pakistan. Indians think of all South Asians as "our" people without any confusions about identity and want them to succeed in all fields at the world level.
@iTroll: @Singh: Happy landings
@shakir: There is a reason why sports and politics needs to have a healthy distance. Please adhere to this principle rather be a PTI cheerleader regarding our national sport.
congratulations pakistan. lot of mistakes were made by our team though. learn from them rather than getting relaxed after victory. lot of hard work required to win a medal....
Awesome match. Lets hope the other results go our way as well. It will probably come down to the goal difference between us, Spain and GB, and we could have benefited by winning this match with a bigger margin. The last two misses, especially the one by Shakeel Abbasi was EPIC! The boys, although do create chances within the D, need to also learn to land the killer blow. Teams like Australia will not give us second chances. That said, praying for a place in the semi. Go TEAM PAKISTAN!
@Adnan: Great comment dude. Trolls had no choice left but to be terribly ashamed as Pakistan leads the Olympic's medal tally and in the meanwhile you have "invented" water car, even more your water car guy proved that the science laws were a big lie. Congrats buddy!!!
@Adnan: This is the typical Pakistani way of thinking. Pakistan won its good news for you, you should be happy BUT why mentioning India here? OK, if you did so, then answer few questions of a random Indian troll: Has Pakistan won a gold in 2012 Hockey? Have they won sliver or bronze? Have they even qualified for Semis? Have they defeated mighty Australia to secure place in semis? "Trolls" have already won 3 medals and I am sure this is not the final number compared to "big fat zero" . So calm down dude, you basically have not achieved anything yet and if Pakistan team does not qualify for semis remember loser is a loser does not matter where it stands in the tally of losers.
Way to go Team Pakistan!
Well played Pak inshallah we will win gold medal
haha, great stunning performance in last 8 minutes........wow i missed due to light problem...
All Indian trolls (notable by their absence): Never mind (have a good flight home).
WAY TO GO!!! Come on Pakistan you can do it!
Abdul Haseem Khan scored two goals not 'to goals' for the Pakistani team.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Congrats :)
Our team is really weak and giving away so many goal scoring opportunities. South Africa and Argentina were very weak teams and we should have won easily with big margins. Anyone who understands hockey can see this fair and square. Expecting this team to upset Australia is a bit too much to ask for. It is time to question what Mr. Qasim Zia has done as PHF Chief in over 4 years when he had a free hand and could have built a strong team.
come on ...............you can do it ...........go go go...PAKISTAN
PHEW... close call but we survived... come on TEAM PAKISTAN.... CHAKAY PHATAAAY.. :)
slam to all. a happy news in such a gloomy environment where Khawja Asif from PMLN and faisal Abidi of PPP are blaming Shoukat Khanam Memorial Hospital and CJ repectively. thanks
Well done! :)
Awesome news...