Scotland men to play bronze medal match against Korea after defeat to France

Scotland men will play in tomorrow’s bronze medal match of the FIH Series Finals in Le Touquet after they were defeated 3-0 by hosts France. Korea will be Scotland’s opponents as the Scots finish off a tournament that has again seen them achieve highly, and secure a finish above ranking for the fourth time in three years.

The game was a fast-paced contest from the start with lots of possession for France in the early stages, but Scotland looked solid and managed the threat well.

The first chance of note was from a French penalty corner, which was well defended as the Scots got out quickly to deal with the danger.

Then came two swift goals from France. First they took the lead from a penalty corner strike by Etienne Tynevez; he popped up in a dangerous position and prodded the ball into the net for the opener. A minute later and France doubled their lead through a lovely reverse shot on the turn by Blaise Rogeau. 2-0.

Scotland battled hard in the second quarter and put in a tireless showing in the French heat. The quarter was void of any real chances other than one prompting a solid save by Scotland’s Tommy Alexander at his near post on the half time hooter.

The third quarter was tight with Scotland managing to breach the French D on a couple of occasions, but were crowded out by defenders.

The final quarter was another tight affair but the award of a penalty to France put to bed any prospect of a Scotland fight back. The French went 3-0 up against Scotland from the penalty spot with Hugo Genestet finding the bottom right corner with the flick.

The tournament’s second-highest ranked team France took their place in the final but Scotland walk away with their heads held high. There’s a bronze medal opportunity next for the Scots when they take to the pitch against Korea in Le Touquet.

Scotland’s Gavin Byers said, “It was a very tough game tonight. France are a strong team, especially here on their home field. They played a good high tempo game and we matched it for quite a long time, but we had a bad two minutes where we conceded two goals. We were always fighting to get back into it and fought right until the end.

“This is a young team that’s developing, we’ve had some injuries and brought in some new players, so a lot of things went against us but France played some really good hockey and are worthy winners.”

 

Women’s EuroHockey Championship II

Scotland women will compete in Glasgow this summer in a major international tournament.

Women’s EuroHockey Championship II will be held at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre on 4-10 August and is a great chance to cheer on Scotland on home soil against some top European competition.

Find out more, and buy tickets, HERE

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