South Africa’s Hockey Men made a winning return to KwaZulu-Natal, playing in the province for the first time since 2020 as they opened their five-match test series against Malaysia at Riverside Sports Club.
Separated by just one place in the world rankings, the two sides came into the series with little between them, both using the contest as an important step in their build-up to the FIH Hockey World Cup in August.
The opening quarter reflected that closeness, with both teams testing each other without finding a breakthrough. Chances were limited, tackles were committed, and at the end of the first 15 minutes, 0-0 was a fair reflection of a tightly contested start.
South Africa broke the deadlock in the second quarter. A Calvin Davis penalty corner strike hit a defender on the line, and while umpire Ayden Shrives looked set to award a penalty stroke, Carlon Mentoor reacted quickest to bundle the ball over the line and give the hosts the lead.
The second goal arrived through a brilliant South African counterattack. Luke Wynford and the impressive Trevor de Lora combined superbly, with Wynford applying the emphatic finish to score his first international goal and double South Africa’s advantage.
The Riverside crowd responded in full voice, lifting the hosts with every attack, tackle, and save as the atmosphere continued to build around a strong South African performance.
Captain Dayaan Cassiem, having earlier combined beautifully with Tevin Kok only to be denied, was determined to leave his mark on the contest. He did so in spectacular fashion in the third quarter, unleashing a rocket reverse-stick strike for his 35th international goal and South Africa’s third of the night.
Malaysia continued to push and forced South Africa into some important defensive work, with Niel Raath, Damian Knott, and Jared Cass all contributing strongly in front of Cullin de Jager. The visitors eventually found a late consolation through Rozemi, who deflected a penalty corner home.
But the night belonged to South Africa, who opened the series with a confident 3-1 victory in front of an outstanding Riverside crowd.
The second test takes place on Tuesday at 18:00. You can also watch it live on Supersport.
