Black Sticks striker Hugo Inglis is relishing another tussle with Argentina. Photo / Getty
As draws go, New Zealand have got the best they could have hoped for when the World League quarter-finals are played in New Delhi tonight.
Having conceded six goals to world No1 Germany and five to England in losses, the Black Sticks have caught a break. They play 11th-ranked Argentina,
four spots below them.
The reason for the quirk in the draw came through Argentina starting the tournament exceptionally well, beating the third-ranked Dutch 5-2, then No 5 Belgium 3-2. They came unstuck, 6-1, against second-ranked Australia early yesterday and while New Zealand will respect them, they'll also fancy grabbing an unexpected chance.
"It has worked out not too badly for us,'' striker Hugo Inglis said. "They were playing some good hockey earlier in the week so you can't think it's too favourable. But going into the tournament, for sure we wouldn't have minded coming up against Argentina.''
New Zealand have played decent hockey in patches, but Inglis said it was crucial to increase the length of those periods and trim the efficiency of the opposition. Set pieces must sharpen up too.
