KEY POINTS:
The goal-grabbing New Zealanders are setting the pace after two days of the Olympic qualifying tournament.
In scoring 15 goals - and conceding just one, and that forced the Black Sticks to come from behind to beat Ireland 3-1 yesterday - the hosts have shown an ability to
score their way out of trouble.
Relishing the chance to play on the Crown Relocations Stadium pitch where he has scored more goals - at all levels - than any player, Dave Kosoof is leading the charge.
He followed the first hat-trick of the tournament with a sharply taken fourth later in the match and a controversial fifth to lead the goal-scoring charge against Ireland.
His first-up effort in the 12-0 romp over Trinidad and Tobago on opening day was matched by teammate Simon Child who scored three of his four in the second spell.
Frances Frederic Soyez joined the goal-scoring party yesterday netting five as the French, rocked by two early goals, hit back to beat the US 7-4.
Not to be outdone, Argentine Lucas Vila joined the five-goal club with two in yesterday's 7-1 win over Trinidad and Tobago after a hat-trick in their first-up 9-1 win over the Americans.
Despite dominating the opening stanza against the defensively-structured Irish, New Zealand fell a goal behind.
Against the run of play and from their first attack, Ireland won their first (of only two) penalty corners.
Matching his opening day effort in which he also opened the scoring in their 4-0 win over France, Mark Gleghorne drag flicked home to stun the faithful.
Stung, the home side continued to press forward but found it difficult to unlock an Irish defence content, for much of the time, to have 11 players behind the ball.
Coach David Passmore made no apologies for his teams dour defensive approach.
"We did not want an open game. We wanted a dogged Irish performance", said Passmore. He got it.
It was not until the 26th minute their defence came unstuck.
Blair Hopping played a great ball on to Lloyd Stephenson's stick.
He swept it to the centre of the goal from where Kosoof, with what appeared a mixture of stick and chest, guided the ball home to the chagrin of the Irish who appealed vehemently to Dutch umpire Rob ten Cate.
He was unmoved and with no word from fellow umpire David Leiper - and with the use of the video umpire not being in place until the last two days of the tournament - the goal stood.
Within two minutes, the Black Sticks hit the front when, after good lead-up work from Phil Burrows, Ben Collier was unchallenged in scoring from a simple tap in.
The second half was more of the same. New Zealand were keen to press forward and defend closer to halfway than their defensive zone. In doing that, they were able to quickly change their point of attack and build good pressure.
They went 3-1 ahead 10 minutes into the spell when the Irish defence failed to cut out a free-hit and Collier, again in space, tapped in at the far post. It was his seventh international goal and the first time he has scored two in a match.
When Steve Edwards won a 54th minute penalty, home hopes rose but Hayden Shaw, a day after celebrating his 100th goal for New Zealand (a first) when he opened the scoring against Trinidad and Tobago, dragged his attempt over the top of the Irish goal.
The visitors charged on to attack and Paul Woolford, unemployed in the Black Sticks goal for long periods, was called to duty and pulled off some timely saves, including one from Ireland's second penalty corner and another two in double-quick time to deny the steamed-up Irish.
"I thought our platform was really good," said Black Sticks coach Shane McLeod. "They were as defensive as I thought they would be and we worked our way through that".
New Zealand captain Ryan Archibald said yesterday's game was the anticipated step up from their opening day romp.
"We had always expected that", said Archibald. "They played with the structure we expected from the video evidence we had seen. Going a goal down was frustrating but we have had plenty of experience in coming back from that situation".
Irish captain Paddy Brown, far from happy with the goal which brought the home side back into the game, was disappointed that his team then conceded two soft goals.
Irish coach Dave Passmore was fuming that the International Hockey Federation had not spent the money to make video replay facilities available right through a prestigious tournament. "Everybody's watching bad decisions and disputed things on a video screen and the umpires can't look at it.
"The situation we have here is farcical that there's video umpires for the last two days but there can't be on all the other days and I don't think it's fair on the players."
After today's rest day, most interest tomorrow will centre on the game between France and Argentina. New Zealand play the US in the late game and will have a training session today.
