The Argentine men's field hockey team tied today with
France
5-5, with an agonizing goal by
Nicolás Della Torre
, and qualified in second place in Group A of the World Cup that takes place in India.
The team led by
Mariano Ronconi
must play the next phase, the quarterfinals, against South Korea or Japan (third place in Group B), next Monday at 8:30 in Argentina.
The tie prevented them from the remote chance of winning their zone and directly accessing the quarterfinals, a right that Australia accredited with their victory over
South Africa
9-2 in the first game.
The Oceanics finished with 7 units, The Lions with 5, France with 4 and the South Africans, without units.
The exciting match played this morning at the Kalinga stadium in Bhubaneswar had Della Torre (3), Nicolás Keenan and Martín Ferreiro as scorers in the selected 2016 Olympic champion.
Victor Charlet (4) and Etienne Tyneves scored for France, who will face the second in Group B, Germany or Belgium, two powerhouses of the discipline, in the quarterfinals.
The Lions finished this phase undefeated with a 1-0 victory over South Africa (with a goal from Maico Casella) plus a creditable 3-3 draw against Australia, favorites to win the title, with goals from Tomás Dómene, Maico Casella and Martín Ferreiro .
Argentina seeks in this World Cup to repeat the podium of The Hague 2014 when it finished in a historic third place, which was the prologue to Olympic gold two years later in Rio de Janeiro.
Source: Telam
look also
The Della Torres: Nicolás follows in the footsteps of his great-grandfather José and will play a World Cup with the Argentine National Team