New Zealand’s Black Sticks held on to defeat Pakistan by 4-2 in the 9th-16th place classification match of the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup 2026 at the Wagener Stadium, Amstelveen.
An inspired third-quarter comeback from Pakistan wasn’t enough as the lead New Zealand established earlier in the game was enough to secure the win.
New Zealand’s First Half Performance
The Black Sticks struck early against Pakistan, as Dylan Thomas found the net within just 20 seconds to give New Zealand the lead through a field goal.
The New Zealanders kept the momentum going as they doubled their lead to 2-0 thanks to Scott Boyde finding the goal in the 16th minute before George Baker added the third goal in the 22nd minute. New Zealand took a comprehensive 3-0 lead into halftime.
Pakistan’s Second Half Fightback
Pakistan came out fired up and began to bridge the gap in the second half. The opposition made it 3-1 when Sufyan Khan added the Pakistani goal in the 33rd minute, and five minutes later it was 3-2 after Afraz’s conversion gave the Black Sticks something to worry about.
However, New Zealand weathered the coming storm early in the fourth quarter. Kane Russell restored the team’s lead to two goals as he converted a penalty corner to go up by 4-2 in the 49th minute, and that is how the game remained.
The Black Sticks topped their Pool G with 9 points and will go on to play their 9th place playoff against Ireland in the Belfius Hockey Arena in Belgium on Friday. Pakistan will contest their final World Cup match against South Africa for the 11th/12th position classification in Wagener Stadium on Friday.
