Pleasure, joy, serenity – relief. That was the reaction of German women’s hockey to the game against Ireland, and they hinted at how the game went. They took the lead in the 10th minute of the game, thanks to Lisa Altenberg’s excellent personal performance, which overtook the opponent and then the ball from the edge of the circle. ArgentinaThat is, press in the lower right corner, opposite the running direction. In the opening game, they largely dominated the game and augmented it with a magical goal in the second half of the game: Kira Horn played well in the penalty circle at Cecil Pepper, who led the ball into the goal with a light touch.

Legitimate seven meters after a penalty corner in the third quarter: Altenburg are assured, the game seems to be over, reaching the quarter-finals prematurely — but that’s not right.

“It’s very difficult for the Irish to understand, they play very unusually, very physically,” Peeper said before the game, when the German women gave their opponents a little more space in the middle of the third quarter to allow more time. In 2018 the Irish were famous for catching little hockey wonders, for example, when they were ranked 16th in the world, they were second at the World Cup. So quickly they got to the trigger and came close to 2: 3 with goals from Elena Tais and Hannah McLaughlin (after each penalty corner), and a game that was quickly decided turned into a real experiment.

The next rivals are South Africa and the Netherlands

“There were a lot of angles against us. We made it unnecessarily exciting and allowed Ireland to get back into the game very easily,” said national coach Xavier Reckinger. Pia Martens added: “We allowed a lot and gave them a lot of angles, and they did well twice as well. We still speak for our defense that we haven’t allowed a field goal.”

There are moments like this, especially in group stage tournaments, which can have a decisive impact on the sequence of an event. For example, the hockey men, after a sleepy start against Belgium, gained the strength to win the match 5-1 against Great Britain and once again become one of the favorites for a medal. The women turned their first game against Great Britain and won 2-1, and then they beat India 2-0 — now there was this test against the increasingly brave and courageous Irish women.

To tell a long story: they won the test because they controlled the game again and secured a 4-2 victory on a Francisco Hawk goal after a penalty corner. But it was clear to them how relieved they were later that they had not given up this 3-0 lead.

After three wins in three matches, the German women qualified for the quarter-finals, with the games against South Africa (Friday) and the Netherlands (Saturday) serving as the seeding list for the knockout round – and of course other Tests. Or, as coach Reckinger puts it: “In South Africa we now have an opponent in the preliminary round, perhaps the most beloved Netherlands, someone who asks us questions.