The New Zealand men's hockey team have taken a backward step ahead of the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament in Malaysia, losing their second warmup match against the host nation 3-2 overnight (NZT).
It was a reverse of the scoreline in yesterday's first match, and not the final hit-out coach Colin Batch was hoping for as he lamented a lack of intensity.
New Zealand trailed 3-0 at halftime, though they fought back in the second stanza through goals to Andy Hayward and rookie Cory Bennett.
"It was disappointing that we did not show the same intensity that got us through the previous night," Batch said.
"In saying that, the second half was more encouraging and 3-0 is not insurmountable for this team. We will learn valuable lessons from this game ahead of the Sultan Azlan Shah."
There were a few promising moments for the Kiwis in the first half, but a number of errors gifted the home side opportunities to score in the 10th and 20th minute.
A field goal just prior to halftime confirmed that it was going to be an uphill battle for the Black Sticks in the second spell.
New Zealand raised the tempo in the second half, resulting in another trademark Hayward flick which went high into the net in the 47th minute.
Bennett, playing in his second senior international, scored the second goal from a well worked penalty corner variation but the Black Sticks were unable to find an equaliser.
There were strong performances from Shay Neal, Nick Ross, Jacob Smith and Devon Manchester.
The Black Sticks play their first game of the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament in Ipoh at 9.05pm (NZT) on Saturday against Pakistan.
They will also face Malaysia, Korea, India and Australia at the tournament.
They are the defending champions, having last year won the 30-year-old tournament for the first time.
Malaysia 3 (Jalifaiz Helmi, Abdul Jalil Tengku Ahmad Tajudin, Mohd Noor Nabil Fiqri) New Zealand 2 (Andy Hayward, Cory Bennett). Halftime: 3-0.
Two-match series shared 1-1.
- © Fairfax NZ News