New Zealand junior girls hockey team are within one win of a place in the gold medal match at the Youth Olympic Games. They won their penultimate match against winless South Africa 4-0 at the Sengkang Hockey Stadium in Singapore tonight to move to third place in the round robin contest. New Zealand are one point behind unbeaten Netherlands and Argentina, who fought out a 2-2 draw tonight with the kiwis taking on the South American side on Sunday afternoon, where the winner will progress to the gold medal match. The kiwis will need a victory with Argentina and Netherlands, who meet fourth-placed Korea in their final match, going into the final round of matches with significantly superior goal differences. There was much to admire about the New Zealanders efforts, although they could not match the big wins that both Argentina and the Netherlands achieved against South Africa. They were on the board early with a goal in the 17th minute to Rhiannon Dennison before two goals from super-talented forward Michaela Curtis gave New Zealand a 3-0 halftime lead. They could only manage one further Dennison goal in the second half although they had the lions share of the territory. I thought the girls played well. It was a step up. The aim was to definitely come away with three points, to put a few goals in the back of the net and to play some good solid hockey, said captain Rachel McCann. Fatigue is a key here playing virtually every day. You just have to look after your body and do the right things warm-down, warm-up. We are looking forward to a day off and then look forward to the big clash against Argentina and hopefully get into that final. Coach Greg Nichol said there were plenty of positives tonight. It was comfortable. We did what was needed and got the job done. The girls had more space tonight and therefore a chance to show their skills, which is important going into this final phase, Nichol said. We didnt turn the ball over tonight which was good, although we were not under the same pressure. It allowed us to get some flow and when you give players like Michaela Curtis some space she is a handful for any defence. Argentina will be a tough ask. They are one of the best teams in the world. We had a good chance to practice our penalty corners tonight but we did not execute as well as we would like. We will need to take all our chances against Argentina. There are three further rounds scheduled for sailing tomorrow with conditions allowing for only two races off Singapore Marina today in the Byte CII class. Elise Beavis (Auckland) bounced back from her disqualification yesterday with ninth and 15th placings today and after six rounds she is now up to 11th overall. Jack Collinson (Auckland) was 14th in the first race today but got the wrong end of the shifty afternoon conditions to finish 27th, his worst result in six races which now sees him in 14th overall. There are still nine races remaining before the medal round although they are now well behind schedule. Earlier in the day Cambridge rider Jake Lambert rode clear to help his Australasia team to a silver medal in the ride-off at the Singapore Turf Club. Three teams Europe, Africa and Australasia shared top place after two rounds, Europe and Australasia managed only one fault in the ride off, but Europe had a superior combined time to take gold. The 16 year old from Cambridge is happy with his mount, selected on ballot from horses provided for the competition from Australia and New Zealand. You do the best you can in the few days with the horse. Mine is Australian bred and is quite young at only six. But I am happy with him. Its how you deal with this situation best that is important, said Lambert. He has pulled up well today and so I am looking forward to a really good go in the individual show jumping on Sunday. In other action on day seven, New Zealand basketball team begin their elimination rounds for ninth to 16th place against Iran, Auckland table tennis players Julia Wu and Kevin Wu begin their competition, while action at the track involves sprinter Yarride Rosario and hurdler Josh Hawkins in their B finals. The Youth Olympic Games continue until next Thursday. Results, day 6: Equestrian after two rounds: Europe, Australasia and Africa 8 penalties, equal 1. Ride-off: Europe 4 penalties, 141.03 total time, 1; Australasia 4 penalties, 154.26 total time, 2; Africa 24 penalties, 157.46 total time, 3. Sailing, Byte CII, female, race 5: Lara Vadlau (AUT) 1, Celine Carlsen (DEN) 2, Natasha Yokoyama (SIN) 3. Also: Elise Beavis (NZL) 9. Race 6: Yokoyama 1, Celine 2, Vadlau 3. Also: Beavis 15. Total after 6 races (dropping worst result): Vadlau 11 points, 1; Stolz and Carlsen 21, equal 2. Beavis 52, 12. Male, race 5: Kaarle Tapper (FIN) 1, Ian Barrows (ISV) 2, Supakon Pongwichean (THA) 3. Also: Jack Collinson 14. Race 6: Florian Haufe (GER) 1, Zan Zelko (SLO) 2, Darren Choy (SIN) 3. Also: Collinson 27. Total after 6 races: Tapper 25 points, 1; Haufe 27, 2; Choy 31, 3. Collinson 58, 14. Hockey: New Zealand 4 (Rhiannon Dennison 17m, 37m; Keisha Arnolds 23m, 25m). South Africa 0. Halftime: 3-0. Points after four rounds: Netherlands and Argentina 10, New Zealand 9, Korea 6, Ireland and South Africa 0.
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