Junior Hockey World Cup 2025: Germany confirms quarterfinals place; South Africa secures second spot in Pool A

Defending champion Germany confirmed its place in the quarterfinal of the FIH Junior Men’s World Cup 2025 after a 5-1 win over Ireland on Monday.

The No. 1-ranked junior side trumped the Irish in a physical contest to seal its third win on the trot, cementing top spot in Pool A.

Germany edged ahead early in the first quarter through Jonas von Gersum. Top-scorer Ben Hasbach made a run across the backline from right to left to find space in the D, before teeing up von Gersum, who dived full-stretch to push it in.

Ireland opted for the chancy mode of attack, playing long balls into the circle, hoping its strikers could get a favourable deflection. Its players, who were tasked with pressing Germany hard, had to deal with the punishing heat in Madurai, which was displaying its full effect for the first time this tournament.

The 22-ranked side almost equalised when Jake Fulton was sent 1v1 on goal, but German defender Jannik Enaux managed to trail him and get a last-ditch tackle in before he could let out a shot.

The Irish managed to keep the opponent at bay till four minutes after the half-time break, when captain Paul Glander struck home a Penalty Corner (PC) to double the lead. Neville Rothman’s side’s resistance against the possession-dominant Germany eventually broke in the fourth quarter, when it conceded three goals in the space of three minutes.

Hasbach once again turned provider as von Gersum scored an identical goal, his second of the match. Christian Franz positioned himself at the post after injecting a PC in and turned in a lucky deflection to seal the deal after Lukas Kossel’s Penalty Stroke. The lower-ranked side did manage to get one back when Samuel Dale turned in a chest-high scooped pass from Rex Dunlop into the net.

“It was the first time we were facing a team opting for man-marking. But we knew that we were fitter than them [Ireland] and could make use of that,” Hasbach told Sportstar at the end of the contest.

Germany will now travel to Chennai, waiting to discover its quarterfinal opponent, while Ireland will remain in Madurai to take part in the lower classification rounds.

South Africa thumps Canada

Jaydon Brooker’s four-goal haul helped South Africa secure second spot in Pool A with a 9-1 win over Canada.
| Photo Credit:
G. Moorthy

Jaydon Brooker’s four-goal haul helped South Africa secure second spot in Pool A with a 9-1 win over Canada.

After a scorching start to the day, the heavens opened up just ahead of the second game, and it was South Africa that grabbed the upper hand early, with Brooker scoring two PCs in the first quarter. Canada pulled one back late in the period after Lucas Aardenburg stole possession in midfield and played in Navdip Chandi, who in turn set up Robin Thind to finish.

Unlike the first game of the day, this contest proved to be a lot more open. Canada, in particular, relied on sieving runs through the field to create chances. South Africa made full use of the gaps on offer, adding two more through Brett Horn and Sian Maart in the second quarter.

After the rain gave way to late-evening sunshine, Canada attempted to reduce the deficit but found a wall in front in the form of goalkeeper Daniel Dillon, who was impeccable in coming off his line and dealing with the threat early. Brooker added two more to his tally in the second half against the deflated Canadians.

A smart finish in the D following a slick give-and-go with Maart was followed up by a Penalty Stroke. Ross Montgomery’s goal seconds before the final hooter completed a comfortable win. With a positive goal difference of just five to show, the odds are stacked against the Rainbow Nation progressing as one of the two best second-place teams.

Published on Dec 01, 2025