HOCKEY NEWS - Japan maintained their unbeaten record and moved a step closer to the semifinals of the FIH Men's Hockey Nations Cup but had to dig deep to overcome a determined Scotland side at Hartleyvale Stadium in Cape Town on Sunday.

The Asian outfit secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory thanks to a goal from Koji Yamasaki, who reacted sharply to deflect the ball into the net after a teammate's shot appeared to be drifting wide of the post.

The decisive moment came with just two minutes remaining in the third quarter and, although Scotland threw everything at Japan in search of an equaliser, the Japanese remained disciplined and focused to record their second win of the tournament to go with an opening draw.

Yamasaki was delighted to have made the difference.

"I was very happy to score that goal," he said. "I was just focused on the ball and that enabled me to get it into the net.

"We play a high-pressure game and used our counter-attack to get into their half and stop them from scoring.

"Our main focus was on this match because we knew we had to win today."

Japan's final pool fixture is against New Zealand, who were due to play later on Sunday against Korea before the tournament's rest day on Monday.

Following their opening draw against Korea, Japan have now beaten both Malaysia and Scotland to move to seven points from three matches.

Their semifinal hopes will rest on the outcome of their clash with New Zealand, as well as the remaining results in Pool A.

Despite suffering their third successive defeat, Scotland remained in contention throughout and created enough opportunities to salvage something from the game. They earned several penalty corners and also saw shots bounce back off the crossbar and the right-hand post.

Scottish Captain Robert Field on the attack, supported by teammate Euan Gilmour, chased by Japan at the 2026 Men’s FIH Hockey Nations Cup being played in Cape Town, South Africa on Sunday 14 June. Japan beat Scotland 1-0 at the Hartleyvale Stadium.

Coach Neil Allan admitted his side were disappointed with the result but believed there were positives to take from the performance.

"We dominated a lot of possession during the game and limited Japan to one chance from open play, which they scored, as well as a couple of penalty corners," he said.

"But that's the difference at this level. We hit the post and the bar, and had a few short corners, but we probably need to improve our work inside the circle.

"Coming to this tournament has been fantastic. We don't often get the opportunity to play teams at this level, and we have a young squad with an average age of around 23, so it has been a great experience for them."

Scotland’s Ian McFadden controls the ball against Japan at the 2026 Men’s FIH Hockey Nations Cup being played in Cape Town, South Africa on Sunday 14 June. Japan beat Scotland 1-0 at the Hartleyvd71kale Stadium.

Scorers:

Japan 1 (Koji Yamasaki); Scotland 0

Late match: New Zealand v Korea

The latest standings are (matches in brackets):

• Pool A: Japan 7 (3), New Zealand 3 (1), Malaysia 3 (2), Korea 1 (1), Scotland 0 (3)
• Pool B: France 6 (2), South Africa 3 (2), Ireland 3 (2), United States 0 (2)

‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’