Two goals in the third period fueled the Philippines to a 4-2 win over New Zealand for a successful debut win in Group G action of the 2024 Men’s Floorball World Championship Qualifiers on Tuesday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
Lucas Werelius and Melvin Alm Mendoza put the Nationals up by three, 4-1, with seven minutes left in the match, putting the game out of reach for the Kiwis.
“It was a tough game, but I’m really happy that we won our first game here,” said Mendoza, the squad’s all-time best scorer, who has now scored 43 goals.
Mendoza, who was named the Player of the Match, doubled the lead in the opening period with a well-placed penalty shot against Samuel Elkin.
This goal followed the opener from his captain, Lucas Oijvall, just two minutes into the contest.
New Zealand, however, found its bearings in the second period with the lone goal courtesy of Pavol Nekl.
The Kiwis almost leveled with a penalty call in their favor, but Ken Takizawa’s shot was taken care of by Filipino keeper Victor Lindberg.
“Our second period was not that good, so it was important for us to keep up the level in that last period. So, yeah, it was really good from us,” Mendoza added.
The Philippines would not be denied the win in the following 20 minutes as the incessant pressure eventually resulted in the two goals, with even a late score from the visitors’ Coby Crafar barely making an impact.
The Nationals will look to continue their winning ways on Wednesday, also at 4 p.m., against South Korea in the same venue.
