DUBLIN, June 12: Pakistan, reeling from a series of defeats on the European tour, gained a bit of ground with a 4-2 comeback win over ever- moving Ireland in their opening match of a 4-nation tournament here on Wednesday evening.

In a match billed as the toughest encounter of the event because of home team's aggressive hockey exhibition and their speed, Pakistan came from being two goals down to equalise 2-2 at half time and then firing two goals in space of five minutes to score a fabulous win in front of a packed house in damp conditions.

The tourists were on the backfoot in the initial stage of the game as the hosts rocked them with two goals in three minutes to appear in control of the situation.

Ireland drew the first blood in the 8th minute through Stephen Butler who ran through the entire defence with a forceful sprint to put the ball in the heart of the goal post with a powerful shot.

With crowd behind theior side, Ireland attacked relentlessely as Pakistan weeere jolted by another goal off Timothy Cockram's strong push which landed in the post in the 10th minute as Pakistan forwards Muhammad Waqas, Rehan Butt and Muhammad Zubair failed to hold their own.

The tourists finally retaliated in the 18th minute when spearhead Shakeel Abbasi connected a scoop to beat the entire Irish defence to score a superb goal.

That was like a a shot in the arm for the Pakistanis. Rehan who posed constant threat to the opponents, brought his team level with greater anticipation in the 19th minute by banging the board.

However, the fear of defeat came back to haunt Pakistan when experienced Muhammad Saqlain wasted a penalty stroke and Irish team came closer of finding the net off successive short corners.

A fine rearguard from Pakistan just five minute before the close saw them restoring the edge through two quick goals as Saqlain atoned for his previous fault in the last minute off a pass from Rehan to find the net. In the opening match of the tournament, Olympic qualifer Canada upset Britain. Pakistan will now face Britain on Friday.

Pakistan hockey team coach, former Olympian Naveed Alam said the hard fought 4-2 win over Ireland is a step forward and urges the team to do better in the 4-nation tournament.

“We were looking for a win and we achieved it after a lot of endeavour and mainly due to the fighting spirit of players at a stage when we were two goals down,” he told newsmen here on Thursday.

He said things changed dramatically in the beginning for Pakistan and the team came out of the dejection mainly due to collective efforts.

“Look at the way the fortunes changed in the match. We were two goals down but then we managed to level and finally added two more goals to ensure a convincing win which was important for us to further progress in the event,” he said.

Praising the performance Muhammad Saqlain, Rehan Butt, Shakeel Abbasi and captain Zeeshan Arshraf, he said even the younger players Waqas, Zubair and Shabbir also impressed with fighting abilities and combined efforts. “The match was played at a high speed and our players never ran out of stamina. Of course there misses by forwards but it happens in such matches.”

Khawaja Zakauddin wisely changed the pattern of the game from time to time changed match plan to cope with the ever demanding game of their opponents. “Players were told not to opt for defensive hockey and at stages when Ireland tried to slow down the pace of the game with long hitting and man-to-man return passing, we tried to cut down their plan with coordination between the flanks and the mid field,” he said.—APP