Swiss disappoint in hockey

Nothing to smile about for coach, Ralph Krueger Keystone

The Swiss team failed to score against Germany during the ice hockey world cup championships, ending the match 0-3.

The Swiss side had numerous chances of scoring in Sweden, but failed at every turn to take advantage of them. The team also failed to make the most of having a higher number of players than their German opponents for a crucial seventeen minutes of the game.

The Swiss coach, Ralph Krueger, was clearly frustrated at the result, the second defeat in the championship.

On Friday, Switzerland was solidly outclassed by the Czech Republic – who are the reigning championship titleholders and 1998 Olympic winners – 5 goals to nil.

“It’s a terrible feeling – we played very well, but we couldn’t score – that’s the bottom line,” Krueger told swissinfo. “But that’s the way it is.”

“We had a lot of chances, a lot of power play and plenty of traffic in front of the net. But the German goalkeeper played a tremendous game and we couldn’t score,” he said.

The German coach, Hans Zach, said his team has fought against a “very aggressive” Swiss side.

The pressure is now on for Krueger’s team to beat Japan on Monday – a win is essential to allow the Swiss to go through to the intermediate round.

“We just have to keep working and keep working hard for tomorrow’s game, which we know we have to win,” Krueger added.

swissinfo with agencies