Wales men qualified for the 2026 World Cup courtesy of a bronze finish at the qualification tournament in Santiago.

The men experienced highs and lows in Chile, but once again capitalised on the abundance of promise shown to achieve an historic result.

Head coach Danny Newcombe’s pre-tournament prayers of doing “something really special” and doing “(themselves) justice” were answered as the men qualified for the World Cup for just the second time in their history.

The opening game saw them take on tournament hosts Chile, who proved tough opposition with their home backing, losing 2-1.

Early signs were nothing but positive for the Welsh and, after Nic Morgan put his side 1-0 up within four minutes, there was reason to be gleeful.

A spirited showing from the hosts, however, quickly put a dampener on things; two goals in quick succession ensured Chile went into the break 2-1 up.

“The first half was a little bit sloppy,” Gareth Furlong commented after the game. “Defensively, we set pretty high standards, and I don’t think we were quite there today.”

The second half proved a lot better for Wales, however, and Furlong could’ve won it had he not seen his penalty corner saved brilliantly by goalkeeper Adrian Henriquez following his earlier leveller.

Despite the optimism bred in that second-half, matchday two proved a tough one for Wales as they came up against the world’s number nine ranked side, France.

Despite a 5-0 defeat, Wales turned things around as they thumped their Scottish opponents by the same scoreline.

Winning by three was a necessity for qualification to the next round, and they wasted no time as Jack Pritchard opened the scoring within four minutes from Furlong’s lovely tee-up. The second came from Player of the Match Fred Newbold just six minutes later, before he completed his brace after the halfway point. A first-half strike from Rhys Bradshaw made it 3-0 at the break, while Sam Welsh wrapped up three massive points in the third quarter.

Just two days later, Wales faced the daunting prospect of a semi-final clash with Ireland, who had maintained a 100% record to top Pool B, scoring 15 in the process.

Unfortunately for Wales, the winning streak continued for the Irish, who, following a 4-0 victory over Wales, would eventually seal gold against France in the final.

“In tournament hockey,” Wales’ Hywel Jones commented after the full-time whistle, “it’s important to not get too high or too low; we will regroup and come back stronger.”

In a bronze medal match that presented a straight shoot-out for World Cup qualification, Jones’ words came good.

Two expertly converted penalty corners in the space of five first-half minutes from Furlong gave Wales a 2-0 lead at the midway point. And despite a spirited showing from Poland in which they pulled one back late on, the Welsh defence held firm, exemplified by a Player of the Match performance from Draper.

“If you asked me a week ago if we were going to go to a World Cup, I’d have told you absolutely no chance,” the Wales and GB international said post-match.

“I’m over the moon, so speechless. It’s the work the guys have done in this tournament that has made the whole tournament so good.”

“We’ve got a bit of a mix of experience and youthfulness in the team, and we probably lacked a little bit of composure when we needed it but then we made up for it with grit, determination, and a want to win.”

Wales’ men will travel to Belgium and the Netherlands for the 2026 World Cup this August, hoping to build on their 11th-place finish in 2023.

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