FIH Hockey World League: Australia Thrash Canada; India face Great Britain in Quarters
Great Britain will take on hosts India in the quarterfinal after they drew their final group match against Belgium 3-3 at the FIH Hockey World League Final 2015 in Raipur. Australia thrashed Canada 6-0 but failed to go top of the Pool A standings.
India will face Great Britain in the quarterfinals on Thursday after the British drew 3-3 with Belgium to top Pool A in the Hockey World League (HWL) Final at the Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel Stadium in Raipur on Tuesday. (Hockey World League: Roelant Oltmans Defends Indian Strikers Ahead of Quarter-Finals)
In what can be judged as the best match of the tournament, Great Britain and Belgium fought tooth and nail to get the better of the other. But in the end the draw was a just result as there was hardly anything to separate the two sides. (FIH Hockey World League Final: India Lose to Netherlands, Finish Last in Pool B)
In the quarterfinals tomorrow, Netherlands, which topped Pool B, will face Pool A laggards Canada while world champions Australia, who finished second in Pool A, will take on Olympic champions Germany.
Hosts India, who finished last in Pool B with just one point, will play Pool A toppers Great Britain while Belgium will be up against Argentina on Thursday.
The last pool match between Great Britain and Belgium was neck and neck as both the teams played with tremendous pace from the opening whistle.
Great Britain took the lead in the seventh minute with a field strike before Belgium equalised with a brilliant strike from Thomas Briels in the 13th minute.
It was an end to end hockey as both the teams attacked each other's citadel continuously but it was the British side which enjoyed the advantage at the halfway break after Alastair Brogdon restored their lead in the 28th minute.
The second half was no different as both Belgium and Great Britain were in no mood to give an inch to the other.
The Red Lions equalised in the 38th minute through a fine field goal from Tanguy Cosyns before Great Britain took the lead for the third time in the match two minutes later when Alan Foryth found the back of the net.
Trailing Belgium went on the offensive and attacked the Great Britain goal relentlessly and in the process earned a penalty stroke which was beautifully executed by Tom Boon in the 42nd minute.
Australia Continue Dominance, Thrash Canada
Australia thrashed Canada 6-0 to finish second in the Pool A standings at the FIH Hockey World League Final 2015.
Meanwhile, Canadian goalkeeper David Carter produced a man of the match performance but it was not enough to stop Australia from registering a huge win.
The Kookaburras were at their fluent best in the first quarter, taking a 4-0 lead thanks to goals from Daniel Beale, Jeremy Hayward, Dylan Wotherspoon and Matthew Dawson.
It was an electric start from the world champions, but Canada tightened up their defence and a string of excellent saves from Carter kept the Aussies at bay until the dying minutes when Kieran Govers found the target before Beale scored his second of the match to complete the scoring.
"I think that there was a little bit of improvement from the Great Britain game, at the very least it was a step in the right direction," said Australia's Eddie Ockenden, referring to his side's defeat against the British on Sunday.
On being named man of the match, Canada's Carter said: "It is definitely bittersweet. They are such a class side that we got pretty much outplayed in the first quarter, but from there I thought we did alright. We conceded two goals pretty late, which makes the result look a bit worse than it was, I thought."