HOCKEY: The Kookaburras need to overcome two-time Olympic champions the Netherlands to keep their gold medal hopes alive in a must-win quarter final at Oi Hockey Stadium on Sunday.
The world number one team was unbeaten in their five preliminary matches in the space of seven days, but the tournament now goes up a gear with every match now an elimination.
Kookaburras Head Coach Colin Batch, who’s focus has been on building into the tournament after a disrupted preparation due to COVID, said his charges are ready to perform against the recently crowned European champions.
“There is a lot of belief in the group,” he said.
“Now we have to demonstrate it for another 60 minutes against the Netherlands.
“What’s gone before and what’s in a couple of days is irrelevant, it’s what happens in our match tomorrow that counts.”
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The Australians were outright leaders in Pool A ahead of India, but they had to wait on the results of matches in Pool B to find out their quarter final destiny, with Germany, the Netherlands and Great Britain battling it out for the second to fourth placings.
The two teams last played in June 2019 in the FIH Pro League in Amsterdam, a match the Kookaburras won 4-1. The Netherlands knocked the Kookaburras out of the 2016 Rio Olympics in the quarter finals, but a lot of water has gone under the bridge since then and this is a very different Kookaburras outfit.
“It’s good to know who we are playing; it could have gone three ways – Germany, the Netherlands or Great Britain,” Batch said.
"We know they are all tough games, all three have shown glimpses of excellent form in this tournament and we know it’s going to be a hard game against the Netherlands.
“We are looking forward to the quarter final. We haven’t played the Netherlands for a little while and they are the current European champions, they have a lot of pride in what they do, so they will be tough.
“The quarter finals go up another level, it puts you further into the tournament, you reach the semi-final if you win, and if you’re out you are finished. It’s not lost on anyone the importance of this game and we will be up for it.”
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The Kookaburras go into the match with four wins and a draw in their pool matches. Their draw in the final match against Spain being dubbed as valuable experience for the Knockout Stage.
The Netherlands finished fourth in Pool B with two wins (South Africa, Canada), a draw (Great Britain) and two losses (Great Britain and Germany).
Kookaburras co-captain Aran Zalewski believes the unique culture among the Kookas group is something which gives his side an advantage over their competitors and will be key when the pressure comes.
“We play a sport where generally we spend two or three months of the year playing together, so we are really close, like a family,” Zalewski said.
“These Olympics are a pretty challenging environment for teams, we eat by ourselves, spend a lot of time in our rooms, a lot of things can’t be done in groups.
“For us to maintain a strong bond through this and spend as much time together as we can is really important. We love being able to get out on the pitch and that’s where we can really come together.”
Tokyo 2020 Hockey - full schedule and results
Tokyo 2020 Olympics - Men’s Hockey
Kookaburras v Netherlands
Sunday 1 August 2021
Oi Stadium, Tokyo
Start time: 12:00pm local (1:00pm AEST)
Broadcast: LIVE on 7Plus
Kookaburras v Netherlands - Overall Record
Played 147; Kookaburras 75, Draws 32, Netherlands 40
Last time they met
22-Jun-19 FIH Pro League (Amsterdam)
Netherlands 1 (Janssen 7')
Kookaburras 4 (Govers 5'/18', Hayward 14', 45')
Kookaburras Squad: 1.Lachlan Sharp, 2.Tom Craig, 5.Tom Wickham, 6.Matthew Dawson, 10.Josh Beltz, 11.Eddie Ockenden, 12.Jake Whetton, 13.Blake Govers, 14.Dylan Martin, 15.Josh Simmonds, 16.Tim Howard, 17.Aran Zalewski, 22.Flynn Ogilvie, 23.Daniel Beale, 25.Trent Mitton, 29.Tim Brand, 30.Andrew Charter (gk), 32.Jeremy Hayward
Catriona Dixon