Womens Champions Trophy Hockey - Canberra

[Dakink]

Australia and the Netherlands (There you go Titans#1) are setting the pace in the 2005 Champions Trophy for women in Canberra.

Aus and Ned lead on 6 points, followed by Argentina and China on 3 and Korea\Germany yet to earn a point.

Aleady looks like a 2 horse race between Aus and the world's number 1 team Holland.

[Teegy]

Go Australia and all of our Toowoomba Girls who are playing for them

[Dakink]

Day 4 Results,,

Aus - Arg 1-1
Ned - China 1-1
Ger - Kor 2-1

[Titans#1]

Oh damn, another one where I have to choose....

For now though, GO HOLLAND AND AUSTRALIA!

[Dakink]

Hockeyroos down world No.1s
December 3, 2005

Australia 3 The Netherlands 1
THE Hockeyroos can make the step from work-in-progress to finished article tomorrow after powering into the women's Champions Trophy final with a victory over world No.1 The Netherlands today.

Needing at least a draw to finish in the top two in the six-nation tournament, the Hockeyroos produced more than expected to sweep aside the tournament favourite.

The two teams will meet again in tomorrow's final at the National Hockey Centre.

For a rebuilding team aiming mainly to get valuable experience and respectable results going into the Commonwealth Games and World Cup next year, Australia now has a chance to win a seventh Champions Trophy, considered unlikely early in the week.

With seven players aged 23 or under and three teenagers, the No.4 ranked Hockeyroos ? who have ridden their luck throughout the tournament ? eyeballed the world's best team throughout today's match and eventually took control in the second half.

A first half goal to young midfielder Madonna Blyth ? her second in two matches ? and two in the second to Rebecca Sanders and Angie Skirving sealed a win skipper Nikki Hudson hopes will prove a turning point for her young team.

"These kids have stood up and played so well, especially against the Dutch who have some quality players and play with such confidence," Hudson said.

"They can be really proud of what they've done.

"We're happy to be in the main game tomorrow and now we're going in confident.

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"Hopefully we come out as energetic as we were today."

While the younger players have grown, the experienced Skirving ? the Hockeyroos' best throughout the round robin stage ? continued her stellar form with another solid game in defence.

She also scored the match-sealer with an unstoppable penalty corner flick seven minutes from time to keep her team unbeaten and top of the table.

Argentina, which had earlier ensured Australia would need to get a result against the Dutch following its 3-2 win over Korea, will take on China in the third place playoff tomorrow.

The Hockeyroos took an early lead after 11 minutes through Blyth, whose looping chip found a way over the Dutch keeper.

But the Dutch squared things up just two minutes later when an Australian defensive lapse allowed striker Sylvia Karres to round goalkeeper Toni Cronk to score.

Cronk had earlier made an important save from an early Dutch penalty corner.

But she and her defence, which has been intensely pressured yet held firm throughout this tournament, had a lighter load to deal with today.

The Hockeyroos matched The Netherlands throughout the first half, then lifted the bar in the second to play their best hockey of the tournament and overrun their more fancied rival.

Sanders gave Australia a deserved lead in the 55th minute from close-range, before Skirving's rocket ensured the victory to delight the crowd of nearly 3,000.

In today's other match, China edged Germany 1-0.

Germany and Korea will now meet in tomorrow's fifth place playoff.

[Teegy]

from foxsports.news.com.au

Australia 4 The Netherlands 5
THE Netherlands defeated Australia in the women's Champions Trophy final 5-4 in a gripping penalty shootout at the National Hockey Centre today.

Scores were deadlocked at 0-0 after normal time, before the match went to penalties.

With the scores locked at 4-4 after the first five penalties, Australia's Nicole Arrold missed her side's first sudden-death attempt after The Netherlands' Maartje Paumen had scored to put her side ahead.

The match was full of drama, both teams having goals disallowed.

The Hockeyroos' Wendy Alcorn claimed she had got a touch on a long drive three minutes after halftime, but the umpires ruled otherwise.

Then they ruled out what would have been a Dutch winning goal in extra-time, cancelling out Janneke Schopman's effort.

The Dutch also lost their leading goalscorer at the tournament Sylvia Karres with 13 seconds left after she was yellow-carded, ruling her out of the shootout.