The Kookaburras' quest for golden is 1 measurement person aft advancing to the semi-finals astatine the Tokyo Olympics, winning a tense quarter-final that they doubly threatened to propulsion distant aft blowing leads.
Gold medal favourites, the Australians led 1-0 and past 2-1 but a dogged Netherlands broadside doubly deed backmost to level, the full-time hooter going with the lucifer each quadrate astatine 2-2.
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There is nary other clip successful Olympic hockey, which meant Australia's tourney hung connected a punishment shootout, a cutthroat method to find a winner.
However erstwhile there, the Kookaburras were crystal acold successful their execution, delivering the cleanable shootout with 3 goals and 3 saves to beforehand to the semi-finals and a guaranteed changeable astatine a medal.
It was each the sweeter owed to the past betwixt these large hockey nations. Five years aft losing to the Netherlands during the quarter-finals of the Rio Games, the Kookaburras got their redemption.
Kookaburras goalkeeper Andrew Charter stepped up and became the leader during the punishment shootout arsenic the Dutch failed to find the nett connected their archetypal 3 attempts.
Charter's heroics were backed up by trio Blake Govers, Flynn Ogilvie and Tim Brand, who each scored to nonstop Australia done to the semi-finals wherever they volition look Germany vying for the accidental to play for a golden medal.
"Absolutely astonishing to get into a semi-final astatine the Olympics ... it wasn't our champion crippled but we grinded for that one," Brand said.
"And we've been practising shootouts for a agelong clip aft the World Cup 3 years ago, truthful to get a triumph determination was precise pleasing."
Australian manager Colin Batch lauded the effort of his goalkeeper but admits the Aussies present look a large situation against Germany, who earlier contiguous defeated Argentina 3-1.
"He's a precise experienced goalkeeper and plays large successful large occasions," Batch said of the Charter.
"We judge we person a fig of ways of playing and tactically we've held up implicit the past mates of years. But it's a immense situation up of america now, the Germans."
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