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Kookaburras smoke Great Britain to make Pro League final

The Kookaburras have named their squad for 2020. (AAP Image/Supplied by World Sport Pics/Koen Suyk)
29th June, 2019
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Jacob Anderson fired a superb hat-trick as Australia hammered Great Britain 6-1 to book their place in the final of hockey’s Pro League Grand Final in the Netherlands on Friday.

The top-seeded Kookaburras put on a ruthless display in Amstelveen as they matched their Hockeyroos counterparts in reaching the gold medal match – the women’s team having beaten two-time world champions Argentina in their semi-final on Thursday. 

Great Britain took the lead when Ashley Jackson flicked in from a penalty after five minutes.

But Anderson then served up a stunning three-goal burst inside five minutes as Commonwealth champions Australia took a firm grip on proceedings.

And second-half goals from Jeremy Hayward – who was also green carded for a bodycheck on Briton Harry Martin – Blake Govers and Tim Brand sealed a comprehensive win. 

Australia will now play either Belgium or the Netherlands in Sunday’s final, leaving Kookaburras coach Colin Batch proud.

“Extremely happy with the performance tonight – to win a semi final in any competition is a great achievement,” he said.

“We rebounded well after an early goal against, shows the fighting quality of our team. We need to recover well now and prepare for our next match.”

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Meanwhile, the Hockeyroos will face world champions the Netherlands – coached by former Australian international and double Olympic gold medallists Alyson Annan – in their Grand Final on Saturday.

The Dutch battled back from a goal down to defeat Germany 2-1 in their semi-final on Thursday but will be wary knowing the Aussies remain the only team to beat them in this season’s Pro League fixtures.

© AAP

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