The German women’s hockey team beat the Dutch women’s team 4-3 after a penalty shoot-out to win Round 3 of the Rabobank Hockey World League in a thrilling final in Rotterdam on Saturday June 22. The teams that came in 1st, 2nd and 3rd were presented with their medals by Rotterdam city alderman Antoinette Laan, FIH chairman Leoandro Negre and Jan Albers, chairman of the Dutch hockey association KNHB.
The Netherlands dominated most of the match after scoring in the opening minutes. Germany equalized from a penalty corner with just two minutes to go, forcing the match into a penalty shoot-out which they won 3-2.
The Netherlands
As reigning Olympic champions and playing in front of a home crowd, the Dutch women expected at least a final placing in this, Round 3 of the Rabobank Hockey World League in Rotterdam. Team coach Max Caldas had a few start-up problems at the beginning of the tournament.
A weak performance from the Dutch women meant they failed to win their first group match against Japan. But Oranje gathered strength as the tournament progressed. They trounced India 8-1 in the quarter-final and then beat New Zealand 5-2 in the semis.
Max Caldas was looking forward to the match against Germany, which has a relatively new coach. ‘It is always fun to play against Germany,’ he said. ‘They have a fresh approach, the game is more lively and better to watch than it was.’
Germany
The German women kicked off their Rabobank Hockey World League campaign in a positive mood under new coach Jamilon Mulders and booked a 3-0 win against Belgium. The match against New Zealand was trickier, but Germany took the game 3-2. A quarter-final match against India was won by a convincing 7-1. A 2-0 win over Chile gave Germany a place in the semi-finals, where they beat South Korea 3-2. It was a tough battle at times, but the effort paid off and Germany made it to the final.