Goals galore for Aussie hockey aces in Pro League romps
Australia's national hockey teams have enjoyed another stand-out day in the FIH Pro League with the Kookaburras continuing their title defence by hitting Ireland for six in Belgium before the Hockeyroos outclassed their English hosts 3-0 in London.
The men's team were the first in action on Wednesday in Antwerp, the Kookaburras brushing aside Ireland 6-1 - exactly the same score they'd beaten them by 24 hours earlier in Antwerp and a fifth consecutive victory on their European sojourn.
Their unbeaten European run has seen the team shoot up six places to second in the standings, but still nine points adrift of strong tournament favourites, the Netherlands.
Australia were once again in a different class to a struggling Irish outfit, with two goals from Nathan Ephraums, and further strikes from Jeremy Hayward, Craig Marais, Davis Atkin and Ky Willott - courtesy of a brilliant volleyed assist from Tom Craig - sealing the most comfortable of victories.
"It was nice to back up last night's match with another win. The Irish are very tough and to score six goals against a team like that is a great result," said Marais.
"We've got a reasonably young group and there's not much fear. We've been given the licence from Mark Hager and the coaching staff to play with freedom and you can see that in a lot of the boys, everyone's taking the game on, everyone's supporting each other and it's really enjoyable."
On a sweltering afternoon at the Lee Valley Centre in London, with temperatures nearing 36°C at pushback, Australia's Hockeyroos were this time too hot for their hosts, just 24 hours after losing 1-0 to the same opponents.
The Hockeyroos broke the deadlock in the second quarter, with Moreton Bay's Jade Smith lashing home a blistering finish - her fifth goal in 12 appearances since making her debut in February.
They doubled their advantage on a counter-attack in the 38th minute with Grace Stewart netting her 38th international goal before Greta Hayes sealed the win in the final quarter.
"The team has been putting in a lot of effort behind closed doors, so to come out here and get the win is a huge result," said player of the match Tatum Stewart.
The Hockeyroos are now fourth in the table, but well adrift of the top three, with the Netherlands already crowned champions ahead of Argentina and Belgium.
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