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MELBOURNE Defending champions Australia stormed to the top of the standings in the mens field hockey Champions Trophy with a crushing 7-2 victory over title rivals Netherlands here on Sunday.
It was the highest margin by Australia over the Netherlands in their 31 encounters at Champions Trophy tournaments.
The hosts stretched their unbeaten run over the Dutch to six Trophy encounters with a dominating display to back up their opening day 4-0 rout of South Korea.
The Dutch have now failed to win any of their last nine matches against Australia at the Champions Trophy, World Cup and Olympics.
Grant Schubert scored a first-half hat-trick as the Australians went to half-time 5-1 up and in firm control over the errant Dutchmen.
Netherlands scored first, a second-minute penalty corner to Taeke Taekema, but the Kookaburras hit back with Schuberts triple and debut Trophy goals to Brett Dancer and Glenn Turner, extinguishing any hopes of a Dutch win.
Schubert started the avalanche with a penalty stroke conversion, Turner drove home a field goal and Dancer flicked a penalty corner conversion on a variation before Schubert pounced again with field goals inside two minutes just before the break.
Dutch coach Michel van den Heuvel admitted the match was lost in the calamitous first half.
'In that period we were overpowered by Australia and the effect of the jet-lag on us was clear,' he said.
Australia did not apply the same pressure on Netherlands in the second half, disappointing their coach Ric Charlesworth.
'The game drifted in the second half and it was a disappointing half for us,' Charlesworth said.
Luke Doerner, who plays in the Dutch hockey league, confounded the Netherlands when he hit a penalty corner drive for Australias sixth goal rather than using his customary drag-flick.
Jamie Dwyer nailed a backstick drive from the left over the head of goalkeeper Jaap Stockmann for Australias last goal before Robert Kemperman scored on a breakaway for a Dutch consolation goal in the last minutes.
South Korea came from a goal down early in the second half to beat Olympic champions Germany 5-3 in the early match on Sunday.
The Koreans superior fitness and ability to counter-attack with long passes into Germanys backfield yielded them four goals in the last 20 minutes.
England was to face Spain in the days final game. - AFP
