Tokyo Olympics 2021: Kookaburras to face Germany in men’s hockey semi-final
The Kookaburras will be driven by Olympic pain when they face nemesis Germany and have a secret weapon they hope will propel them to the gold medal match.
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With Olympic revenge on their minds, the Kookaburras will draw on their secret Tokyo weapon.
The Kookaburras will be looking to get one back from their defeat in the 2012 Olympic semi-finals — where Germany would go on to win gold, but Australia were consigned to bronze.
That 4-2 defeat in London still stings, but Australia have been working unbelievably hard to ensure they won’t be beaten in steamy Tokyo conditions — where temperatures soar past the mid-30s and humidity rarely drops below 70 per cent.
Earlier this year, in the warm Perth heat, fitness coach Brendyn Appleby put the Kookaburras through a gruelling Yo-yo fitness test to get a gauge on where his squad was at.
The yo-yo is similar to a traditional beep test, where athletes will run back and forth between 20m markers at increasing speeds – though with short breaks at the end of each run to simulate stop-start team sports.
By the end of the session, more than half of Appleby’s athletes had run personal bests.
As a team, they’ve never felt better conditioned or better prepared for the knockout matches which come at the end of a challenging group stage, conducted in little over a week, as fatigue becomes as much of a factor in terms of winning as goals do.
“It’s a credit to the athletic quality of the players but also their mindset and character,” Appleby told News Corp Australia.
“They embrace hard training like you wouldn’t believe. It’s a very fortunate role I have, to work with people who like and are capable of training hard.
“The guys are going to redline themselves and do the best they can for the team. It’s about throwing everything into that team goal of getting gold.”
In defence, Tim Howard has to cover as much ground as anyone on the pitch and finishes matches with his trademark headband drenched in sweat.
“For sure we’ll be able to run with any team in Tokyo – our fitness is something we’ve always taken pride in as a group,” Howard said.
Tim Brand has had a magnificent tournament, scoring four goals through the unbeaten group stage, and says he’s never felt in better condition
“It’s the hottest Olympics ever. Fitness is going to play a big role, with some of the teams not so used to the heat,” he said.
“We had that fitness testing earlier in the year and there were some good scores there. I reckon we’re all in pretty good nick at the moment, I’d say I’m in career-best fitness.
“Mainly the fitness comes from training, how intense it is and how hard we go there.”
After exacting revenge in the quarter-finals against the Netherlands – who beat Australia in a penalty shootout in the World Cup in 2018 – the Kookaburras will be desperate to get some payback on Germany and put themselves into position to win their first gold medal since Athens 2004.
“It’s a tough game. They’ve been playing really well this tournament and for a few months, so it will be a great test,” said co-captain Aran Zalewski.
HOW KOOKABURRAS BURIED RIO DEMONS
Christy Doran and Joe Barton
Revenge at last.
Knocked out in Rio by the Netherlands at the quarter-finals and again in the 2018 World Cup semi-finals in India, the Kookaburras knew they would likely come up against their European foes in their bid for Olympic gold at some point.
In their heart of hearts though, they just probably never wished they would face the defending Olympic champions in the quarter-finals.
But five years of longing for another chance to make the final four, the Kookaburras prevailed over the European heavyweights in a dramatic penalty shootout.
Locked up at 2-2 at full-time, the Kookaburras’ years of shootout training paid off.
Andrew Charter, the three-time Olympian who felt the pain of being knocked out in Rio by the Dutch, was the hero.
Having stood in goals in the Kookaburras’ World Cup semi-final defeat in a shootout, the 34-year-old denied the Dutch three times before Tim Brand fired Australia into the semi-finals where they will play Germany on Tuesday.
On Sunday morning, Charter spent 30 minutes watching video tape of the Netherlands’ shooters in the likely chance another penalty shootout would eventuate.
It did, and in stifling heat where temperatures felt like 35 degrees Celsius in the Land of the Rising Sun, Charter’s diligence paid off.
“Me and my goal-keeper coach Dave Staniforth watched it this morning and we set a plan last night as well,” Charter told News Corp, describing the winning feeling as “euophoric”.
“We watched half-an-hour of video, put together some plans for specific strikers and then reviewed it this morning and put it into practise.”
In the moments before Charter’s incredible performance, coach Colin Batch got in his goal-keeper’s ear.
“Andrew’s a very experienced goal-keeper,” Batch recalled. “I just reinforced his strength and he can do it.”
Charter only took up goal-keeping as a 13-year-old when his older sister asked him to fill-in and stand between goals for her boy’s hockey side.
Two decades later and he put the pressure firmly back on the Dutch with a crucial opening save, before the defending champions wilted under the hot sun.
“Definitely the first save (is the most nerve wracking),” he said.
“Once you get one on the board, you put the pressure on the strikers and then you tend to capitalise from that.”
Capitalise they did, as Brand continued the clinical start from Blake Govers and Flynn Ogilvie to score.
Revenge was always on the Kookaburras’ minds following their 4-0 loss in Rio against the Dutch.
“The Rio disappointment and the World Cup, it really is a driver for a lot of the guys,” Charter said.
“Rio didn’t go anywhere like we expected and I think we’ve still got seven guys from that team.”
The Kookaburras twice led against the European champions as Tom Wickham scored in both halves, but a late penalty to Jeroen Hertzberger threatened to end Australia’s campaign in tears.
In the end, it was the Dutch who were left furious and needed to be consoled an hour after the match on the pitch to mend broken hearts.
For Batch, who was an assistant when the Kookaburras claimed their first and only gold at Atlanta by beating the Netherlands, there was a sense of “relief” after their narrow escape, with the coach believing his side were too slow and passive out of the blocks in the nervy encounter.
“We lost the World Cup semi-final against the Dutch in a shootout. That was our only blimp in that campaign, so we were very mindful of how good they are at shootouts and we saw that in the European championships,” Batch said.
“Again, a lot of lessons to be learnt from the game. We progressed, so we’re very happy about that.”
Remarkable bond driving Aussie gold medal favourites
In the kitchen of a nondescript Perth sharehouse, there’s a whiteboard that holds the secrets to the Kookaburras’ remarkable push to end a 17-year gold drought.
On it details the spirit of ‘273’ – the household of four Olympians that embodies the tightknit team culture that has the men’s hockey team warm favourites to claim gold in Tokyo.
The 273 – Tim Brand, Tom Craig, Tim Howard and Lachlan Sharp - have had their fingerprints all over Australia’s undefeated start to top Group A in setting up Sunday’s quarter-final with the Netherlands.
Brand has been Australia’s breakout star, scoring goals at will – including their first of the tournament. But he’s also tagged as the messiest of the house, an accusation he describes as a ‘massive stitch up’.
Howard has been inspirational and tireless in defence, while Craig – the house chef, along with Brand – and Sharp have all contributed to the scorching hot form.
Which takes us back to the whiteboard - Craig’s idea at the start of the year.
“I reckon it’s pretty amazing. I don’t think you’d find too many households with four Olympians,” Howard told News Corp.
“We had little things in the house – we had a ‘gold medal ready’ meeting at the end of last year and there’s a few notes on there from the meeting (on the whiteboard).”
The awesome foursome would live and breathe hockey.
It wouldn’t be unusual for them to have training in the early morning to beat the Perth heat, chat about hockey in the 20-minute journey back home – start talking tactics while cooking bacon and eggs for breakfast, only to sit up and realise two hours of time had passed while dissecting the team strategy.
“Living with the four of us, you get a bit of a bond that is pretty hard to get with anything else. You create that special bond. I think that’s transferred onto the field a bit,” says Brand.
When Howard found out he had earned selection on the Olympic team, he was with girlfriend Savannah Fitzpatrick – who is in Tokyo with the Hockeyroos – but he immediately scanned the email to check for the names of his three housemates.
“It was certainly pretty amazing to firstly see my name, and the journey is amazing and I was absolutely stoked to make the team, but also that my three housemates had made the team as well was certainly a pretty special one,” Howard added.
“I went home and we shared some hugs.”
The house has now disbanded – Craig and Brand are signed up to play overseas in Holland – but the whiteboard goal remains the same.
“One thing we’ve always said at home was we never just wanted to make the team – we really want to win a gold medal,” Howard said.
“Lach and I are going back to Perth, so it’s finished per se, which was pretty sad to shut the front gate for the last time as a foursome of the house.
Kookas’ first blip perfect prep for Olympic knockouts
“It’s a bit sad that it’s gone, but it’s been amazing.”
The Kookaburras hit their first bump in the road, but believe Friday’s tense draw with Spain shapes as the ideal preparation for the high-intensity knockout stages that stand between them and a first Olympic gold medal in 17 years.
The world No.1-ranked team had swept every challenger through its first four matches, securing the top spot in Group A and cementing themselves as gold medal favourites, before encountering a desperate Spanish side trying to keep their tournament alive.
A loss would’ve sent Spain home and, in steamy conditions, they played as if a medal was on the line – flooding their defensive half and aggressively pressuring the Australians on the ball.
The match itself was delayed by an hour after a torrential downpour hit Oi Hockey Stadium in the half hour before the scheduled start, but when the clouds cleared it simply left air that was thicker than a delicious Tonkotsu ramen and almost as stifling as the Spanish defence.
And still, Australia looked to have done enough to secure the win – until Spain’s Pau Quemada Cadafalch converted a penalty corner with 48 seconds remaining in the match to seal a 1-1 draw and a spot in the quarterfinals.
After the draw, Kookaburras coach Colin Batch dragged his team into a tight huddle and told them they were allowed to be frustrated by the result – but the important matches were still to come.
“It’s easy to be disappointed about that result, but the reality is we’ve been playing strongly for five group matches, we finish top of the pool and qualify easily for the quarter-finals,” Batch said afterwards.
“I needed to acknowledge that and now we review that game and get the learnings out of that.”
Spain’s Franisco Cortes Juncosa was immense in goal and kept Australia’s penalty corner specialist, Blake Govers, quiet – no mean feat given he’s tallied six goals through his first four games.
But Spain’s goal was breached early in the second quarter when Tom Wickham was on hand to score his third goal of the Olympics, reacting quickest when Govers’ drag flick was saved.
Australia’s are yet to register a clean sheet this tournament, but the defence has steadily improved from the opening game where they conceded three goals to Japan.
The intensity of Friday’s encounter, defender Tim Howard believed, was the perfect preparation for the next three matches – which Australia hope will end with a first hockey gold medal since Athens 2004.
“That’s what we’ll see the finals be like. 1-0, 1-1 right to the end,” Howard told News Corp.
“It’s important for us to grind out games and just get over the line in 60 minutes.
“The pleasing thing for us is our aim to come here was to make the quarter-finals and to qualify on top of the group’s pretty amazing for us.
“Now the tournament starts again.”
Australia on Sunday will play the fourth-placed finisher in Group B, which could be Germany, Great Britain or the Netherlands depending on the outcome of their final matches.
Kookaburras’ ruthless statement against powerhouse
It was the statement to the world that came a day late, but Kookaburras coach Colin Batch wants his men to keep a lid on it.
Given an almighty fright on the opening day of the Games, the Kookaburras started slowly but built into the game and ended up smashing powerhouse hockey nation India 7-1.
They conceded an early goal in the third quarter, but the dominance of their performance was heard more so than seen when Blake Govers did what Sam Kerr could not a night early and finish emphatically from the penalty spot.
A crashing sound like a building falling to the ground echoed around the near-empty Oi Hockey Stadium as the ball thundered into the bottom right of the goals after 40 minutes.
Two minutes later Govers had his second and the Kookaburras’ sixth.
A fine finish by Tim Brand in the final quarter sealed their stunning victory.
Exposed on the counter in hot conditions a day earlier against the host nation, the Kookaburras’ sharpness was back to its best on a beautiful evening where a light breeze kept conditions perfect for hockey.
But Brand, who was an assistant during the Kookaburras’ 2004 triumph in Athens, knows the gold medal is not won in the first week.
“I told them it’s the second game,” Brand told News Corp.
“The guys are so excited that they played really well and got a good result but it’s still only the second game in a long tournament.
“We’ve been there before and our aim before coming into this was to qualify for the quarter-finals and we still haven’t got enough points to do that.
“But there’s some very encouraging signs.”
Kookaburras survive huge scare against hosts
Kookaburras coach Colin Batch says there are “lessons to be learnt” from their nervy first-up 5-3 victory, as gold medal favourites survived a massive scare on the opening day of the Games by the host nation.
Leading 2-0 at the end of the first quarter after early goals from Tim Brand and Tom Craig, Japan fired home three times in the second quarter to raise eyebrows around Oi Hockey Stadium, south of the city centre.
Were fans permitted, they would have been left shell-shocked and in disbelief as the world No. 15 side went ahead of the world No. 1 as Kenta Tanaka cleaned up the scraps in front of Australian goalkeeper Andrew Charter and fired home his second.
But the third quarter belonged to Australia as Blake Govers powered low and hard from a penalty corner.
In hot conditions, with the sweat pouring from the foreheads of the Australians’ heads not to be confused with the heavy watering the pitch got pre-game, it was the sigh of relief the favourites needed.
Only days earlier, the Kookaburras had been denied a crucial second warm-up match against the Netherlands, the hockey powerhouse who dumped Australia out in the quarter-finals in Rio, because their bus failed to show.
And when captain Aran Zalewski beautifully finished with a reverse stick finish soon after Australia was back in front to settle the nerves.
Daniel Beale’s goal early in the final quarter gave Australia an important, tension-relieving victory for a side expected to be in the gold medal match.
Batch, who was an assistant during their 2004 Athens triumph, said Australia played into the hands of Japan by leaving themselves exposed on the counter and failing to control possession.
“We played into their tactics a little bit, their counterattacking,” the Kookaburras coach told News Corp.
“While we set out not to do that, we learnt a lot from that second quarter.
“They’re a good side. They’re very fast and have a good counter-attack. We didn’t take them lightly at all, but we needed to be smarter with what we did with the ball.”
While Australia’s next match is in the early evening, Batch said the importance of controlling possession was crucial given the extreme heat.
“We wanted to get off to a good start, we won the game, there are lessons to be learnt coming into India, so it’s a good start,” he said.
“Look, it’s pretty hot. We knew that, we expected that with the early games. As long as you have the ball and control the play, that’s going to assist the end result.”
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Originally published as Tokyo Olympics 2021: Kookaburras to face Germany in men’s hockey semi-final
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