Australia will face Spain in the bronze medal match of the Hockey World League Semi-Final in Johannesburg after the Kookaburras fell to Belgium 2-1.
A frenetic first quarter saw both sides determined to get the upper hand but it was Belgium who broke the deadlock at 22 minutes with Cedric Charlier scoring.
Amaury Kersters doubled the advantage six minutes after halftime before Jeremy Hayward pulled a penalty corner back for Australia on the stroke of three-quarter time.
The Kookaburras thought they had found an equaliser in the final minute after Kiran Arunasalam knocked the ball into the net but on video review it was found to have touched a foot on the way through.
Belgium now faces Germany in the final.
"We had a plan that we went out with and we did OK, but it was a tough game. We did well to come back and get a goal in the final seconds of the third quarter and get back into the game," Kookaburras head coach Colin Batch said.
"We did score in the last 30 seconds which would have levelled the score but it was disallowed on review. It was disappointing, but we learned a lot tonight. Our drive now is for the final game and to make sure we play well in that."
Share
