Great Britain win hockey World League bronze, Australia are champions
Sunday 5 July 2015 20:54, UK
Barry Middleton was on target as Great Britain beat India 5-1 to secure third place in the World League tournament, while Australia were crowned champions.
The Aussies continued their dominance in the tournament to get their hands on gold after beating Belgium by a single goal on Sunday.
Britain lost to Australia in Friday’s semi-final but ensured they finished the tournament on a high as Alastair Brogdon, Chris Griffiths, Ashley Jackson, Adam Dixon and Middleton notched goals to secure a comprehensive victory over India.
The third-placed finish caps a remarkable few days for Bobby Crutchley's men who confirmed their place at next year's Olympics in Rio de Janeiro with a top-three finish.
Brogdon deflected Dan Fox's shot from a penalty corner to give Britain the lead on 11 minutes and Griffiths guided home Nick Catlin's pass to double their advantage shortly before the half-hour mark.
The second half was barely two minutes old when Jackson finished off a fine counter-attack move to make it 3-0 and Britain notched a fourth five minutes later when Dixon flicked home a penalty corner.
Britain were in complete control by that point and captain Middleton scored their fifth moments later to add further gloss to an already impressive victory and make his personal milestone that little bit more special.
Rupinder Singh pulled a goal back for India with an hour gone but it was nothing more than a consolation strike.
Middleton said: "I want to score in every game but it's one of those things to score on my 350th appearance.
"It looks nice on the outside and it's a good feeling but as long as we're winning 5-1 I don't mind who's on the scoresheet."
