Women's Hockey World League: Britain clinch gold with win over China
Last Updated: 22/06/15 4:43pm
Hollie Webb and Alex Danson were on target as Great Britain clinched gold in the World League final thanks to a 2-0 victory over China in Valencia.
Having secured Olympic qualification in Saturday's semi-final triumph over Germany, Danny Kerry's side recorded their seventh-straight win thanks to two penalty corner goals.
In the opening quarter Sophie Bray, who finished joint top scorer in the competition with five goals, tested China goalkeeper Dongxiao Li, while Maddie Hinch held out Yang Peng's effort at the other end.
Britain broke the deadlock with six minutes remaining in the second period after Nicola White won the first penalty corner of the match and Webb stepped up to break the deadlock with a rocket strike into the corner for her first goal of the competition.
The Brits then won another penalty corner seconds ahead of the break which Li did well to keep out as she blocked Kate Richardson-Walsh's shot.
Five minutes after the restart, Kerry's side doubled their score as a driving run from Danson earned another penalty corner. Webb's initial shot was saved, but a further corner saw Danson fire home Richardson-Walsh's pass with a diving finish for her fourth of the tournament.
Mengyu Wang and Xiaoxue Zhang tried to get something back for China down at the opposite end but Britain held on for the gold medal.
Captain Richardson-Walsh was delighted with the victory and her side's performance, and hopes they can continue their winning streak at the EuroHockey Championships in two months' time.
She said: "It was an amazing performance in this tournament.
"We said at the beginning that we'd take one game at a time and build momentum, and that's what we've done.
"It wasn't our most stellar performance today but we dug in and took our chances when they came.
"I've played with Alex a long time and it's really sweet to link up and see that corner come off.
"We're here as a squad of 18 but we have a squad of 31 and we really want to build for the year ahead. We've got the Unibet EuroHockey Championships in August, it's always nice to play as a home nation against Scotland it's a really good rivalry and I can't wait."
