For six years it was Kieran who was lethal from the penalty corner, the striker playing a key role in Australia's dominance of international hockey throughout the past decade.

Now Blake is the star for Kookaburras and on Tuesday night he was the hero for the side.

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The Albion Park talent delivered the crucial strike in the Tokyo Olympics semi-final to send the team into their first gold-medal match since 2004.

In helping Australia prevail 3-1 over Germany, Blake has made amends for the disappointment of London 2012, when Kieran's Kookaburras fell to the Germans 4-2 at the same stage of the competition.

On that occasion the side let a 2-0 half-time lead slip, their Olympic dream slipping through their grasp.

This time there would be no second-half collapse, the Kookaburras defending bravely in the face of a German attacking onslaught.

Now, Govers and fellow Illawarra talent Flynn Ogilvie have the chance to create history and secure Australia just their second gold medal in the men's hockey competition at the Olympics.

A win would avenge the many demons this team has faced over the years, the side suffering repeated disappointment on the sport's biggest stage.

Australia will take on Belgium in Thursday's final, the Belgians defeating India in the first semi-final earlier on Tuesday.

For now, however, the Kookaburras must recover from a draining, gripping and intense semi-final.

The match was Aran Zalewski's 200^th in Australian colours and he said the side did what had to be done to prevail.

"Great to get the win," Zalewski said. "Germany had a really, really good game as well. I think some of our defensive work was top notch and some of the guys played really well.

"It was a full, collective effort today. We finished our chances and denied them as best we could. Really happy with the result."

The two teams produced a performance deserving of the occasion, the clash a high-quality affair.

Scoring opportunities were few and far between throughout the first quarter, with Australia managing just one attacking circle penetration in the opening 15 minutes.

The Kookaburras made the most of it, Govers connecting with Ogilvie who found Tim Brand in front of goal to open the scoring in the seventh minute.

Germany maintained composure as the quarter progressed, eventually drawing the first penalty corner of the match.

A side renowned for execution from the short corner, Lukas Windfeder made no mistake to level the scores.

While the opening quarter was a defensive tussle, the Australians started to take control in the second.

Germany made a number of uncharacteristic errors, handing the Kookaburras prime scoring opportunities.

They couldn't break through and 10 minutes into the period momentum swung back towards the European side.

Multiple attacking raids eventually led to a penalty corner, which quickly led to another penalty corner and eventually a third. A challenge followed, the video referee ruling in Australia's favour.

Just two minutes later the Kookaburras were back in attacking territory, Govers handed a chance to break the deadlock.

As he so often does, the Albion Park talent was lethal with his drag flick and put Australia up 2-1.

The goal put the Kookaburras exactly where they wanted to be at half-time, but there was still plenty of work to do in the second 30.

Germany lifted after the break, the team desperate to level the scores.

That saw the side take control of the game and Australia were forced to defend valiantly to maintain their advantage.

Eventually it looked like Germany had been rewarded for their dominance, the referee awarding a penalty corner with 10 seconds remaining in the quarter.

Australia reviewed immediately and for the second time in the match, the video referee overturned the on-field decision.

Leading 2-1, the Kookaburras were 15 minutes away from the gold-medal match.

It was 15 minutes of desperation as Germany threw everything they had at their opponents.

This time, however, the Australians held firm, Lachlan Sharp making the most of an empty net to seal the victory with one minute remaining.

For Sharp, it was the perfect end to an eventful evening.

The 24-year-old conceded two penalty corners, generated the crucial second-quarter short corner and spent two minutes on the sidelines with a green card.

With the win secured, Sharp is eager to finish the job on Thursday night.

"I'm a bit lost for words at the moment, kind of just taking it all in," Sharp said. "We work so hard for moments like these. To win an Olympic semifinal, one more (win) to go, can't get any better.

"They're not always the nicest goals. We work hard to get to the right positions and it was nice for it to fall in in the end."