The Kookaburras have confirmed why they're the world no.1 and a dominant force at the Commonwealth Games, blitzing India 7-0 to secure the gold medal on Monday night (AEDT).
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Nearly a year after they clinched silver at the Tokyo Games, the Aussies went one better in Birmingham, with a five-goal opening half setting up the thumping victory.
Illawarra duo Flynn Ogilvie and Blake Govers were both outstanding, with Ogilvie scoring a goal and setting up two others, while Govers got the ball rolling with Australia's first goal. Jacob Anderson and Nathan Ephraums both mustered doubles, and Tom Wickham also found the back of the net.
The result continues the Kookaburras' record of winning every Comm Games gold medal since men's hockey was first introduced in 1998. The performance came just a day after the Kookaburras had to fight back from two goals down to beat England 3-2 in their semi-final.
Australia's opening goal came within the first 10 minutes. From a short corner, Govers made no mistake as he drilled the ball home to give the Kookaburras a 1-0 lead.
With the clock ticking down until quarter-time, the Aussies doubled that advantage, with Ogilvie setting up Ephraums to find the back of the net.
The reigning Comm Games champions continued to grab the ascendancy in the second quarter. Following a scramble from a short corner, Anderson pounced to give them a 3-0 lead.
With around five minutes left in the half, there was a pause in the game after India's Manpreet Singh was assisted from the field with a shoulder injury. From the restart, the Aussies continued to press hard, with Tim Brand assisting Wickham to score their fourth goal.
Anderson made it 5-0 in the 27th minute, completing his double, as the Kookaburras continued to cause carnage.
The scoring dried up in the third, but the dam wall finally burst with three minutes left, as Ephraums completed his double to give Australia a 6-0 lead. The goal occurred on the back of some great work from Ogilvie, who intercepted on halfway, ran the ball forward and set up his teammate to score.
The party continued in the fourth quarter, with the Aussies surging forward to set up Ogilvie to score their seventh goal in the 46th minute. Wickham appeared to have made it 8-0 in the late stages, however, his goal was denied on video referral after he was adjudged to have used the back of his stick.
But it mattered little, as the Aussies sealed a commanding win to win their seventh Commonwealth Games gold medal.
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