Games Korea path
THE Kookaburras are eager to take a big step towards Olympic glory when they attempt to secure a series victory over Korea in Cairns today.
Australia's men's hockey team outplayed Korea in game one of the three-Test series at the Cairns Hockey Centre, winning 4-1 on Saturday.
The world champions combined fluent attack and rock-solid defence to shut a willing Korea out of the contest.
Australia piled on the pressure early, forcing the Koreans to hand over possession in their own defensive territory, but did not score until the 22nd minute when Jamie Dwyer set up striker Grant Schubert's first goal.
Having broken through Korea's defence, the Kookaburras did not have to wait long to capitalise with fellow striker Des Abbott unleashing a superb tomahawk shot past Korean custodian Dong Sik Ko in the 25th minute for a 2-0 lead.
The score looked set to stay unchanged at the break but Korea hauled itself back into the game just seconds before halftime when Hio Sik You passed for Hye Sung Hyun to score.
Australia again created most of the scoring opportunities after the break, its expansive game and pressure play finally paying dividends in the 52nd minute when midfielder Kiel Brown swooped on a loose ball and slammed it past replacement Korean goalkeeper Myung Ho Lee.
As in the first half, the Kookaburras wasted little time getting on the board again with Schubert pouncing after a Kookaburras penalty corner shot was blocked by Lee, slotting his shot home to record a double.
Kookaburras defenders Aaron Hopkins, Luke Doerner and skipper Matthew Wells were outstanding for the victors, as were midfielders Dwyer and Robert Hammond and Korea were best served by 228-game veteran and skipper Jong Ho Seo and Eun Seong Hong.
About 3000 spectators viewed the match, which left Australian coach Barry Dancer pleased with what he saw.
"All around it was a good performance," he said.
"Considering we haven't played for a few months, to come back and play like that was particularly pleasing."
Dancer praised his side's performance and was pleased with the Kookaburra's strong start to the match and their effort to quickly dampen any hopes of a Korean second half comeback.
He said the Kookaburras would take a lot of confidence out of the result and would give several players who did not play in Saturday's game, including Liam De Young and Bevan George, their chance to impress in today's second Test.
The series is the final hit-out for the Kookaburras before they head to Beijing seeking gold.
AUSTRALIA 4 (Schubert 2, Abbott, Brown) d KOREA 1 (Kor Hyun) in Cairns.
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