Spain humiliate Britain 8-1 in Champions Trophy hockey

Spain humiliated Great Britain 8-1 to reach the top four of the Champions Trophy hockey tournament Tuesday, as hosts New Zealand advanced with a barnstorming comeback against the Netherlands. In the last day of initial pool play, New Zealand trailed 3-0 against the Holland but salvaged a 3-3 draw, to consign Olympic champions Germany to the bottom four of the last major men’s hockey tournament before the London Games.Germany could only manage a 3-3 draw against South Korea, not enough to remain in the elite group, while Australia thrashed Pakistan 6-1.Britain slumped to their heaviest defeat in the competition’s history, found wanting under an unrelenting inquisition from a Spanish team determined to make amends for a disappointing sixth place in this year’s European championship.Coach Jason Lee’s side went a goal up through skipper Barry Middleton after 23 minutes but from there it was all one-way traffic as Spain tore apart the British defence.“We were very, very poor... we physically and technically couldn’t cope,” Lee said, lamenting the way his team gifted Spain “two of the softest goals I’ve ever seen” to begin the rout.Lee was upset not only at the lop-sided scoreline, but also the lack of fighting spirit his team displayed in their meek capitulation. “The British have a great deal of pride and we’ve dented it quite severely today,” he said. Spain responded to Middleton’s opener with four goals in seven minutes to lead 4-1 at half-time.After a Juan Fernandez fifth just after the break, Spain scored another three in the final minutes of the game to pile on the agony for Britain.Spanish captain Santi Freixa, who scored twice, said his team had brought an attacking philosophy to the tournament and were capable of beating any opponent on their day.“Every day we’re growing and improving, learning from what we didn’t do right the day before... today we showed we’re not just here to play in the tournament and we’re in the top four again,” he said. The result means Spain join Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands in the top four group that will compete for medals at the eight-nation tournament.