Spainish eves dent Aussie pride

Sydney, September 19: Australia’s hopes of becoming the first nation to retain the Olympic women’s hockey title suffered a minor setback on Tuesday when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Spain.

The Netherlands, the Champions Trophy winners, also drew 2-2 with South Africa as the underdogs shared the spotlight at the State Hockey Centre.The hockeyroos, regarded as the greatest women’s team ever, were stun by a second-minute goal by Spain’s Sonia Ignacio-Simo following a penalty corner.Alyson Annan drew level five minutes later, but the Spaniards defended stoutly for the rest of the match to earn a valuable point in Group A.South Africa, meanwhile, fought back from the brink, to force the Dutch women to share points in Group B.

The South African women, looking for their first point after losing the opening match against Germany, appeared buried when the Dutch led 2-0 with just 18 minutes remaining.