KEY POINTS

  • The keeper was Britain's hero on the night.
  • Holly Webb scored the winning penalty for Team GB.

Great Britain's women have won the Olympic hockey title after defeating the Netherlands in a nail-biting penalty shootout in Rio. Keeper Maddie Hinch was the hero for the newly-crowned champions as she stopped all four of the penalties from the world's number one team before Holly Webb sealed their triumph.

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Hinch's heroics were not confined to the shootout, either, as she played a crucial role in normal time, including saving an early penalty stroke from Maartje Paumen. The game finished 3-3 at full-time, with Hinch producing a string of eye-catching saves to ensure that the Netherlands, the defending Olympic champions, did not run away with the contest.

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Thereafter, Britain won the shootout 2-0, with Helen Richardson-Walsh and Webb scoring the decisive penalties to win their first Olympic hockey gold medal.

Although Britain took the lead in the first quarter, the Dutch came storming back in the second period to lead 2-1. At that stage, Great Britain could have easily caved-in under intense pressure, and were forced to defend a string of penalty corners to keep themselves in the game.

But, with Hinch at her brilliant best between the posts, Britain refused to wilt and against the run of play, managed to level the contest through Crista Cullen when they were trailing 2-1 in the second quarter and then again through Nicola White at 3-2 in the fourth.

The Dutch progressed to the final via a penalty shootout, but they had no answers on this occasion for the skills of Hinch. Webb netted the gold medal-clinching penalty to spark wild scenes of celebration in Rio.

"It is difficult to put into words what this means. I am struggling to believe it," Great Britain's Helen Richardson-Walsh told the BBC. "17 years ago when I started my career we were so far off. We have put in so much hard work, grown and grown over the last eight years.

"We have got an incredible group of players and staff and we had the belief. It just means absolutely everything to get this gold medal."