Kookaburras fail to defend title
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Spain's Sergi Enrique and Xavier Ribas celebrate victory. (Getty Images: Shaun Botterill)
The Australian men's hockey team will play off for bronze at the Beijing Olympics after a 3-2 loss to Spain in the semi-finals.
The reigning champion Kookaburras blew a 2-0 lead and will now face the Netherlands in the bronze medal game.
Spain takes on World Cup champion Germany in the final on Saturday after both pulled off shock reversals from the semi-finals of the Athens Olympics, where the Australians went on to defeat the Dutch in a penalty shoot-out in the gold medal match.
Spain fought back after being two goals down, Santi Freixa scoring the winner two minutes before the final whistle.
Australia appeared to have sewn up the game when Des Abbott scored within 30 seconds of the start and Eddie Ockenden increased the margin early in the second half.
Spain, often regarded as the best team never to have won the Olympic title, drew level with Eduard Tubau scoring twice in a five-minute burst before Freixa slammed the winner following a penalty corner.
A desperate Australia took the unusual step of replacing goalkeeper Stephen Lambert with a striker in a bid to equalise in the last two minutes, but the Spaniards held their ground to complete a remarkable win.
Germany defeated the Netherlands 4-3 in a penalty shoot-out in the other semi-final after the European heavyweights were locked 1-1 at the end of extra-time.
It will be Germany's first final since winning the gold medal at Barcelona in 1992, while Spain will bid for their first Olympic title after losing the deciders in 1980 and 1996.
-ABC/AFP
