Great Britain saw their Hockey World League Final dreams ended when they were beaten 2-1 by New Zealand in the quarter-finals in Argentina.
Olivia Merry’s goal in the last minute of the game proved the difference between the teams after Great Britain had come from behind to level in the second half.
With the game seemingly on course for a shoot-out, Merry popped up to fire home with a reverse stick which beat an unsighted Maddie Hinch to go in.
New Zealand had taken the lead in the first half through Anita Punt, who finish neatly after a succession of saves from Hinch.
Great Britain equalised with six minutes remaining when Alex Danson was stopped illegally by Black Sticks keeper Sally Rutherford. From the penalty stroke Helen Richardson-Walsh equalised but it proved to be in vain after Merry’s late heroics.
Attention now turns to the quarter-final play-off game and Danson insists Britain will produce an improved display.
She said: “We’re hugely disappointed. New Zealand had done their homework on us. We didn’t quite get the opportunities we wanted up front, we didn’t quite put that in.
“But we are a team going forward, we’ve built momentum through this tournament. We are a very strong, a larger squad so we’ll rebuild and go into the next game strong.
“You’ll see the GB team at its best (in the next game), you’ll see us going forward. We’ll get some goals in the back of the net.”
Coach Danny Kerry was frustrated by the result but hopes his team has learned from the loss.
He added: "I think the players now understand a little bit more. The younger players now get the tempo of the game and the heat of the quarter final format. They will probably play with a bit more brain and we won't let games get away from us."
Sportsbeat 2015