Men’s hockey captain David Ames admitted that Team GB's quarter-final shootout defeat to India was an opportunity missed.
The world number two ranked side drew 1-1 with India in regulation time, who had had a player sent off in the second quarter.
Lee Morton equalised for Team GB after going behind but could not find a winner in regulation time.
In the shootout, India goalkeeper Parattu Raveendran Sreejesh delivered a masterclass to save two strokes.
“It’s going to hurt for a long time,” 35-year-old Ames said. “Not sure how long they were down for 10 men, maybe 40 minutes or so.
“Pretty much a domination in terms of the ball, possession-wise. On another day, we’re a little bit more clinical.
“Which if we’re honest with ourselves, we haven’t been as clinical as we want to, or need to be if we want to be standing on podiums.
The drama continues... we're going to a shootout!
— Team GB (@TeamGB) August 4, 2024
Score remained India 1-1 GB after full-time.#Paris2024 https://t.co/Faxm8yoAel
“Ultimately, one or two more goals and we could easily have won that game. Credit to India, they played really well, defended really well and they’ve got a really good goalkeeper.
“But massive opportunity missed by us.”
The two sides had met at the same stage in the last Olympic Games and the result was the same at Tokyo 2020.
But it GB were handed a man advantage when Amit Rohidas was sent off after catching a Will Calnan on the head with a high stick.
The card seemed to rally India as their captain Harmanpreet Singh scored from a penalty corner to give the team in blue the lead.
Morton got his third goal of the campaign to equalise with a poacher’s finish to bring GB back into the contest.
From there it was battle to find a winner, but Sreejesh stood tall to deny the attacks and then proved the hero to force Conor Williamson over the bar and then saved Phil Roper’s shot before Raj Kumar Pal confirmed GB’s exit at the quarter-final stage.
Ames added: “It’s what the great goalkeepers do. They stand up when it’s needed and they stand up when it’s counted, and we have two that do the exact same for us.
“The big moments, they matter, especially when you get to these competitions and these moments in the knockouts.
“Ultimately, we didn’t because of the scoreline and the number of chances. I think we’d be very worried if we weren’t creating anything, but the fact is we created some real good opportunities, high corner numbers, shots on goal.
“We just have to be a little more clinical. It’s the small moments and details that count, and we missed it a little bit today.”
Sportsbeat 2024