Great Britain’s hockey team restored some much-needed confidence in a disappointing Olympic campaign with a 4-1 victory over Argentina.
First-half goals from Teddington’s Rob Moore and Reading’s Tom Bertram were followed after the break by strikes from Danny Hall and Mark Pearn to set up a clash with South Africa for ninth place.
It is still Britain’s worst finish for 36 years but at least today’s result gave the players a chance to erase the memories of Monday’s 8-2 humiliation by Pakistan.
A uneventful first half, that was being won territorially by the South Americans, burst into life in the 25th minute when Moore squeezed home the opener.
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Graham Moodie’s cross from the left was deflected into Moore’s path and his reverse-stick push from a narrow angle was helped towards the target by the body of goalkeeper Juan Vivaldi before Ezequiel Paulon’s desperate touch sent the ball over the line under pressure from Barry Middleton.
Argentina had Lucas Rey sin-binned in the 33rd minute and while they were down to ten, GB added a second with a penalty corner in overtime.
Tom Bertram’s straight strike rebounded back off Vivaldi’s pads and he smashed a half-volley inside the right-hand post.
Three minutes into the second half Bertram’s long pass picked out Guildford forward Hall at the top of the circle and he spun before flicking through the legs of Vivaldi.
Niall Stott and Argentina’s German Orozco were both sin-binned in the 48th minute after the Dundee Wanderers forward retaliated to being smacked across the hand.
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The Argentinians lost the will to compete until five minutes from time when a left-wing cross was deflected onto the post by Brett Garrard’s stick to present Carlos Retegui with the simplest of tap-ins to make it 3-1.
However, three minutes from time Hall put Reading’s midfielder Pearn through and he slipped a shot past Vivaldi for the fourth.
Jason Lee, the coach, was satisfied with today’s performance but refused to get excited over only the side’s second victory in the tournament.
”I knew if we changed our approach we would be more competitive in these kind of games,” he said.
”It is just because we tried to be a completely different side. Earlier in the tournament we were trying to win a medal.
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”Now we are down the bottom we have to try to approach it as a side which has to be hard to beat. That got us into the game today and we built on those foundations.”
“We had to realise where we were and obviously change to make sure we didn’t get beaten,” Lee said.
“We are not far off where our ranking was - and that includes Spain below us who are a solid top-four and probably one of the best teams in the tournament.
“The reason we don’t have a better chance of improving is because we took the approach of trying to dramatically improve it.
“We can’t be a side capable of winning a medal and play hockey like that even though we tried.
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“I think the players realise that themselves.”