It was left to Australian skipper Madonna Blyth to convert the final penalty, which she did with remarkable poise well befitting of her 291 appearances in a green and gold shirt.

As the double defending champions, runners-up to The Netherlands at the World Cup earlier this year, the Australians were the big favourites heading into the Games, and had duly swept all before them to reach the final, scoring 32 goals and conceding just one, in a 7-1 semi-final thumping of South Africa.

In comparison, England, a disappointing 11th at the World Cup, a performance which cost coach Jason Lee his job, had limped into the final, losing 3-0 to tonight's opponents in the preliminary stage before requiring a shoot-out to see off New Zealand in the last four.

But, with the match beginning in the aftermath of a lengthy period of torrential rain, the sticky and wet conditions were always likely to prove a leveller, and so it proved. 

There was a wonderful atmosphere in the National Hockey Centre despite the weather
©Getty Images



After a first half which provided little in the way of opportunities for either side, England's Lily Owsley pounced to score 10 minutes after the break, slotting home from open play at close range after a flowing move down the right.

For the next 20 minutes, Australia huffed and puffed but failed to blow the English house down, with the prospect of a first victory for the country in either men's or women's hockey appearing increasingly likely.

A fanatical crowd had even begun counting down, with cries of "England, England" reverberating around the arena.

But one of the oldest rules in sport is to never write off Australia and, after a penalty corner was retaken because the defence broke too early, Jodie Kenny broke English hearts by driving home for her 10th goal of the tournament. 

Cue the drama of a penalty shootout.

With Australia leading 2-1 after several strong saves by Rachael Lynch, goalscorer Kelly was tripped by England goalkeeper Maddie Hinch and had an open stroke at goal to win it for her team.

Inexplicably the 26-year-old shot wide, but when Lynch produced another fine save from Nicola White, it was left to captain Blyth to finish the job, and she duly did.

The night will be remembered as a great advert for the sport, with the vocal spectators vastly adding to the spectacle despite the bad weather they had to endure.

Australia celebrate as England are stunned by the conclusion of the match ©Getty Images



The worst of the rain came during the bronze medal match, where two goals from Jordan Grant helped New Zealand to a 5-2 win over South Africa, which confined their opponents to fourth place for a second successive Games.

In the classification matches earlier in the evening, India defeated the hosts Scotland for fifth place, while there were also wins for Malaysia and Wales.

The hockey action will now conclude tomorrow with the men's final, following a second semi-final earlier which very nearly lived up to the subsequent excitement of the women's final.

After Australia defeated England 4-1, India recovered from 2-0 down to win a 3-2 thriller against New Zealand. 

This set up the exact same gold and bronze medal matches as seen four years ago, and Australia will be seeking a repeat of their 8-0 triumph in New Delhi to complete another golden double,

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