Dutch hit Olympic champions Germany for six to win men's EuroHockey Championships title

The Netherlands crushed defending champions Germany 6-1 to claim their fourth EuroHockey Championships title ©EuroHockey Championships

Olympic silver medallists The Netherlands struck gold at the men’s EuroHockey Championships as they thrashed defending champions Germany 6-1 in a one-sided final here today.

The Dutch appeared keen to avenge their defeat to the Germans at London 2012 and raced into a 2-0 lead in the first quarter thanks to goals from Billy Bakker and Mink Van der Weerden’s penalty corner.

They moved further in front midway through the second stanza as Jeroen Hertzberger rifled home from an angle to extend their advantage to 3-0 against a shell-shocked German side who just could not get their usual rhythm going.

When Van der Weerden bagged his second and his side’s fourth, again from a penalty corner, the destination of the EuroHockey Championships trophy looked all-but decided.

It was to get worse for Germany as Rogier Hofman rounded off a perfectly-executed counter-attack to give them a scarcely-believable 5-0 lead before the end of the first-half.

After a scoreless third period, normal service was resumed as Mirco Pruijser rounded Germany goalkeeper Nicolas Jacobsi and coolly slotted home The Netherlands’ sixth.

Germany did manage to get on the scoreline thanks to Christopher Ruhr following a brilliant solo run but it mattered little as the Dutch celebrated their fourth European gold medal.

Ireland recorded an historic 4-2 victory over England to claim bronze ©EuroHockey Championships

The result handed The Netherlands their first European title since they topped the podium at the 2007 EuroHockey Championships in Manchester, also in England, and was the biggest final winning margin in the competition’s history.

It also ended a torrid run for the Dutch in EuroHockey Championships finals as they came into the game having lost six straight matches against Germany.

In the bronze medal contest, world number 14 ranked Ireland stunned hosts England as they came from behind to claim a deserved 4-2 victory.

Goals from Harry Martin and Ashley Jackson either side of a Shane O’Donaghue strike gave the home side a 2-1 lead before Alan Sothern, Eugene Magee and O’Donaghue’s late second gave the Irish their first-ever win over England at a top-level tournament.

The gold medal contest got off to a frenetic start as Bakker reacted quickest in the box to give his team the lead after six minutes, before Van der Weerden demonstrated his penalty corner prowess to double Germany’s trouble.

The Netherlands were able to maintain complete control of proceedings, keeping firm in defence while constantly looking potent going forward, and Hertzberger’s rasping finish followed by Van der Weerden’s second penalty corner effectively ended the match as a contest.

As Germany pressed in search of a way back into the match, Hofman charged up the field and converted his one-on-one with Jacobi, and Pruijser then added the gloss on an emphatic Dutch performance with a sixth late on.

Tom Boon finished as the tournament's top scorer as he hit seven goals in Belgium's 11-4 win over Russia ©EuroHockey Championships

In what was a high-scoring start to the day, Belgium’s Tom Boon surged to the top of the goalscoring charts as he netted seven in his side’s thumping 11-4 win over already-relegated Russia.

The victory for the world number five saw them clinch fifth place overall following a disappointing tournament.

The frenetic beginning to the action continued when Spain edged a thrilling contest with France with a 4-3 victory that saw them retain their top tier status, while condemning the French to relegation to the EuroHockey Nations Trophy.

As well as ending their campaign on a high, the Spanish team left London with an Olympic place safely in the bag following Ireland’s semi-final defeat at the hands of The Netherlands.