The Dutch squad produced a near faultless display during the season-ending competition at the Real Club de Polo in the Catalan city.

Teams were forced to bide their time before taking to the jumping course after a problem with the venue’s floodlights saw competition delayed for a short period of time.

The Netherlands got off to an ideal start, despite the delay, as Jur Vrieling produced a clean round on VDL Glasgow v. Merelsnest.

Michel Hendrix followed his team-mates effort by picking up just a solitary penalty before Marc Houtzager received four.

Houtzager’s tally ultimately did not county in the final rankings, with the scores from the top three riders on each team counting.

The final Dutch rider, Harrie Smolders needed to produce an excellent round to secure the title, as the United States had only four penalties in second place.

Smolders proved up to the challenge by going clear on Don VHP Z, giving The Netherlands overall victory.

They finished on a total of one point, with the American team having to settle for the silver on four.

The bronze medal was won by Belgium, who also ended with four penalties.

Due to the higher discarded score, the Belgian team placed behind the US.

Switzerland and Sweden both finished on eight penalties to miss out on the podium positions, while defending champions Germany were a surprising sixth on nine penalties.