Argentina stun Netherlands to win third title. (Pic credit: FIH)
Playing in front of a raucous crowd, the South Americans were crowned world champions after winning 3-1 in a shoot-out, following a 1-1 draw at the end of 60 minutes. They kept pushing the Dutch back and won numerous PCs. The equaliser appeared to shake the Dutch, who completely lost their composure in the shoot-out.
Goalkeeper Cristina Cosentino was the star, producing a string of superb saves — during the shoot-out as well as in regulation time — to help Argentina pull off the upset. The Dutch defence held firm for much of the contest, but eventually Argentina found a way through in the 54th minute.
They had lost the 2022 final too, and it looked like history was going to repeat itself as Netherlands took the lead in the 30th minute through Yibbi Jansen from a penalty corner and continued to hold on to their advantage well into the final quarter. For Argentina, Zoe Diaz’s effort was ruled out for backstick, but Victoria Granatto, Brisa Bruggesser and Sofia Cairo all found the net to seal a 3-1 victory. Following their seventh penalty corner, a mistrap saw Agustina Gorzelany fire the ball towards goal. A Dutch defender managed to get a stick to it, but the ball fell to Maria Granatto, who made no mistake from the left of the D, finding the back of the net to bring Argentina level with six minutes remaining. Pien Sanders, Felice Albers and Freeke Moes all failed to convert their attempts as Cosentino produced a sensational performance in goal. Late in the first quarter, Pien Dicke had a couple of chances, but Cosentino stood firm to keep the Dutch at bay.
Earlier, the final was a cagey affair, with neither side creating too many clear-cut opportunities. On Saturday, however, it seemed for a long time that Argentina would not be able to repeat that feat.