Netherlands women deliver hockey masterclass in 5-1 semi-final win against Great Britain

The Netherlands have beaten Rio 2016 Olympic champions Great Britain in the semi-final of the Tokyo 2020 women's hockey tournament.

After the initial stages of the game saw the teams level, the Netherlands - wold no. 1 and reigning world champions - began to dismantle a Great Britain side hoping to repeat the heroics that saw them win the Olympic final five years ago against the same opponents.

However, history would not repeat itself at Oi Hockey Stadium, as the Netherlands scored five to Great Britain's one to take their place in the Olympic final.

Since their Rio loss, Netherlands have gone on to win every championship they have played in, including the coveted 2018 World Cup. In the early minutes of the second quarter, they broke Britain's resistance, Felice Albers scoring through the legs of Maddie Hinch - the hero of Rio - on 19 minutes, before Marloes Keetels doubled their advantage with a slick move from inside the circle.

From there, it was plain sailing for the Dutch, who scored three more goals to end the dreams of the British team, with Albers doubling her goal tally on 38 minutes and Maria Verschoor and Frederique Matla rounding off the scoring.

The Dutch now go into Friday's final, where they will meet either Argentina or India, who play each other in the second semi-final at 19:00 local time. Great Britain will face the loser in the bronze medal match.