Despite losing the previous two World Cup finals to Germany, coach Ric Charlesworth believes Australia will be third time lucky.

By Adarsh Vinay

Australia coach Ric Charlesworth was pleased to see his team enter the hockey World Cup final for the third straight time. He was happy with his side's performance in the 2-1 win over Holland in the semifinal.

"As expected it was a tough game. A World Cup semifinal is always going to be difficult. We kept possession for most of the game and made many chances. We had enough quality today to justify the win," he said.

Australia will be up against Germany in the decider on Saturday. Charlesworth was all praise for the Germans who beat England 4-1 in the other last-four tie.

"Germany are a good side. They are consistent and have quality players all around the field. Everyone talks about their defence but they have some dangerous strikers too. They have a good method with seemingly no weaknesses. But there are some areas we hope to exploit," said the Australian.

Australia played Germany in the final of the previous two World Cups, with the latter winning on both occasions. Charlesworth refused to accept that his team would be apprehensive. "Those matches are history. They will have no bearing whatsoever. We are confident we can beat them on Saturday."

A win on Saturday would be a personal milestone for the Australian coach, who has won the World Cup as a player in 1986. But Charlesworth said that was not on his mind. "It is not about the coach or about personal milestones. These players deserve to realize their potential. That is all that matters," concluded the legendary Australian.