The Dutch women had only reached the final after beating New Zealand 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out, but the margin of their victory against the Chinese was a little easier as goals in the 39^th and 48^th minute from the tournament’s leading scorer Caia van Maasakker gave them a 2-0 win.

It was van Maasakker who broke the deadlock. Ironically, the penalty corner shot fell to her after a scuffed shot at the top of the circle and the tall defender swept home with precision.

Van Maasakker's second goal was also from a slightly misplaced penalty corner.

This time, the shot bounced in off a defender.

New Zealand, who came so close to the final on Saturday, earned the reward of the bronze medal with a 1-0 win over South Korea.

The deadlock was broken in the 54^th minute when Brooke Neal got hold of a penalty corner and rifled it home.

Australia, who are in transition at the moment, earned a critical 3-1 win over Italy in the fifth/sixth-place match, thus claiming the last automatic place in the 2018 World Cup being hosted in London along with the top four sides.

There was final disappointment for the hosts after some good earlier results as they were beaten 4-1 in a penalty shoot-out by Spain in their seventh/eighth-place match.