‘Empathy and passion’: Alyson Annan hopes for more female hockey coaches

The Netherlands women‘s coach Alyson Annan hailed her “self-learning, self-reliant” squad after racing to a third Olympic title in four editions on Friday.

The Dutch proved a class apart in Tokyo, outscoring their Pool opponents 18-2. They then won their quarter-final 3-0 over New Zealand, 5-1 against Team GB in the semi-final and held off a stern challenge from Argentina in the final to come through 3-1.

“This is a team that wants to be good every day. The intensity in which they train is the same intensity in which they play. They want to become better players and better people which gives them a better understanding of each other.