Scotland miss out at Hockey World League semi-final

Willie Marshall is congratulated by forward Alan Forsyth after scoring the equaliser against Canada but Scotland were just one goal away from a quarter-final place

Scotland missed out on a World Cup place after a 1-1 draw with Canada in Pool B at the Hockey World League semi-final tournament in London.

Derek Forsyth's team, vying for a World League final spot in India in December, fell behind to Gordon Johnston goal following a penalty corner as the second quarter ended.

Surbiton's Willie Marshall levelled for the Blue Sticks in the third quarter.

But failure to win means they miss out on a last-eight place in London.

Victory would have lifted Scotland, competing at this level for the first time, above Pakistan into fourth spot in Pool B, behind India, the Netherlands and Canada. All three of those countries are ranked at least 10 places higher than the Scots in world hockey.

They lost their opening match against India 4-1 and suffered a 3-0 defeat by the Netherlands prior to Monday's 3-1 loss to Pakistan.

Scotland will play a ninth/10th-place play-off against Malaysia, China or South Korea on Thursday at 11:00 BST.

Head coach Forsyth said: "I felt we were the better side in the second half, but at this level we need to take our chances.

"This has been a fantastic experience for all of us and we will take plenty from the tournament into the Europeans in August."

The Hockey World League semi-final in London features 10 teams, including England in Pool A, and precedes the second semi-final tournament in Johannesburg, which runs from 9-23 July.

Seven teams proceed to December's finals in Bhubaneswar to join hosts India.

Ten teams from the London and Johannesburg semi-finals will join India and the five continental champions at next year's World Cup, which is also being staged in Bhubaneswar.