Hockey Women's World Cup: Australia and Spain into semi-finals

Australia are aiming to win the World Cup for a third time

Australia could face hosts England in the World Cup semi-finals after beating Argentina in the last eight.

Argentina dominated for long periods but the resolute Australians secured a 0-0 draw and a penalty shootout.

Argentina captain Delfina Merino then fired wide and Brooke Peris scored the decisive penalty, so Australia will next face the Netherlands or England.

Meanwhile, Spain will play either Ireland or India after a shock 1-0 victory over two-time winners Germany.

Germany were on top for three quarters of the match and missed a host of good chances, with Charlotte Stapenhorst twice going close in the first half.

Spain sensed their opportunity in the fourth quarter and, with the Germans growing increasingly nervous, Carmen Cano scored a late winner to complete a memorable rearguard effort.

Germany's Anne Schroder could not prevent Spain reaching the semi-finals for just the second time

'Netherlands can't be happy to face us'

England face the Netherlands at 20:15 BST on Thursday, with Australia awaiting the winner.

Lily Owsley scored the second goal in England's 2-0 crossover win over South Korea and says they will respect the Netherlands, who she says remain "the best team in the world" after winning the World Cup in 2006 and 2014.

"Nobody's pretending they're not an incredible side," Owsley told BBC Radio 5 live.

"We can't go in there being arrogant or too confident. But we've got nothing to lose.

"I really think we can do it; we just need to stay defensively strong. If the game stays tight, I think they'll start to panic."

England and the Netherlands have met in several high-profile encounters in recent years, with the Dutch winning at the 2017 EuroHockey Championships, while many England players featured in the Great Britain team that won a dramatic 2016 Olympic final.

Owsley says that the Netherlands' Olympic loss remains "at the forefront of their minds".

"They wouldn't say it, but they can't be happy about facing us," said Owsley.

"Every time they face us now, they want to prove to everyone they're still the best team in the world.

"I love it - the more they're out for revenge, the more I want to knock them back.

"These kinds of games only come around once, twice or three times in a career. We'll do everything we can to get that semi-final place."

Quarter-final schedule

Thursday, 2 August

Ireland v India, 18:00 BST

Netherlands v England, 20:15 BST