Germany and South Korea advanced to the semi-finals of the men's hockey World Cup after playing to a goalless draw on Wednesday.
The result in the Pool B match in Moenchengladbach saw the Dutch being the losers as they moved from first in the group to third -- a point behind Germany and South Korea.
Germany now play Spain in today's semi-final while Korea take on Pool A winners Australia, who defeated Pakistan in the late game.
PHOTO: EPA
Knowing that a draw would be enough to see both teams through and knock out the pre-tournament favorites Netherlands, neither side seemed too eager to risk anything throughout the 70 minutes.
Although there was no indication that the match had been fixed, both sides seemed content to sit back and see the clock run down.
Attacking moves and goal chances were few and far in between and not a single penalty corner was awarded during the match.
German striker Christoph Zeller came close in the third minute with a shot that forced South Korean goalkeeper Lee Myung-ho into a terrific save, while his German counterpart had to be at his best to keep out Yeo Woon-kon's shot in the 19th minute.
If there was little happening in the first half there was even less action in the second in a match that reminded fans of Germany's infamous 1-0 victory against Austria at the 1982 soccer World Cup -- a result that saw both teams advance at Algeria's expense.
Not surprisingly, many of the 9,000 fans in the stadium jeered the players as they left the field at the end of play.
Dutch star player Teun de Nooijer blamed the South Koreans for his side's elimination.
"They did absolutely nothing in the match. A team like that does not deserve to be in the semi-finals," he said.
Goalgetter Zeller defended his side's tactics.
"Why should we put ourselves in danger for the Dutch. Of course it is really terrible for them. It was also not a good game for our fans, but we will try to compensate them in the semi-final," he said.
His coach Timo Peters did not want to answer questions about the Dutch.
"I only want to speak about my side and they gained enough points to advance to the semi-finals. It is terrific that we are still in the running with such a young side," he said.
Germany avoided Australia after the Olympic champions ensured top spot in Pool A with a 3-0 defeat of Pakistan thanks to two goals from Bevan George and one from Jamie Dyer.
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