Olympic champions the Netherlands kept their 100% record intact as the women's teams took precedence on day three of the 2010 FIH Hockey Champions Trophy in Nottingham,England (July 13th).
The Dutch were forced to come from behind to beat China two-one in a tense and entertaining match.
England took on and defeated perennial rivals Germany in their match, with midfielder Helen Richardson the hero for the home side after scoring both goals in their two-one win, after Argentina had dominated against bottom side China with a four-nil thrashing.
The Netherlands top the table with nine points, three in front of England in second place with Argentina third.
The 18th edition of the FIH Hockey Champions Trophy continued in Nottingham in the heart of England on Wednesday, with the women's matches taking precedence.
Argentina had only claimed one point from their opening two matches of the tournament prior to this fixture - to put their dream of winning a third consecutive Champions Trophy tournament in serious jeopardy but, after a goalless opening half, went ahead in the second period.
Delfina Merino put Argentina ahead in the 42nd minute, scoring from close-range following a superb pass from Carla Rebecchi. Noel Barrioneuvo doubled their lead from a penalty corner in the 54th minute.
Argentina cemented the result with two strikes from open play late in the match, with Luciana Aymar getting on the scoresheet in the 65th minute and Daniela Sruoga completing the rout just minutes later.
It was Argentina's first win from four games in their Champions Trophy campaign. The partisan crowd were in fine voice as they welcomed home nation England onto the pitch at the Highfields Sports Club, with many able to utilise various pieces of merchandise that didn't get much use during the soccer team's dismal performance in South Africa.
Midfielder Helen Richardson opened the scoring for the hosts, shortly after a German goal was disallowed for an infringement. However, the visitors found the equaliser through Natascha Keller in the 61st minute after she fired in a penalty corner rebound.
But England roared back to life just three minutes later, with Richardson sealing her double to give England a well-earned and hard-fought victory over their perennial rivals.
The win moves England up to second in the Samsung FIH Champions Trophy league table.
The Netherlands went into their game against China hoping to maintain their unbeaten run, but fell behind in the fifth minute when Ma Yibo created space in the circle before finding the bottom left corner of the Dutch goal.
China relied heavily on defensive play to limit the attacking capabilities of the top-ranked team - but were unable to hold out and conceded as Maartje Paumen drew the Olympic champions level from a penalty corner.
Paumen then struck again eleven minutes from time with another blistering penalty corner to win the match.
The Netherlands top the table with nine points, three in front of England in second place with Argentina third. AP
