Ashley Jackson celebrates his penalty corner goal against Spain
Picture: Ady Kerry/GB Hockey

by Alex Hoad at the Olympic Games

Ashley Jackson says the prospect of overcoming the Netherlands and booking a place in the Olympic gold medal match would be ‘unbelievable.’

Jackson also said GB would not adapt their attacking style to try and neutralise the free-flowing Dutch when they meet in tonight’s semi-final.

The Dutch scored 18 goals in their five group games, all victories, while the GB ‘entertainers’ have scored 15, but yielded eight at the other end in their unbeaten campaign so far.

The 24-year-old former Sutton Valence School pupil, who has scored five of the GB goals, said: "We will play the same way.

"We will try to score more goals than them. We’ll try to defend a bit better obviously, but we’re all in it as a team.

"The Dutch have got some class players so eventually they are going to break through the defence, but if you’re not set up to score goals, you’re going to struggle."

Jackson used to play in Holland for HGC and said the two sides would be very familiar with each other, adding: "We’ve played them hundreds of times so we know exactly what we’re up against and they know exactly what they’re up against.

"We’ve beaten them in big games and they’ve beaten us in big games, so it’s going to be exciting."

The former Tunbridge Wells star said: "The group of guys we’ve got here and everyone’s who’s turned out and supported us through the last four years, the funding from UK Sport, everyone who’s made this possible - you do it for them but then at the same time the smiles you see at the end of the game, they are the feelings you want to feel again.

"We had it in 2009 at the Europeans when we got a gold medal and we’ve missed it. For a long while we’ve played in big semi-finals and not got the right result.

"But those feelings are why we play the game."