CANBERRA, SEPT 19: India slumped to their third successive defeat by going down 1-3 to formidable Australia in the final league tie of the four-nation Australia Cup men's hockey tournament here today.Canada won the first leg of this two-leg event when they drew their last league tie with South Korea while Australia scored their first win today to finish ahead of India, who brought up the bottom.Pre-tournament favourites Australia finally showed some of the form missing in their crushing 0-4 loss to Canada and a goalless draw against Korea, reports Australian Associate Press (AAP).Striker Sameer Dad levelled the score in the 27th minute after the hosts had forged ahead in the 19th minute through Ben Taylor. Michael Brennan made it 2-1 in 31st minute and completed the rout in the 68th minute with his second goal.Earlier, Canadian striker Tom Green snatched the title for his team when he weaved through the tight man-to-man Korean defence to score seconds before full-time to ensure a 1-1 draw to lifthis team to the top of the points table with two wins and a draw.The four teams will now meet in the second leg at Sydney starting on Wednesday and the two teams that finish on top of the table after the league engagements there will figure in the final.India, missing several key players from its Asian Games winning side, was simply outclassed by Australia that gained confidence as the match went on after failing to score in the previous two outings.The Indians, desperate to at least draw after reverses against South Korea (1-6) and Canada (1-2), packed their defence and tried to slow the game against the hosts, equally desperate for their first victory. Hungry for their first goal, the Aussies applied most of the early pressure and the 292-game mid-field veteran Jay Stacy was unlucky with several shots at the Indian goal.Not to be denied, 23-year-old local hero Ben Taylor finally broke through in the 19th minute when, following some slick Stacy stickwork inside the circle, he rocketed home a shotpast 'keeper Jude Menezes.India recovered quickly and striker Samir Dad, on the end of a counter by powerful mid-fielder Baljit Singh Dhillon, beat Australian 'keeper Lachlan Dreher to equalise.But with four minutes of the first half left, halfback Michael Brennan picked up a pass from Troy Elder while lurking on the left for a penalty corner and slammed home to give Australia a 2-1 half-time lead.Australia had India on the ropes for most of the second half and peppered the tourists' goalmouth with a succession of attacking bursts. The Indian defence was constantly troubled by Stacy and mid-field colleague Daniel Sproule, playing his 150th tie.Brennan struck his second goal of the match when he finished off a penalty corner following a period of sustained pressure in the dying moments.
