Hockey: Reading take Europe gold in shoot-out

Reading won England's first European Club Championship gold medal in 23 years yesterday when they beat RC Polo from Barcelona 4-2 in a penalty shoot-out in Brussels. Meanwhile, Olton and West Warwick took the silver in the women's competition here as the host club clinched their fourth consecutive title.

Reading, trailing 1-0 to an eighth-minute penalty corner goal from Pau Quintana, equalised with just four minutes to go through Ken Robinson, who was playing his last game before retiring. With Simon Mason saving two penalties in the shoot-out, the Berkshire side became England's first European Champions since Slough in 1980.

In the Netherlands, Mijntje Donners, the Den Bosch captain, was the destroyer of Olton when she scored five times in the reigning champions' 7-2 win. Donners opened the scoring inside two minutes, although Rachel Walker soon equalised for Olton. The host side went ahead again just before the interval - inevitably through Donners - and though Olton largely matched their opponents, they lacked a goal poacher of the skill and quality of Donners.