The Dutch captain Mijntje Donners got her side off to the perfect start when she scored a hat-trick in their emphatic victory over South Africa.

Making the most of sloppy defending by the Proteas in the first half the European champions powered home four goals in a devastating sixteen minute spell to take a 5-1 lead at the break and shut their opponents out of the match.

Marc Lammers (Dutch coach):
'The first game is always tough and there are a lot of nerves. Converting our first three penalty corners made all the difference.'

Mijntje Donners:
'It wasn’t a real hat-trick – it should be three successive goals! We never expected to win by so much. It’s fantastic to win 6-2 in the Olympic Games.'

Ros Howell (South Africa coach):
'They outplayed us in the first half and left us with too much to do. We conceded three soft goals and didn’t make it hard enough for them but they are a quality team. It’s a real wake up call for our players.'

Sue Webber (South Africa captain):
'We made a few poor decisions but there are three games left and we can come back from this.'

China turned in a typically efficient performance to see off a spirited Japan side making their debut at the Olympic Games.

Leading 1-0 at half time, China’s expert finishing on the counter attack proved decisive as Japan failed to make the most of their possession up front.

Kazunori Kobayashi (Japan coach):
'I thought we counter attacked well and coped pretty well in defence although we can improve. I’m disappointed with the score and think we need to be a lot more aggressive up front.'

Nami Miyazaki (Japan captain):
'I don’t think we were too nervous, maybe a little stiff.'

Kim Changback (China coach):
'I was pleased with our tactics and we restricted their attacks to the left flank.'

Hui Cheng (China captain): 'We followed our game plan well although it wasn’t perfect and we need to work on a few things. We’re all enjoying life in the Olympic Village and are looking forward to our next match against New Zealand.'

Click here for the full coverage of the women's Olympic tournament