The New Zealand men's team made it two from two at the World League semifinals with a 2-1 win over Japan yesterday.
It took the Black Sticks to six points before their match against the Netherlands, ranked No2 in the world, on Monday morning (NZ time).
Assistant coach Bryce Collins said Japan mounted a spirited comeback but he was pleased the Black Sticks did what was needed.
''Going into this game, we had a big focus on just improving our basics, playing with forward intent, and making sure our passing and receiving was as good as it could be,'' he said.
''The speed and execution was much better than our match against Egypt and because of that we created a lot more chances.''
Collins said the New Zealanders were looking forward to the game against the Dutch and the two-day break would give them good time to prepare.
''The Dutch are obviously a high-quality side and they are experts at creating and holding possession, so we will have to work hard to maintain possession when we have it.''
Yesterday, the Black Sticks took the lead in just the fourth minute when North Harbour's Steve Edwards tapped the ball over the line.
They doubled their lead in the 15th minute when a mis-trapped penalty corner was kept alive and captain Simon Child deflected in his second goal of the tournament.
Japan fought back with spirit and was rewarded for its attacking play in the 59th minute when Kenji Kitazato pegged one back, but with only a minute left on the clock, it was too late to find the equaliser.
World League
The scores
New Zealand 2
Steve Edwards, Simon Child
Japan 1
Kenji Kitazato
Halftime: New Zealand 2-0
