First of all, the four British nations were independently affiliated with the international federation FIH and were not very keen on cooperating.

Their captain was the versatile Norman Borrett, a first-class cricketer and national squash champion who once qualified for Wimbledon but didn't have time to compete.

All four ranked teams made the semis, although the Brits were held to a goalless draw by Switzerland, and Pakistan crushed the Dutch 6–1 in their group match.

With Britain beating Pakistan, the gold medal match would finally see India play the Britons.

Note: The International Olympic Committee medal database shows also only these players as medalists.