Olympic champions Australia booked their expected place in the Commonwealth Games men's field hockey final with a 6-0 romp over Malaysia in Melbourne today.

Three of those goals came through penalty strokes as the Malaysian defenders battled hard to contain the rampaging Aussie forwards in front of a packed house of 6,000 at the State Hockey Centre.

Australia, seeking a hat-trick of gold medals at the Commonwealth Games, will now play the winners of today's second semi-final between Pakistan and England in Sunday's final.

The Kookaburras won golds at the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Games and in Manchester four years ago without losing a game.

The bitterly disappointed Malaysians held a team meeting after the match but declined to speak to waiting reporters.