The Netherlands ended South Africa’s Cinderella run to the knockout stages of the Women’s World Cup with a 2-0 victory at the Sydney Football Stadium.

A lucky second-half strike from Lineth Beerensteyn ultimately clinched the result for the Dutch over a valiant South African side, setting up a mouth-watering quarter-final meeting with Spain.

South Africa raced out of the gates with a fierce tempo, using their pace advantage to get the first shot on goal of the match, though it was easily claimed by Netherlands goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar.

The Dutch weathered the early storm and made the most of their first cross of the afternoon, a failed clearance leading to a close-range header from Jill Roord for her fourth goal of the tournament.

South Africa’s defence looked nervy for much of the first half, with frequent wasted possession keeping the pressure on.

Those struggles were compounded with injuries to Jermaine Seoposenwe and Bambanani Mbane, but the Netherlands were unable to find a decisive second goal.

After spending the bulk of the first 45 minutes camped down their own end, momentum finally swung South Africa’s way as the clock ticked over to added time.

Striker Thembi Kgatlana, whose pace had challenged the Dutch in every fleeting opportunity when she found herself in open space, came agonisingly close to firing an equaliser just before the break.

She outran the defence to gather a through ball in prime position, but scrambling efforts from van Domselaar ensured the Dutch maintained their advantage into half-time.

The Netherlands finally scored their second in the 68th minute, when Beerensteyn fired a long-range attempt towards South Africa’s goalkeeper Kaylin Swart.

Despite getting her hands on the ball, the shot slipped through Swart’s grasp and into the back of the net.

The Dutch will be without midfielder Danielle van de Donk for their clash with Spain after she received a second yellow card of the tournament.