Match No. 51

Day 26: Wednesday 28.3.2012:

Comets book their berth for semifinal

The smile on Chandigarh Comets’ head coach Harendra Singh said it all. Comets had launched their campaign in the inaugural edition of the Bridgestone World Series Hockey with a defeat to Bhopal Badshahs at the same venue almost a month back, but today they became the second team in the league to be guaranteed a place in the semifinals.

In a humdinger here at the Sector 42 Hockey Stadium on Wednesday, Comets beat Mumbai Marines 4-3. For the first time, Sher-E-Punjab find themselves a team hot on their heels, Comets, who are just behind them on goal average but with equal points (25 from 13 Matchs) . They will be cautious in their last league match, which could decide whom they meet in the semis.

Comets, known for striking early goals to put their rivals on the backfoot and then dictating the course of match, deployed the same strategy against the Marines with initial success but the visitors came bavk strongly to neutralise their three-goal lead, but Robert Green struck the winner from what appeared to be an abortive penalty corner a minute before the hooter, to give the Comets a famous victory and full points.

Winger Ramandeep Singh turned full to tap in a cross from the right flank as early as three minutes to give the Comets a dream start. Thereafter, Devinder Walmiki, with his brlliant interceptions, came in their way to deny them any further leeway.

Penalty-corner expert Gurjinder Singh, who failed in the first three against Walmiki’s athleticism and anticipation, sent his low drag to the left netting in his fourth attempt to enhance the lead.
The Marines forwards came charging in the second quarter, and penetrated Comets’ territory with vengeance, but the fitter and faster hosts overcrowded them to deny any elbow room. Comets replied every Marines’ surge with a matching, if not more, aggressive counter attack, often coming close to scoring. Sharp-shooter Amir Khan fittingly deflected an Adrian D’Souza’s rebound to post what at that juncture appeared an assailable 3-0 lead.

The Marines gave an early hint of their intention with a goal in the dying seconds of the lemon time. One of the young finds of the WSH, Vanmali Xess cut a high feed that came his way in the middle of the circle, and then as the ball was falling, he whacked it high to bring life into the contest.

The sharp and shrewd Troy Sutherland reduced the scoreline when in a quick reflex action, he picked up a fast-moving ball that came after a fellow forward unsuccessfully tried to control a high ball, and cut its direction and velocity, to bang in the middle of the net. Sutherland’s superb goal set the pace with each side leaving no stone unturned to test the goal.

Marines, who missed three penalty corners, used the fourth one to finally bring parity. In the indirect penalty corner drill, Sutherland scooped the ball from close quarter, and it hit Gurjinder Singh’s right leg which was overlooked by umpire Savio but the Comets got it right through referral. Ajmer Singh had no difficulty in striking the ball home. The remaining 15 minutes witnessed brilliant hockey from both sides. Green then came on gamely to provide the spark that the Comets needed to script another great win.

Match No. 52

Day 26: Wednesday 28.3.2012:

Cheetahs turn the tables in 4 minutes

Three goals in four minutes by Chennai Cheetahs against Delhi Wizards was too much to handle for even the thrill-a-minute inaugural edition of the Bridgsetone World Series Hockey!

However, the main difference between both the teams was in playing smart hockey. Cheetahs have probably learnt it the hard way that it pays to wait and pounce on the opportunties rather than panicking under pressure. At one stage, the hosts were trailing 1-3 but came back strongly to rout the visitors 6-4 in a thriller played here at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium on Wednesday. The speedy forward Adam Sinclair and Pakistani drag-flicker, Syed Imran Warsi, were their main trump cards with two goals each while Wizards’s Vikramjeet Singh was plain unlucky to end up on the losing side despite scoring four goals, including a hat-trick. He matched Len Aiyappa’s feat of scoring three out of three in his initial attempts in the penalty-corners.

Notwithstanding these personal milestones achieved in the match, the most drammatic and significant outcome is that the Cheetahs are back in contention for a berth in the semis. They have 19 points – one less than the third-placed Karnataka Lions, and are just ahead of Pune Strykers, breathing down their neck. All eight teams have just one match each to play in the league stage.

The match was also billed as a contest between the two penalty-corner specialists, Vikramjeet Singh and Imran Warsi. The former emulated the legacy of Aiyappa, blasting three goals out of his first three penalty corners, and then scored the last goal of the match in his seventh attempt, while Warsi, who woke up late, brought two late goals hitting the top of net to help the Cheetahs neutralize the three-goal deficit. Thereafter, the floodgates were open as the Cheetahs struck thrice in the space of four minutes to usher in a classic victory.

Sinclair tapped a loose ball between his marker Vikram Kant and Philip Sunkel to send a gentle scoop for Chennai’s fourth goal, and in the next minute Vikram Pillay relayed a Kamaldeep Singh’s weak rebound to extend the margin. Within two minutes, Sinclair sprinted into the circle alone, and on confronting the haplkess goalkeeper in the middle of the circle, dodged him to the left, before unleashing a blistering shot into the empty net.

A match that was tenaciously poised at 3-3 till the 61st minute turned out to be one of the most one-sided matches of the WSH, and the transformation was simply unbelievable. Cheetahs, who had lost most home matches, made up largely today with this superb comeback. Not many people would have trusted them to come back after Vikramjeet Singh’s stunning hat-trick in the initial stage. It was yet another local hero, Veerasamy Raja, who brought the home crowd on their feet when the team was passing through a tough phase. Manjit Kullu fumbled with a feed at the top of the circle, and saw Raja retrieving it inches inside the circle to send a fierce forehand that took custodian Kamaldeep Singh completely by surprise.

Raja nearly scored his second goal when he guided a high ball into the net, above the head of Kamaldeep Singh, but umpire Satinder Sharma hesitated to blow the whistle and consulted the third umpire and then pointed to a long corner. The Cheetahs forward took another shy at the goal in the 55th minute but his diving grounder missed the right post, much to the agony of the local fans.
Warsi, who appeared off-colour in the last few games, sent a high ball in his third penalty corner drill, after his two low flicks failed to get past Kamaldeep Singh earlier, for Cheetahs’ second goal midway through the third quarter. Three minutes later, he did the same off the fifth penalty corner that Vikram Pillay fetched off the feet of Vikas Sharma on the top of the circle, to bring parity. He brought up the 270th goal of the WSH. Then came the counters from Sinclair and Vikram Pillay, and the match was over within a span of four minutes.