Mysore (Karnataka), 19 April 2015: Before entering the semi-final stage of the Hockey India 5th Junior National Hockey Championship 2015 (Men) –Division A, the top eight teams registered wins in their respective matches in Mysore, Karnataka today.
The day started with a win for Hockey Haryana who drubbed Steel Plant Sports Board 4-3, followed by Uttar Pradesh Hockey who edged-past Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu with a score 4-0. Third encounter proved to be a thrilling match where Sports Authority of India defeated Chhattisgarh Hockey by 6-2. Ending the day on a winning note, Hockey Himachal beat Hockey Jharkhand with a score of 1-0.
The first match of the day between Hockey Haryana and Steel Plant Sports Board turned out to be a tough battle for the both teams, which concluded with a close 4-3 win for Hockey Haryana. Both the teams were seen striving to score the first goal in the first few minutes of the game. However, it was Rajant from Hockey Haryana who initiated the chain of goals when he smashed a penalty corner and a field goal one after the other in the 26th and 27th minute of the game respectively. The game seemed to be dominated by Hockey Haryana before Janima Majhi from Steel Plant Sports Board opened the account for the team in the 34th minute assuring a goal for the team by the end of the first half which led to a score of 2-1. It was then an even more exciting hockey show on the ground when Hockey Haryana confirmed a tough game for the opponents by striking another field goal coming from Santa Singh in the 45th minute of the game. The second half witnessed excellent shots coming from the sticks of both teams trying to get better of each other. It was in the 50th minute that Santosh Baxla from Steel Plant Sports Board converted a penalty corner giving a support to the team which was followed by another penalty corner in the 56th minute by Anand Kumar Kujur from the same team. The star of the game was Rajant who ended the war of goals with another field goal in the 65th minute and led the team towards a remarkable victory 4-3.
The second clash of the day was a one sided game dominated by Uttar Pradesh Hockey who pulled down Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu with a score 4-0. Uttar Pradesh showcased a good start by converting the first penalty corner in the 3rd minute of the game which was successfully done by Govind Singh Rawat. However the remaining first half of the game was a struggle for both the teams, especially Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu which could not win a goal despite continuous efforts. This led the first half of the game to end in favour of Hockey Uttar Pradesh with a score 1-0. It was in the 42nd minute that Rahul Kumar Rajbhar brought back the excitement in the game by scoring a field goal for Uttar Pradesh Hockey. It was then the same team which continued to turn their efforts into desired results with one goal after another, the third one coming from Praveen Soni who shot a field goal in the 62nd minute driving the team to a win-win situation. The game ended with a another winning field goal for Hockey Uttar Pradesh coming from Suvarn Khandkar in the 68th minute which drove the team towards an easy win.
Continuing the day with one more win, Sports Authority of India defeated Chhattisgarh Hockey 6-2. Both the teams made constant efforts to pierce the defence of the other in search of an initial opening and it was Sports Authority of India who took the lead in the 16th minute through Dharmendra Yadav. Taking the lead to 2-0, Mohd Faiaz Sarwar scored the second goal in the 22nd minute in favour of Sports Authority of India. Chhattisgarh Hockey showcased brilliant on-field skills and broke the shackles in the 26thminute through the stick of Pramod Harpal and reduced the margin to 2-1. Just before going into the break, Sports Authority of India scored the third goal for themselves when Mohith Kumar successfully converted a penalty stroke in the 30th minute advancing their scores to 3-1. Chhattisgarh Hockey gained momentum and retaliated through a field goal with the support of Wasiullah Khan in the 39th minute. The next three goals of the match were scored by Sports Authority of India with the support of Mohith Kumar and Dharmendra Yadav in the 41st and 44th minute respectively. This was followed by a last minute goal by the captain Brijendra Singh in the 69th minute. With Chhattisgarh Hockey unable to add any further goals to their account, Sports Authority of India declared a convincing win against Chhattisgarh Hockey 6-2.
The last match of the day was an exciting affair as Hockey Jharkhand went down to Hockey Himachal 0-1. Although the entire first half went goalless for both the teams, they made desperate attempts to find the gaps in order to reach the nets. It was only in the 59thminute that Hockey Himachal took the lead and scored a solitary goal through a remarkable penalty corner conversion by Jugraj Singh. As Hockey Jharkhand failed to open their scorecard, the game concluded in favour of Hockey Himachal who trounced Hockey Jharkhand 1-0.
Results of the day-
Pool C Hockey Haryana 4 Rajant (26min –PC, 27 min –FG, 65min-FG) Santa Singh(45min-FG) vs Steel Plant Sports Board 3Janma Majhi (34min-FG),Santosh Baxla (50min-PC), Anad Kumar Kuljur (56 min-PC)
Pool C Uttar Pradesh Hockey 4 Govind Singh Rawat (3min-PC),Rahul Kumar Rajbhar (42min-FG), Praveen Soni (62min-FG),Suvarn Khandkar (68min-FG) vs Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu 0
Pool D Sports Authority of India 6 Dharmendra Yadav (16min- 16min-FG, 44min- FG), Mohd Faiaz Sarwar (22min- FG), Mohith Kumar (30min-PS, 41min-PC), Brijendra Singh (69min- FG) vs Chhattisgarh Hockey 2 Pramod Harpal (26min- FG), Wasiullah Khan (39min-FG)
Pool D Hockey Himachal 1 Jugraj Singh (59min-PC) vs Hockey Jharkhand 0