Archive (A Division): Sr Men’s Nationals

Men’s Sr (Div A): UP, Haryana registered big win

Pune (Maharashtra), 17 April 2015: The ongoing 5th edition of the Hockey India Senior Men National Championship 2015 (Div A) in Pune today saw the highly intense battles in the Pool matches where All India Sports Promotion Board outplayed Hockey Odisha by 5-2 and Sports Authority of India held by Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy by 2-2 draw in Pool A matches. In other matches, Comptroller & Audit General of India edged past Association of Indian Universities by 2-1 in Pool B and Uttar Pradesh Hockey thrashed Services Sports Control Board by 5-1 in Pool C.

In the first match of Pool A today, All India Sports Promotion Board (AISPB) outplayed Hockey Odisha by 5-2 after a hard-fought tussle. AISPB opened the account in the 10th minute of the match when Arman Qureshi scored the first goal of the match. AISPB maintained their attacking game and Shivendra Singh scored the second goal of the match just after two minutes (12th minute). Trailing by 0-2, Hockey Odisha counter-attacked on their opponents and Rajin Kandulna scored the first goal for his team in 29th minute. His team-mate Deepak Lugun displayed a brilliant stick-work and scored the equaliser in the 32th minute. At 2-2 score, AISPB speed-up their attack and earned a penalty shoot-out in 43rd minute, which was perfectly converted by Arjun Halappa, leading the match by 3-2. AISPB managed to earn another penalty corner in the 52nd minute and this time Gaganpreet Singh converted it with an ease. With 4-2 score, AISPB was controlling the game, without giving any space to their opponent. Vikas Vishnu Pillay scored the fifth goal for his team in the 57th minute and registered a thumping 5-2 victory over Hockey Odisha.

In the second match of Pool A, Sports Authority of India (SAI) was held by Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy at 2-2 draw in a neck-to-neck battle. After a stern tussle in the half-time, Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy stunned their opponents when they scored the first goal of the match in 44th minute with Vikas Choudary’s stunning goal and took an early 1-0 lead in the match. However, their joy was short-lived as SAI came back aggressively and Basavraj scored the leveller just after three minutes (47th minute). Conceding the goal, Vikas attacked counter-attacked again with his speedy run and hit the ball hard into the goal-box without giving any chance to the goal-keeper. With Vikas’ surprise goal, Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy was in lead again by 2-1. SAI maintained their strategic game and kept attacking from all sides. Manpreet got the success in the 55th minute when he scored the second goal of the match to level score by 2-2. Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy played above their level and stunned SAI with their brilliant performance.

Pool B Match between Comptroller & Audit General of India (CAGI) and Association of Indian Universities was a tight match as while both the teams looked for scoring opportunities the defence played a great role as they kept the opponents at bay. It was the former which took the win with a lead of a goal and the end of the match score read 2-1. Comptroller & Audit General of India were the first to break the shackles as they scored in the 5th minute when MD Naeemuddin deflected the ball past the goalkeeper to open the score for his team. Post the initial goal the rest of the first half session proved to be a dry run and Comptroller & Audit General of India lead the game 1-0 at the end of the first half’s play. Entering the second half Association of Indian Universities successfully equalized the game in the 37th minute coming from the stick of Harsahib Singh leaving Comptroller & Audit General of India stunned as they lost the lead. Not wasting much time Comptroller & Audit General of India struck again as they took the lead in the 48th minute and which went on to be the winning goal for them.

In the second match of Pool B, Hockey Jharkhand defeated Hockey Bhopal by 4-2. The match started with a brilliant display of stick-work of Jharkhand’s Anup Topno’s who scored two back-to-back goals in 2nd and 14th minute of the match and gave an early lead of 2-0. In the 26th minute, Noyel Dodrai scored the third goal through a penalty corner conversion and extended the lead by 3-0. Maintaining the domination, Jharkhand scored the fourth goal in the 40th minute with the help of Mahesh Kumar who efficiently converted a penalty corner. Trailing by 0-4, Hockey Bhopal managed to counter attacked on the opponents with full force and Shadab Haseeb scored the first goal for his team in the 59th minute of the match. In the next minute (60th minute), Osaf-ur-Rahman scored the second goal for his team through a penalty corner conversion. Till the final whistle, Hockey Jharkhand won the match by 4-2.

In the Pool C match, start-studded Uttar Pradesh Hockey thrashed Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) by a margin of 5-1. Uttar Pradesh dominated the whole match and scored goals in regular intervals. Their star player Lalit Upadhyay opened the account in the 6th minute of the match, when he sneaked into the opponent’s half and scored a brilliant goal. In the 15th minute, Arjun Yadav increased the lead after dribbling past opponent’s defenders and scored a spectacular goal. Leading by 2-0, Uttar Pradesh continued their dominant game and this time veteran player Tushar Khandkar managed to out-fox the defenders to score an inspiring goal in the 39th minute. In the 43rd minute, Lalit attacked again and scored his second goal in the match, taking the lead to 4-0. In the 54th minute, Amir Khan scored the fifth goal for Uttar Pradesh and gave a massive lead of 5-0. In the 50th minute, Services Sports Control Board showed some resistance and Mukesh Lakra scored the lone goal for his team.

In the second match of Pool C, Hockey Haryana beat Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu by 6-1 in the one-sided battle. Hockey Haryana earned a penalty corner in the 6th minute of the match and Gagandeep Singh converted it perfectly to give an early 1-0 lead to his team. In the 12th minute, Jagwant Singh extended the lead with his second goal. Harayana scored the third goal in the 14th minute of the match with help of Amit Kumar. Tamil Nadu showed some resistance and scored their first & only goal in the 30th minute with the help of Laxman Karan. In the next few minutes, Haryana came back strongly and they scored three back-to-back goals. Arjun, Amit Kumar and Ranjit Singh scored goals in 40th, 46th and 55th minutes respectively and registered a thumping 6-1 victory over Tamil Nadu.

Results of the Day-

Pool A – All India Sports Promotion Board 5 Arman Qureshi (10min-FG), Shivendra Singh (12min-FG), Arjun Halappa (43min-PS), Gaganpreet Singh (53min-PC), Vikas Vishnu Pillay (57min-FG) vs Manipur Odisha 2 Rajin Kandulna (29min-FG), Deepak Lugun (32min-FG)

Pool A – Sports Authority of India 2 Basavraj (47min-FG), Manpreet (55min-FG) vs Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy 2 Vikas Choudary (44min-FG, 48min-FG)

Pool B – Comptroller & Audit General of India 2 MD Naeemuddin (5 min-FG), Nitin Timmaiah (48 min-FG) vs Association of Indian Universities 1 Harsahib Singh (37 min-FG)

Pool B – Hockey Jharkhand 4 Anup Topno (2min-FG, 14min-FG), Noyel Dodrai (26 min-PC), Mahesh Kumar (40min-PC) vs Hockey Bhopal 2 Shadab Haseeb (59min-FG), Osaf-ur-Rahman (60min-PC)

Pool C – Uttar Pradesh Hockey 5 Lalit Upadhyay (6min-FG, 43min-FG), Arjun Yadav (15min-FG), Tushar Khandkar (39min-FG), Amir Khan (54min-FG) vs Services Sports Control Board 1 Mukesh Lakra (60min-FG)

Pool C – Hockey Haryana 6 Gagandeep Singh (6min-PC), Jagwant Singh (12min-FG), Amit Kumar (14min-FG, 46min-FG), Arjun (40min-FG), Ranjit Singh (55min-FG) vs Hockey unit of Tamil Nadu 1 Laxman Karan (30min-FG)

Sr National M: Odisha outplays AP

Pune (Maharashtra), 17 April 2015: The ongoing 5th edition of the Hockey India Senior Men National Championship 2015 (Div A) in Pune today saw the one-sided Pool matches where Railway Sports Board outplayed Hockey Punjab 3-1 and – Hockey Karnataka edged past Food Corporation of India by 3-2 in Pool D matches. In other matches, Air India Sports Promotion Board blanked Sports Authority of India by 3-0 in Pool A and Uttar Pradesh Hockey thrashed Services Sports Control Board by 5-1 in Pool C.

The first match of the day in Pool D between Railway Sports Board and Hockey Punjab was an intense clash with the former dominating and winning the match by 3-1. While the first two quarters of the match was a dry run as both the teams kept the pressure on each other and looking for the scoring opportunities. It was the defence of both the teams which won the first half as they did not allow any goal to be scored. The third quarter saw some action as both teams finally opened their accounts.

Railway Sports Promotion Board’s Yuvraj Walmiki entered the D and flicked the ball into the nets giving his team the lead in the game in the 31st minute. Within five minutes (36th minute), Talwinder Singh doubled the lead as he scored a brilliant field goal and helped his team to take the score to 2-0. In its effort to minimise the goal score, Hockey Punjab successfully capitalised on a penalty corner in the 43rd minute and the score was 2-1 in favour of Railway Sports Promotion Board. Not wanting to lose the hold on the game, Railway Sports Promotion Board added one more in the tally as they scored their third goal in the 59th minute marking Yuvraj Walmiki’s second goal for the match. The goal proved to be the winning and final goal of the match as Railway Sports Promotion Board won by 3-1.

Another Pool D match witnessed a neck to neck competition with a win for Hockey Karnataka over Food Corporation of India 3-2. The match started on a very exciting note where both the teams had a tough tussle to earn the first goal of the match. On the other side, Hockey Karnataka broke the silence and opened the account with the field goal by Pramod PV in early 7th minute of the game. Food Corporation of India also attacked back and in the 9th minute of the match, Karambir equalised the score-card with a brilliant field goal.

From here, Hockey Karnataka dominated the match and Kusha JP and Sheshe Gowda BM converted two penalty corners in 48th and 53rd minute respectively, showcasing match-winning performance. Food Corporation of India also tried hard to give a tough competition to KRA and in 59th minute Munish Rana earned the second goal for his team. However, unfortunately unable to equalise the score-line and Hockey Karnataka kept the domination on score table with the final score 3-2.

The third match of the day between Air India and Sports Authority of India (in Pool A) was a one sided battle where Air India registered an outstanding win with a dominating score 3-0. The first goal by the team came in the 7th minute of the game when Gaganpreet Singh converted a penalty corner in support of Air India Sports Promotion Board. Another striking field goal came from PR Aiyappa in the 17th minute bringing the team in a confident position for the match. The leading team scored all the three goals in the 1st quarter of the game. In the 2nd quarter, another field goal scored by Shivendra Singh in the 25th minute of the game. Sports Authority of India played hard to a score for the team in the last two quarters, but there were no goals scored in this period. This resulted into a rejoicing victory for Air India Sports Promotion Board who pulled down the opponents with a leading score of 3-0.

In the second match of Pool A, Hockey Odisha thrashed Hockey Andhra Pradesh by a huge margin of 8-2 in one-sided tussle. Odisha started the match with their domination and earned the first penalty corner in the 11th minute, which was perfectly converted by Amit Lohchab. Just after three minutes (13th minute), Odisha earned another penalty corner and Amit’s team-mate Dilip Toppo effectively converted it into the second goal. After conceding two goals, Andhra Pradesh counter attacked against their opponents and managed to contain the game in Odisha’s half. In the second half, Odisha men broke the defense line-up and earned another penalty corner. This time again, Dilip converted the opportunity perfectly and extended the lead by 3-0. In the next minute (41th minute), Odisha’s Sunil Toppo charged towards opponent’s half and scored a brilliant goal of the match. Maintaining an attacking game, Odisha’s Joseph Toppo and Arbin Barla scored two back-to-back goals in 45th and 49th minutes respectively and increased the lead by 6-0. Trailing by a huge margin, Andhra Pradesh came back to their counter-attacking game and Sandeep Raju Sammeta scored the first goal for his team in 51st minute. However, Odisha’s Rajin Kandulna replied back strongly in the next minute (52nd minute) and scored the seventh goal for his team and took the score-line to 7-1. Andhra Pradesh maintained the last minutes battle as Sandeep Raju stroke back to score another goal in 54th minute and reduced the margin by 2-7. In the 55th minute, Joseph scored the eighth goal for his team and sealed a thumping 8-2 victory over Andhra Pradesh.

Results of the Day-

Pool D – Railway Sports Promotion Board 3 Yuvraj Walmiki (31min-FG, 59min-FG), Talwinder Singh (36min-FG) vs Hockey Punjab 1 Varun Kumar (43min – PC)

Pool D – Hockey Karnataka 3 Pramod PV (07min-FG), Kusha JP (48min-PC), Sheshe Gowda BM (53min-PC) vs Food Corporation of India Karambir 2 (09min-FG), Munish Rana (59min-FG)

Pool A – Air India Sports Promotion Board 3 Gaganpreet Singh (7min-PC), PR Aiyappa (17min-FG), Shivendra Singh (25min–FG) vs Sports Authority of India 0

Pool A – Hockey Odisha 8 Amit Lohchab (11min-PC), Dilip Toppo (13min-PC, 40min-PC), Sunil Toppo (41min–FG), Joseph Toppo (45min-FG, 55min-FG), Arbin Barla (49min-FG), Rajin Kandulna (52min-FG) vs Hockey Andhra Pradesh 2 Sandeep Raju Sammeta (51min-FG, 54min-FG)

Sr National M: Jharkhand, Odisha register victory

Pune (Maharashtra), 19 April 2015: The 5th edition of the Hockey India Senior Men National Hockey Championship 2015 being played in Pune, Maharashtra today saw neck-to-neck fierce battles in Division A matches. In the Pool B matches today, Hockey Jharkhand edged past Comptroller & Auditor General of India by 1-0 and Hockey Gangpur-Odisha defeated Association of Indian Universities by 3-2.

In the first match of the day in Pool B, Hockey Jharkhand edged past Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG) by a narrow margin of 1-0. Both the teams fought neck-to-neck in all four quarters of the match and thwarted each other attacks. After a gruesome battle from the first minute, Jharkhand broke the momentum by scoring the lone goal of the match in the 55th minute with help of their star player Deepak Kujur, who out-foxed opponent’s defenders and hit the ball hard into the goal-box. With this only goal, Jharkhand players erupted with joy and on the other hand, CAG players went into sorrow. Jharkhand registered a crucial 1-0 victory over CAG in the Pool B match.

In the second match of the Pool B, Hockey Gangpur-Odisha defeated Association of Indian Universities (AIU) by 3-2 after a fierce competition. It was Association of Indian Universities who drew the blood first when Manpreet Singh scored the first goal of the match in 25th minute after he sneaked into opponent’s defence line and send the ball into the net. Hockey Gangpur replied with their attacking game and kept on charging. They got the first success in the 43rd minute when Amulya Minz dribbled past opposition’s defenders and scored a brilliant goal to equalise the score-line 1-1. Continuing the attacking game, Gangpur’s Rasananda Khalkho stormed into AIU’s half and hit the ball hard into the goal-box to take 2-1 lead in 51st minute. However in the next minute (52nd minute), AIU counter-attacked on Gangpur side and their star player Jatin Singh sent ball into the net without giving any chance to the goalkeeper. With this spectacular goal, AIU levelled the score-line by 2-2. The match became more intense and both the teams fought neck-to-neck in the dying minutes. Gangpur played as per their character and Deepak Lakra stunned the defenders with his speed as he ran fast into AIU’s half in the 57th minute. He managed to dribbled-past the defenders and scored brilliant goal to win the match by 3-2. AIU fought fiercely but eventually the lost the match by 2-3.

Results of the Day

Pool B – Hockey Jharkhand 1 Deepak Kujur (55min-FG) vs Comptroller & Auditor General of India 0

Pool B – Hockey Gangpur-Odisha 3 Amulya Minz (43min-FG), Rasananda Khalkho (51min-FG), Deepak Lakra (57min-FG) vs Association of Indian Universities 2 Manpreet Singh (25min-FG), Jatin Singh (52min-FG)

Sr Men’s National: Railways, Air India triumph

Pune (Maharashtra), 20 April 2015: The teams produced a spectacular performance to beat their respective opponents today at the 5th Senior National Hockey Championship 2015 (Men) Div- A being played at Pune, Maharashtra.

The much confident Hockey Haryana started the day with a win over Uttar Pradesh Hockey 4-2 in Pool C. The second encounter in the same group saw a neck-to-neck fight as Hockey Maharashtra knotted the score at 1-1 against Services Sports Control Board. Another exciting clash was witnessed where Railway Sports Promotion Board thumped Hockey Karnataka with a 7-3 on board in Pool D. In the same Pool, The Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd. stunned Hockey Punjab by a narrow margin of 1-0. In Pool A, Sports Authority of India outplayed Hockey Andhra Pradesh by 2-0 and Air India Sports Promotion Board thrashed Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy by a huge margin of 7-3.

In the Pool C match, Hockey Haryana taking on Uttar Pradesh Hockey ensured dominance over the match as they went on to win the game 4-2. Going on the attack immediately Hockey Haryana got a Penalty Corner to their name in the 2nd minute and Shivdeep ensured he beat the goalkeeper to score the opening goal of the day. Post the initial goal both teams maintained pressure on each other as they looked for scoring opportunities. Hockey Haryana another go at the penalty corner in the 27th minute and Jitender Saroha scored and the half time scores stood at 2-0 in their favour. Hockey Haryana in their bid to increase the goal difference further capitalised in the 40th minute when Mandeep Antil beat the defence and goalkeeper to score. Trailing 0-3, Uttar Pradesh Hockey scored two consecutive goals in the 42nd and 45th minute with the first being a penalty stroke and the second a field effort. This got Uttar Pradesh Hockey excited as they saw an opportunity to equalize but Hockey Haryana added one more to the goal tally, scoring the fourth goal and finishing the game at 4-2.

In another match in Pool C, Hockey Maharashtra held Services Sports Control Board for a draw as the match was exciting and equally intense. Services Sports Control Board started the game with intent to look for the initial goal and they were successful just 4 minutes into the game when Davinder Singh flicked the ball into the nets. Leaving the Services Sports Control Board stunned they attacked and looked for capitalizing on the opportunities but were unable to open their account, resulting in the first half in favour of Hockey Maharashtra 1-0. The second half was the same story as both teams looked at scoring. Hockey Maharashtra finally struck success in the 42nd minute as Captain Vishal Pillay did not mistake in converting the penalty corner. With the game at 1-1 it was anyone’s game from here. But unfortunately for both the teams and the supporters not further goals were scored resulting in a 1-1 draw.

In Pool D clash between Railway Sports Promotion Board and Hockey Karnataka was a one sided affair as the former beat the latter 7-3 and registering a convincing win. Railway Sports Promotion Board struck just 4 minutes into the game when penalty corner was converted by Talwinder Singh. Hocjey Karnataka equalized the game in the 20th minute, a penalty corner which was slammed by Sheshe Gowda B M. The team scored their second consecutive goal in the 22nd minute when Thimanna P L’s field effort bore positive results. With 2-1 in favour of Hockey Karnataka, the opponents finally equalized in the 35th minute and ended the first half scores at 2-2. The second half saw the game getting exciting as Railway Sports Promotion Board took the lead in the game in the 41st minute which was a penalty stroke and taken by Amit Rohidas. Hockey Karnataka equalized the game immediately in the 48th minute when Kusha JP scored through a penalty corner. post the goal it was Railway Sports Promotion Board game as they scored four back to back goals in the 50th, 54th, 55th and 56th minute and winning the game 7-3.

In the fourth match of the day, The Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd. stunned Hockey Punjab by a narrow margin of 1-0 after a fierce battle in the Pool D match. Both the teams started with aggressive game and fought hard to take the early lead in the match. In the 6th minute of the match, Mumbai counter-attacked on the opponent’s side and Victo Singh dribbled-past the defenders with a rapid speed. Victo managed to out-fox the defenders and hit the ball hard into the goal-box to score the lone goal of the match. After conceding the goal, Punjab played with more aggression and continuously attacked on opponent’s half. However, Mumbai defenders played a steady game and thwarted all their attacks. With a brilliant display of team-spirit, Mumbai Hockey Association managed to retain the 1-0 score-line till the final whistle and registered a thumping 1-0 victory over Hockey Punjab.

In the fifth match, Sports Authority of India (SAI) outplayed Hockey Andhra Pradesh by 2-0 in the Pool A clash. SAI dominated through-out the match and kept Andhra Pradesh busy with their attacking game. SAI’s star player Changappa scored the first goal of the day in 23rd minute when he stormed into opponent’s half and sent the ball into the nets to give an early lead to his team. After the goal, both the teams played with more attacks and counter-attacks. Andhra Pradesh managed to create many opportunities but they failed to materialise to convert in goals. SAI extended the lead in the 57th minute when Veeranna Gowda sneaked into the D and hit the ball hard into the goal-box to score the second goal of the match. With this goal, SAI led the game by 2-0 and maintained the score0-line till the last minute of the match.

In another Pool A match, Air India Sports Promotion Board (AISPB) thrashed Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy by a huge margin of 7-3. AISPB dominated through-out the match and scored goals in regular intervals to maintain pressure on MP Hockey Academy. AISPB drew the first blood in the 4th minute of the match when Gaganpreet Singh converted a well-earned penalty corner into the first goal of the match. His team-mate Shivendra Singh scored two back-to-back goals in 10thand 15th of the match to increase the lead by 3-0. Trailing by three goals, MP Hockey Academy scored the first goal in the 23rd minute with the help of Munis Qureshi and the score-line to 3-1. AISPB replied with more aggression in the match and Arman Qureshi scored two back-to-back goals in 41st and 44th minute to extend the lead by 5-1. Inspired by striking performance by Arman, Mohan Muthanna and Vikram Pillay hit two goals in 55th and 57th minutes respectively to take the score-line 7-1. Now trailing by seven goals, MP Hockey Academy pushed themselves harder and gave everything in the dying minutes. With the forceful attacks, Vikas Choudary scored two back-to-back goals in 58th and 59th minutes to reduce the margin by 3-7. AISPB displayed an outstanding performance and won the match by a huge margin of 7-3 against MP Hockey Academy.

Results of the day:

Pool C – Hockey Haryana 4 Shivdeep (2 min-PC), Jitender Saroha (27 min-PC), Mandeep Antil (40 min-FG), Gagandeep Singh (52 in-PC) vs Uttar Pradesh Hockey 2 Amir Khan (42 min-PS), Sharad Kumar (52 min-PC) v

Pool C – Services Sports Control Board 1 Davinder Singh (4 min-FG) vs Hockey Maharashtra 1 Vishal Pillay (42 min-PC)

Pool D – Railway Sports Promotion Board 7 Talwinder Singh ( 4min-PC), Yuvraj Walmiki (35 min-PC), Amit Rohidas (41 min-PS, 55 min-PC, 56 min-PS), Vinod Kumar Singh (50 min-FG, 54 min-FG) vs Hockey Karnataka 3 Sheshe Gowda BM (20 min-PC), Thimanna PL (22 min-FG), Kusha JP (48 min-PC)

Pool D – The Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd. 1 Victo Singh (6min- FG) vs Hockey Punjab 0

Pool A – Sports Authority of India 2 Changappa CN (23min-FG), Veeranna Gowda (57min-FG) vs Hockey Andhra Pradesh 0

Pool A – Air India Sports Promotion Board 7 Gaganpreet Singh (4min-PC), Shivendra Singh (10min-FG, 15min-FG), Arman Qureshi (41min-FG, 44min-FG), Mohan Muthanna (55min-FG), Vikram Pillay (57min-FG) vs Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy 3 Munis Qureshi (23min-FG), Vikas Choudary (58min-FG, 59min-FG)

Sr National M: Tough battles continues

Pune (Maharashtra), 21 April 2015: Teams continue to wage tough battle for top places in the Sr National in Pune

In Pool B, Hockey Gangpur-Odisha outwitted Hockey Jharkhand by 4-2 and Comptroller & Auditor General of India beat Hockey Bhopal by 4-2. In the Pool C matches, Hockey Maharashtra trounced Hockey Haryana by 4-1 and Uttar Pradesh Hockey won 6-2 against Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu. In Pool D clashes, The Mumbai Hockey Association defeated Hockey Karnataka by 2-1 and Food Cooperation of India held Railway Sports Promotion Board by 1-1.

In the Pool B match, the first half of the match between Hockey Gangpur-Odisha and Hockey Jharkhand rained goals from both sides as each scored two goals each to keep the scores tied at 2-2 at the end of first half. Hockey Gangpur-Odisha kept their nerves intact to take the lead and win the game by 4-2. The match started with both teams attacking and trying to put pressure on each other. Hockey Gangpur-Odisha immediately took the lead in the 2nd minute when captain Roshan Minz scored through a field goal. This was followed by Wilson Minz doubling the score for his team in the 10th minute as a pass to him in D was put past the goalkeeper. With the lead of 2-0, Hockey Gangpur-Odisha was placed in a comfortable position and started looking for another goal. But Hockey Jharkhand looking at coming back into the game opened their account in the 15th minute through Captain Chandrashekhar Xalxo who made mistake in cashing on the penalty corner opportunity. Within five minutes the captain equalized the game through another penalty corner that the team got to their name. With the game tied at 2-2 the second half was important for both the teams as they looked at accelerating the momentum and winning the match. Hockey Gangpur- Odisha broke defence of Hockey Jharkhand to take the lead in the 53rd minute as Roshan Minz scored through the penalty corner. Increasing the goal difference, Hockey Gangpur- Odisha scored their fourth goal in the 57th minute and sealing the fate of opponents through the goal.

The second match of Pool B yielded same results as the first with a 4-2 scorecard and this time it was Comptroller & Auditor General of India beating Hockey Bhopal 4-2. Comptroller & Auditor General of India started the day with two consecutive goals in the 6th and 8th minute coming from the sticks of MD Naeemuddin and Imran Khan respectively. Comptroller & Auditor General of India went on to increase the goal difference further as they scored the third goal in the 27th minute when a penalty corner was slammed into the nets taking the scores to 3-0. Trailing the game, Hockey Bhopal found success in the 36th minute when a penalty stroke given to the team was completed by Osaf-Ur-Rahman. Within two minutes Comptroller & Auditor General of India struck their fourth goal as Imran Khan found the nets. Hockey Bhopal managed to add another goal and the game ended in favour of Comptroller & Auditor General of India. v

The Pool C match of the day saw Hockey Maharashtra dominating the match and registering an easy 4-1 win over Hockey Haryana. Both teams keeping a steady attack on each other were successful in scoring a goal each in the first half resulting in the scores ties at 1-1. Action was seen in the second half as Hockey Maharashtra started the session by scoring in the 39th minute as Vinit Kamble scored through a field effort. The team added another goal in the 42nd minute with Navneet Swarnkar capitalising on a clean pass and taking the score to 3-1. Continuing their pressure Hockey Maharashtra scored their fourth goal in the 56th minute when the penalty corner was converted by Ashish Chetty helping his team take an easy win over the opponents.

The first half of the Pool C match between Uttar Pradesh Hockey and Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu was completely dominated by the former as they successfully scored four times and leading the game 4-0 at the end of first half. It was Sunil Yadav who scored all the four goals as he successfully capitalised on the penalty corners. The team continued their dominance as right into the second half Uttar Pradesh Hockey scored their fifth goal when Lalit Upadhyay scored through a field effort. Hockey Unit Tamil Nadu finally found success in the 45th minute when captain M Vinod Rayar scored for the team. Adding one more goal each before the game ended, resulting in a 6-2 win for Uttar Pradesh Hockey.

In the Pool D match between The Mumbai Hockey Association and Hockey Karnataka was a evenly contested match as each gave tough competition to the other and looking at registering a win on their name. The first half witnessed tough battle which yielded just the sole goal by The Mumbai Hockey Association in the 17th minute as Devinder Walmiki scored on the penalty corner. With the score at 1-0 in favour of The Mumbai Hockey Association, Hockey Karnataka equalised the game in the 48th minute as Pradhan Somanna beat the goalkeeper and put the ball into the goal box. With the game tied, The Mumbai Hockey Association realized that the game might slip from their hands and they increased the tempo of attack and scored in the 55th minute coming from the stick of Victo Singh. This proved to be the final goal for the match and The Mumbai Hockey Association won 2-1.

In the last match of the day, Food Cooperation of India (FCI) held Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) by 1-1 in the Pool D clash. Both the teams displayed a brilliant hockey and fought neck-to-neck to win the match. It was FCI who drew the first blood in 17th minute when their star player Munish Rana sneaked into opposition’s half and hit the ball hard into the net to take an early lead in the match. After conceding the goal, Railway Men played an attacking game with more aggression and kept on charging on FCI’s half. In the 33rd minute, they managed to earn a penalty corner and Amit Rohidas converted into a goal perfectly to equalise the score-line 1-1. Both the teams continued tussled with each other but failed to score the winning goal and the match eventually finished at 1-1 score.

Results of the day:

Pool B – Hockey Gangpur-Odisha 4 Roshan Minz (2 min-FG, 53 min-PC), Wilson Minz (10 min-FG), Bikash Toppo (57 min-FG) vs Hockey Jharkhand 2 Chandrashekhar Xalxo (15 min-PC, 20 min-PC)

Pool B – Comptroller & Auditor General of India 4 MD Naeemuddin (6 min-FG), Imran Khan (8 min-FG, 38 min-FG), Chandan Singh (27 min-PC) vs Hockey Bhopal 2 Osaf –Ur- Rahman (36 min-PS, 58 min-FG)

Pool C – Hockey Maharashtra 4 Vishal Pillay (20 min-PC), Vinit Kamble (39 min-FG), Navneet Swarnkar (42 min-FG), Ashish Chetty (56 min-PC) vs Hockey Haryana 1 Arjun (35 min-FG)

Pool C – Uttar Pradesh Hockey 6 Sunil Yadav (2 min-PC, 17 min-PC, 30 min-PC, 35 min-PC), Lalit Upadhyay (36 min-FG), Deepak Yadav (50 min-FG) vs Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu 2 M Vinod Rayar ( 45min-FG), V Raja (51 min-FG)

Pool D – The Mumbai Hockey Association 2 Devinder Walmiki (17 min-PC), Victo Singh (55 min-FG) vs Hockey Karnataka 1 Pradhan Somanna (48 min-FG)

Pool D – Food Corporation of India 1 Munish Rana (17min-FG) vs Railway Sports Promotion Board 1 Amit Rohidas (33min-PC)

Sr National M: Air India thumps AP 8-0

Pune (Maharashtra), 23 April 2015: The top teams fought hard to register win against their respective opponents today at the 5th Senior National Hockey Championship 2015 (Men) Div- A being played at Pune, Maharashtra. In Pool C, Hockey Maharashtra registered a convincing win of 3-1 against Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu and Hockey Haryana outplayed Services Sports Control Board by 5-3. In the Pool D match, Hockey Punjab edged past Food Corporation of India by a narrow margin of 5-4 and Railway Sports Promotion Board defeated The Mumbai Hockey Association Limited by 4-1. In Pool A, Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy beat Hockey Odisha by 5-1 and Air India Sports Promotion Board (AISPB) thrashed Hockey Andhra Pradesh by a huge margin of 8-0.

In Pool C, Hockey Maharashtra registered a convincing win of 3-1 against Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu going on to register a win in their name. It was Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu who scored the first goal of the match in the 23rd minute when captain M Vinod Rayar scored through a field effort and taking the lead in the game by 1-0. Trailing the game, Hockey Maharashtra bounced back in the game in the second half when a penalty stroke awarded to the team was converted by Captain Vishal Pillay and equalising the game. Motivated by the goal, Hockey Maharashtra increased the pressure on the opponents and got a penalty corner to their name in the 49th minute. Vishal Pillay yet again ensured that the ball found the nets and they took the lead in the game. The team scored their third goal in the 55th minute and this time it was Rajendra Ekka who the job for Hockey Maharashtra and they went on to won the game 3-1.

In Pool C match, Hockey Haryana outplayed Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) by 5-3 in hard-fought battle. It was Haryana who scored the first goal in the 16th minute when they earned a penalty corner and Gagandeep Singh converted it perfectly in the first goal of the match. However, SSCB came back strongly when Binay Bhengra sneaked into opponent’s half and scored a brilliant goal to equalise the score-line 1-1. With this goal, SSCB maintained their attacking game and managed to earn another penalty corner in 41st minute. This time Lovedeep Singh took the shot and converted it effectively to take a vital 2-1 lead against Haryana. After conceding two goals back-to-back, Haryana players counter attacked on their opponents and Gurjant Singh scored a spectacular goal in 45thminute for his team. After three minutes (48th minute), his team-mate Arjun extended stormed into opponent’s D and hit the ball hard into the goal-box to extend the lead by 3-2. SSCB stroke back again and this time Davinder Singh dribbled-past into opponent’s half to score a marvellous goal in the 51st minute. With the goal, SSCB equalised the score again and fighting hard to finish the match at 3-3. However, Haryana players kept on attacking on SSCB side and tried to create maximum opportunities to score. In the 52nd minute, Mandeep Antil out-foxed the defenders and scored the fourth goal for his team. After four minutes (56th minute), Jagwant Singh scored the fifth goal and sealed the victory for his team. After a neck-to-neck battle, Haryana registered a thumping 5-2 victory over SSCB.

In the Pool D match, Hockey Punjab edged past Food Corporation of India (FCI) by a narrow margin of 5-4 a high-intense tussle. It was FCI who scored the first goal of the match in the 10th minute when Munish Rana sneaked into opponent’s D and sent the ball in the net. However, their joy was short-lived as Punjab’s skipper Gurmail Singh scored a brilliant equaliser through a penalty corner conversion after few seconds. FCI fought back again and managed to earn a penalty shoot-out in 45th minute, which was perfectly converted by their skipper Surinder Kumar and took the lead of 2-1. After conceding the goal, Punjab players counter attacked on the opponent’s half and Vikrajit Singh and Dupinder Deep Singh scored two back-to-back goals in 47th and 48th minutes respectively. With these two quick goals, Punjab led the match again by 3-2. In the 52nd minute, FCI’s Ganendrajit Ningombam stormed into Punjab’s defence-line and hit the ball hard into the goal-box to equalise the score again. After three minutes (55th minute), Punjab’s Parvinder Singh sneaked into the opponent’s half and scored a brilliant goal to extend the lead by 4-3. In the next minute (56th minute), FCI earned a crucial penalty corner and Harjit Singh converted into his team’s fourth goal, levelling the score-line 4-4. After FCI’s goal, both the teams fought fiercely to score the winning goal and charged each other with their aggressive game. It was Punjab’s Jaskaran Singh who entered the D in the 60th minute and smashed the ball hard into the goal-box without giving any chance to the goal-keeper. With this winning goal, Punjab won post a striking 5-4 victory over Food Corporation of India (FCI).

In the fourth match, Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) defeated The Mumbai Hockey Association Limited by 4-1 in a one-sided match of Pool D. It was Mumbai who scored the first goal of the match in 18th minute when substitute Mayur Patil out-foxed the opponent’s defenders and sent the ball into the net to take the early lead. After conceding the goal, Railway men counter-attacked on the opponents and scored goals in the regular intervals. Yuvraj Walmiki scored the first goal for his team in the 37th minute and equalise the score-line by 1-1. After a intense fight between the two teams, Railways’ Malak Singh extended the lead by scoring second goal of the match in the 50thminute. After two minutes (52nd minute), Railways managed to earn a penalty corner and Jasjeet Singh converted it perfectly in the third goal for the team. In the next minute, Yuvraj scored his second goal and helped his team to register a thumping 4-1 win over Mumbai Hockey.

In Pool A match between Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy and Hockey Odisha it was the former who won the match 5-1. Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy looking for the initial goal scored their first goal in the 19th minute as Tarun Adhikari scored through a field goal. Aamir Khan looking at doubling the lead for his team successfully scored by capitalising on a good pass in the D. With a lead of 2-0 at half time, Vikas Choudhary scored a brace in the 41st and 44th minute taking Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy score to 4-0. Hockey Odisha opened their scorecard in the 54th minute through Dilip Toppo but MP Hockey Academy replied with Vikas’ marvellous hat-trick goal in the 60thminute. With this goal, Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy won the match 5-1.

In the last match of the day, Air India Sports Promotion Board (AISPB) thrashed Hockey Andhra Pradesh by a huge margin of 8-0 in the Pool A. AISPB opened their account in the 2nd minute of the match when Shivendra Singh scored a brilliant goal and gave an early lead to his team. After seven minutes (9th minute), Arman Qureshi extended the lead when his smashed the ball in the goal-box to take the score-line 2-0. In the 17th minute, AISPB managed to earn a penalty corner, which was effectively converted by Ajmer Singh. After three goals, AISPB played with full force and P.R. Aiyappa and Vikas Vishnu Pillay scored two back-to-back goals in 22nd and 25th minutes respectively to take the score-line to 5-0. In 32nd minutes, Arman scored his second goal after he sneaked into opponent’s half and sent the ball in net. Continuing the aggressive attacks, AISPB earned another penalty corner in 39th minute, which was perfectly converted by Gaganpreet Singh and took the score-line to 7-0. In 55th minute, they earned another penalty corner and this time again Arman converted it into his hat-trick goal. AISPB won the match with a huge margin of eight goals against Hockey Andhra Pradesh.

Results of the day:

Pool C – Hockey Maharashtra 3 Vishal Pillay (46 min-PS, 49 min-PC) Rajendra Ekka (55 min-FG) vs Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu 1 M. Vinod Rayar (23 min-FG)

Pool D – Hockey Haryana 5 Gagandeep Singh (16min-PC), Gurjant Singh (45min-FG), Arjun (48min-FG), Mandeep Antil (52min-FG), Jagwant Singh (56min-FG) vs Services Sports Control Board 3 Binay Bhingera (35min-FG), Lovedeep Singh (41min-PC), Davinder Singh (51min-PC)

Pool D – Hockey Punjab 5 Gurmail Singh (39min-PC), Vikrajit SIngh (47min-FG), Dupinder Deep Singh (48min-FG), Parvinder SIngh (55min-FG), Jaskaran Singh (60min-FG) vs Food Corporation of India 4 Munish Rana (10min-FG), Surinder Kumar (45min-PS), Ganendrajit Ningombam (52min-FG), Harjit Singh (56min-PC)

Pool D – Railway Sports Promotion Board 4 Yuvraj Walmiki (37min-FG, 53min-FG), Malak Singh (50min-FG), Jasjeet Singh (52min-FG) vs The Mumbai Hockey Association Limited 1 Mayur Patil (18min-FG)

Pool A – Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy 5 Tarun Adhikari (19min- FG), Aamir Khan (23min- FG), Vikas Choudhary (41min- FG, 44min- FG, 60min-FG) vs Hockey Odisha 1 Dilip Toppo (54min- PC)

Pool A – Air India Sports Promotion Board 8 Shivendra Singh (2min- FG), Arman Qureshi (9min-FG, 32min-FG, 55min-PC), Ajmer Singh (17min-PC), P.R. Aiyappa (22min-FG), Vikas Vishnu Pillay (25min-FG), Gaganpreet Singh (39min-PC) vs Hockey Andhra Pradesh 0

Sr National M: Semifinalists spotted

Indian Railways and Uttar Pradesh marched towards the finals with excellent win today in The 5th Senior National Hockey Championship 2015 (Men) Div – A

Railways confirmed their entry into finals by beating Air India 6-4

Uttar Pradesh outplayed Hockey Gangpur Odisha 3-0 in the other semifinal

Pune (Maharashtra), 26 April 2015: The 5th Senior National Hockey Championship 2015 (Men) Div- A, being played at Pune, Maharashtra, today witnessed an intense battle between four teams to book a berth in the finals.

Reaching the finals of the tournament, Railways ill be seen battling against Uttar Pradesh Hockey to fight for the title while Air India and Hockey Gangpur-Odisha will be fighting for the 3rd and 4th position.

The crucial day for the teams begun with a victory for Railways which pulled down Air India 6-4 making their way to the finals. The second Semi-final clash was a one sided game which resulted in favour of Uttar Pradesh Hockey who was seen defeating Hockey Gangpur –Odisha 3-0 and to march for the finale clash.

The first semi final clash of the day between Air India and Railways was a closely-fought battle which turned in favour of Railway Sports Promotion Board who defeated the opponents with 6-4 and confirmed their presence for the Final clash. Air India started the proceedings of the day when Gaganpreet Singh converted a penalty corner in the 17th minute and won confidence for the team. This called for pay back from Railways which soon retaliated by striking two field goals in the 28th minute and 30th minute coming from Malak Singh and Yuvraj Walmiki respectively ending the first half in their favour with a lead of 2-1. The excitement was on its peak in the second half itself as both the teams were eyeing every opportunity to surpass each other which resulted into goals at short intervals.

In the 35th minute of the game it was yet again Yuvraj Walmiki who smashed an excellent field goal for Railways taking them ahead towards victory. Not delaying it much, Air India came back into form with a penalty corner converted by Sameer Dad in the 40th minute. Hereon, the game was a forceful competition, both the teams striving hard to enter into the finals.

A penalty stroke awarded to Railway Sports Promotion Board was converted by Amit Rohidas in the 44th minute which was followed by a field goal in the very next minute by Vikram Pillay of Air India declaring the game as a tough war. Another gain for Air India came in when Arjun Halappa converted a Penalty stroke in the 47th minute proving that Air India left no pages unturned to beat the opponents aiming to march ahead towards the finals.

Amit Rohidas again won a score for the team in the 52nd minute by beautifully converting a penalty corner followed by Yuvraj Walmiki, the star boy who left the opponents stunned with another field goal in the 54th minute announcing an entry for Railway Sports Promotion Board into the finals with a score of 6-4.

It was not very difficult for Uttar Pradeh to claim a place in the finals as they blanked the opponents Hockey Gangpur-Odisha 3-0.

The game initiated on an easy note with Uttar Pradesh Hockey winning the first goal of the match which was a penalty corner converted by Sunil Yadav in the 7th minute. Gangpur Odisha tried hard to strike a goal for the team to end the first half with an equal score, however, the first half ended in favour of Uttar Pradesh Hockey which was leading with 1-0. The second half of the game again was an excellent display of hockey skills by Uttar Pradesh Hockey leaving no scope for the opponents to bounce back. The second goal from Uttar Pradesh Hockey came in the 32nd minute by Sunil Yadav who converted a penalty stroke for the team taking them ahead towards victory. In the 44th minute of the game Sunil Yadav from Uttar Pradesh Hockey outshined as an asset for the team by converting another penalty corner with which the team marched towards finals with a leading score 3-0.

The finals clash of The 5th Senior National Hockey Championship 2015 (Men) Div – A will be telecast LIVE and exclusive on DD Sports.

Results of the day:

1st Semi Final– Railway Sports Promotion Board 6 Malak Singh (28min-FG) Yuvraj Walmiki (30min-FG,35min-FG,54min-FG), Amit Rohidas (44min-PS,52min-PC) vs Air India Sports Promotion Board 4 Gaganpret Singh (17min-PC),Sameer Dad (40min-PC), Vikram Pillay (45min-FG), Arjun Halappa(45min-PS)

2nd Semi Final-Hockey Uttar Pradesh 3 Sunil Yadav (11min-PC,32 min- PS, 44min-PC) vs Hockey Gangpur-Odisha 0

Sr Nationals M: Railways to face UP in the final

Pune (Maharashtra), 26 April 2015: The 5th Senior National Hockey Championship 2015 (Men) Div- A, being played at Pune, Maharashtra, today witnessed an intense battle between four teams to book a berth in the finals.

Reaching the finals of the tournament, Railway will be seen battling against Uttar Pradesh Hockey to fight for the title while Air India and Hockey Gangpur-Odisha will be fighting for the 3rd and 4th position.

The crucial day for the teams begun with a victory for Railways which pulled down Air India Sports Promotion Board 6-4 making their way to the finals. The second Semi-final clash was a one sided game which resulted in favour of Uttar Pradesh Hockey who was seen defeating Hockey Gangpur –Odisha 3-0 and to march for the finale clash.

The first semi final clash of the day between Air India and Railways was a closely-fought battle which turned in favour of Railways defeated the opponents with 6-4 and confirmed their presence for the Final clash. Air India started the proceedings of the day when Gaganpreet Singh converted a penalty corner in the 17th minute and won confidence for the team. This called for pay back from Railways which soon retaliated by striking two field goals in the 28th minute and 30th minute coming from Malak Singh and Yuvraj Walmiki respectively ending the first half in their favour with a lead of 2-1. The excitement was on its peak in the second half itself as both the teams were eyeing every opportunity to surpass each other which resulted into goals at short intervals. In the 35th minute of the game it was yet again Yuvraj Walmiki who smashed an excellent field goal for Railway Sports Promotion taking them ahead towards victory. Not delaying it much, Air Indian Sports Promotion Board came back into form with a penalty corner converted by Sameer Dad in the 40th minute. Hereon, the game was a forceful competition, both the teams striving hard to enter into the finals. A penalty stroke awarded to Railway Sports Promotion Board was converted by Amit Rohidas in the 44th minute which was followed by a field goal in the very next minute by Vikram Pillay of Air India Sports Promotion board declaring the game as a tough war. Another gain for Air India Sports Promotion Board came in when Arjun Halappa converted a Penalty stroke in the 47th minute proving that Air India Sports Board left no pages unturned to beat the opponents aiming to march ahead towards the finals. Amit Rohidas again won a score for the team in the 52nd minute by beautifully converting a penalty corner followed by Yuvraj Walmiki, the star boy who left the opponents stunned with another field goal in the 54th minute announcing an entry for Railway Sports Promotion Board into the finals with a score of 6-4.

It was not very difficult for Uttar Pradeh Hockey to claim a place in the finals as they blanked the opponents Hockey Gangpur-Odisha 3-0. The game initiated on an easy note with Uttar Pradesh Hockey winning the first goal of the match which was a penalty corner converted by Sunil Yadav in the 7th minute. Gangpur Odisha tried hard to strike a goal for the team to end the first half with an equal score, however, the first half ended in favour of Uttar Pradesh Hockey which was leading with 1-0. The second half of the game again was an excellent display of hockey skills by Uttar Pradesh Hockey leaving no scope for the opponents to bounce back. The second goal from Uttar Pradesh Hockey came in the 32nd minute by Sunil Yadav who converted a penalty stroke for the team taking them ahead towards victory. In the 44th minute of the game Sunil Yadav from Uttar Pradesh Hockey outshined as an asset for the team by converting another penalty corner with which the team marched towards finals with a leading score 3-0.

Results of the day:

1st Semi Final– Railway Sports Promotion Board 6 Malak Singh (28min-FG) Yuvraj Walmiki (30min-FG,35min-FG,54min-FG), Amit Rohidas (44min-PS,52min-PC) vs Air India Sports Promotion Board 4 Gaganpret Singh (17min-PC),Sameer Dad (40min-PC), Vikram Pillay (45min-FG), Arjun Halappa(45min-PS)

2nd Semi Final-Hockey Uttar Pradesh 3 Sunil Yadav (11min-PC,32 min- PS, 44min-PC) vs Hockey Gangpur-Odisha 0

Sr National M: Railways emerge worthy champions

Sr National M: Railways emerge worthy champions

Pune (Maharashtra), 28 April 2015: Indian Railways won the 5th Hockey India Senior National Hockey Championship, as the defeat Uttar Pradesh 5-3 in the highly-contested final here.

In the Position match, Air India outplayed Gangpur-Odisha 5-3 to finish at third in the tournament.

It was Railways was determined today to be the Champions, as they convincingly beat Uttar Pradesh Hockey 5-3.

Starting the game with dominance, Railway Sports Promotion Board scored the first goal just nine minutes into the game as the team got a penalty stroke and which was successfully slapped into the nets by Amit Rohidas. Looking at taking the lead further, Railway Sports Promotion Board found success in the 17th minute as a field effort by Talwinder Singh took the score to 2-0.

Amit Rohidas was again seen in action in the 21st minute as he brilliantly scored through a field goal. Uttar Pradesh Hockey looking at stopping the onslaught by the opponents finally scored through a penalty corner in the 25th minute as Sunil Yadav did no mistake in finding the goal box. This did not deter the spirits of Railway Sports Promotion Board as they added two more goals before the end of first half, taking scores to 5-1 in their favour.

The second half was more an effort by Uttar Pradesh Hockey as they worked towards bouncing back into the game. They scored two consecutive goals in the 38th and 39th minute giving themselves hope of making a comeback. But Railway Sports Promotion Board ensured that no further goals were scored by the opponents as they went on to win the Championship by 5-3.

For the 3rd/ 4th Place, Air India Sports Promotion Board (AISPB) outplayed Hockey Gangpur-Odisha by 5-3 in a hard-fought battle with the help of Sameer Dad’s brilliant brace. Sameer opened the account in the 5th minute with his spectacular goal. His team-mate Vikram Pillay extended the lead in the 27th minute with another display of team-work. Conceding two goals, Gangpur-Odisha’s captain Roshan Minz sneaked into opponent’s half and sent the ball into the net. In the 17th minute, Sameer scored another goal and equalised the score-line by 2-2.

In the 33rd minute, Gangpur received penalty shoot-out, which was perfectly converted by Pratap Lakra and took the score-card 3-2. AISPB came back strongly and their star player Arman Qureshi hit the ball hard into the goal-box in the 49th minute.

In 56th minute, they earned a penalty corner and Gaganpreet Singh converted it effectively into the fifth goal of his team. Trailing by 2-5, Gangpur counter-attacked on AISPB’s side earned a penalty shoot-out in 58th minute. This time again, Pratap Lakra converted it perfectly and reduced the losing margin by 3-5. With this win, AISPB finished the tournament at the respectable 3rd Place.

Individual Awardees

Best Goalkeeper: Arpit Choudhary (Jharkhand)

Best Defender: Amit Rohidas (Railways)

Best Mid-fielder: Jasjit Singh (Railways)

Best Forward: Lalit Upadhyay (Uttar Pradesh)

Promising player of the Championship: Vikramjit Singh (Punjab)

Promising player from Maharashtra: Akash Chikte (Goalkeeper)

Results of the day:

Final – Railway Sports Promotion Board 5 Amit Rohidas (9min-PS, 21min-FG, 29min-PC), Talwinder Singh (17min-FG), Affan Yusuf (27 min-FG) vs Uttar Pradesh Hockey 3 Sunil Yadav (25min-PC, 38min-PC), Amir Khan (39min-PC)

3rd/4th Place – All India Sports Promotion Board 5 Sameer Dad (5min-FG, 17min-FG), Vikram Pillay (8min-FG), Arman Qureshi (49min-FG), Gaganpreet Singh (56min-PC) vs Hockey Gangpur – Odisha 3 Roshan Minz (15min-FG), Pratap Lakra (33min-PS, 58min-PS)