IOC canters to a comfortable triumph

Jolted by an early strike from Army, the champion rallies superbly

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has been on a bit of a roller-coaster ride. Playing well only in patches in the league, IOC did not exactly paint a picture of being a cohesive unit.

But when the crunch moments emerged, it delivered in grand style. The last two matches saw IOC at its best, displaying clockwork-like precision in its moves.

The final of the 89th all-India MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup hockey tournament at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium here on Sunday saw the defending champion script a 3-2 victory over Army XI to bag the title and the cash prize of Rs.5 lakh. Army had to be content with Rs.2.5 lakh.

Army made the scoreboard first within hardly five minutes of the start with a goal from Pawal Lakra — a clean shot from close to the box that found the top of the roof. However, from that moment till the end of the first half, it was IOC which put up a show of dominance.

Bharat Chikara moved in quickly in the left, and his cross found Hamza Mujtaba, who scooped it into the top of the net for the equaliser. IOC raided from both flanks that left the Army team panting. Didar Singh’s strike was by padded away by the ’keeper P.T. Rao, and then Roshan Minz and Mujtaba’s combination created a flutter in the Army camp.

About 25 minutes into the first half, IOC’s star striker Deepak Thakur made his appearance and the complexion of the game started to change.

IOC’s bugbear has been the penalty corners and in the final the team had six but converted none, though a couple of them did trouble the ’keeper. IOC field play, though, was superior to Army’s. Unable to break into a packed defence, Army resorted to long balls, with Gurpreet Singh supplying from the right.

Deepak, who was hospitalised on Saturday night for a ‘viral fever’ found the net to give IOC the lead in the 48th minute. Gagandeep Singh’s pass from the left saw Deepak trap the ball and wait for a few seconds with the choice to either hit it over the ’keeper or under him. Seeing Rao advancing, Deepak rolled the ball between his legs for his 10th goal. The former India striker was the real star of the tournament.

Didar Singh put the match beyond Army after he dribbled past a couple of defenders from the right to score his second goal of the tournament.

Having been outplayed for the major part of the contest, Army scored off a penalty corner by Chandan Aind five minutes from the hooter.

The results (Final): IOC 3 (Hamza Mujtaba 15, Deepak Thakur 48, Didar Singh 55) bt Army XI 2 (Pawal Lakra 4, Chandan Aind 65). Man of the match: Deepak Thakur.