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Gritty Manipur enters quarterfinals

Sports Reporter

Punjab & Sind Bank edges out Orissa in a closely-fought encounter

— Photo: M. Vedhan

SLUGGING IT OUT: P&S Bank’s Jarnail Singh and Dillip Kullu of Orissa in a battle for possession.

CHENNAI: Manipur, through sheer grit and Punjab and Sind Bank, by planning, effort, and skill, entered the quarterfinals of the St. Joseph’s-TNHA Junior National men’s hockey championship at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium here.

In the two crucial matches in Pool ‘B’ and ‘F’ respectively on Wednesday, Manipur came back from a one-goal deficit to defeat Karnataka 2-1 while P&S Bank edged out Orissa by the same margin.

Both the matches were gripping in their own ways, but the P&S Bank-Orissa clash turned out to be more closely-fought than the other one. Orissa players comprising mostly from the now-famous Sundergarh region which has produced internationals such as Dilip Tirkey among others, more than made up for its shortcomings in terms of height and physique by producing a brand of hockey, which can be termed solid.

What Orissa lacked was an effective frontline which somehow inexplicably, failed to seize the chances that came its way. No doubt, it showed resilience and the wherewithal to withstand the surge of a frontline, which, arguably, has been the best thus far. But when it mattered, the better-built P&S team bulldozed its way.

Orissa went ahead quite early in the second half. A fierce hit from the left-half resulted in P&S’s goalkeeper Taswinder Singh stopping it, though mildly. Sensing an opportunity, Sunil Kujur jumped in front to push the ball in.

P&S galvanised into action within a few minutes. Sajjan Singh equalised with a withering hit off a penalty corner. Still, P&S showed signs of panic as Orissa kept probing at its defence.

The P&S frontline came to the team’s rescue. A defence clearance saw a set-piece between Sarwanjit Singh and Gurvinder Singh, which resulted in the latter slotting in the second and the winning goal.

The Karnataka-Manipur clash also was fast paced. The goalless first half was very interesting as both the teams played to their strengths. Jayachandra’s brace took Manipur to a win. Earlier, Rajesh put Karnataka ahead.

In the quarterfinals on Thursday, Manipur will meet Punjab while P&S Bank takes on SAI.

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