Hockey nationals: Chandigarh boys log second win

Hockey Chandigarh recorded their second consecutive win during the ongoing 14th Hockey India Sub-Junior Men National Championship, at the Sector 42 Sports Complex. During the opening day, the city lads had registered a win over Hockey Maharashtra, and today the local team trounced Hockey Arunachal 5-0. Gujeet Singh once again emerged the star by contributing a brace, while Prince Singh, Misbah Khan and Prabhjot Singh Saini netted a goal each.

In a Pool-E encounter, Hockey Punjab dominated Hockey Bihar with a 12-0 win. Gurwinder Singh (26th, 30th), Mandeep Singh (33rd, 47th), and Uttkarsh (39th, 48th), each, scored two goals, with additional contributions from Sukhdev Singh (12th), Captain Charanjeet Singh (17th), Ajaypal Singh (22nd), Inderjit Singh (52nd), Sunny (55th), and Anurag Singh (60th). In a Pool-G fixture, Goans Hockey and Hockey Gujarat shared points after they were locked in a 1-1 draw. Sahil Pramod Jambotkar (11th) gave Goans Hockey the early lead in the first quarter before Jenis Chauhan (56th) equalised in the closing minutes for Hockey Gujarat. Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu Hockey defeated Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu, 4-0 and Hockey Karnataka defeated Manipur Hockey 4-2. Hockey Maharashtra triumphed over Hockey Jammu & Kashmir with a 10-0 victory.

~20L grant by Administrator

In the evening, UT Administrator and Punjab Governor, Gulab Chand Kataria, formally inaugurated the championship. He said hockey had always been close to the hearts of all Indians. “As part of the ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’ vision, sports infrastructure is being improved across the country, including the installation of new synthetic hockey turfs,” he said. He also remembered prominent hockey players, including Baljit Singh, Deepak Thakur and Rajpal Singh, among others. According to Karan Gilhotra, president, Hockey Chandigarh, the Administrator announced a grant of Rs 20 lakh for the association for hosting the championship.