Surjit Hockey Academy, SAIL to vie for title today

Surjit Hockey Academy, Jalandhar, and Steel Authority of India (SAIL) Academy will face each other in the final of the 24th Olympian Mohinder Singh Munshi Hockey Tournament (U-19 boys) on Sunday. Both teams emerged victorious in their respective semi-final matches at the BSF Hockey Stadium on Saturday.

In the first semi-final, Surjit Hockey Academy defeated STC, Kurukshetra, (2-1) in a thrilling match. Sehajpreet Singh put Surjit ahead with a goal in the 20th minute, before Ankit of STC, Kurukshetra, levelled the score in the 35th minute. The game remained evenly matched until Sehajpreet Singh’s second goal in the 55th minute, securing the win for Surjit.

The second semi-final saw SAIL Academy edge out Round Glass Academy, Mohali, (3-2). Ranjanpal Ekka put SAIL ahead early in the second minute. Round Glass responded in the 20th minute with an equaliser from Amandeep. In the 40th and 46th minutes, Saliba Lisham scored twice for SAIL, bringing the score to 3-1. Round Glass’s Sunny pulled one back in the 58th minute, but it wasn’t enough to prevent SAIL from clinching victory.

The match was graced by distinguished guests, including Olympians Surinder Singh Sodhi, Sandeep Singh Deepa, Mandeep Singh Saini and Pargat Singh, who interacted with players ahead of the game. Other notable attendees included Daljit Singh, IRS (Customs), Olympian Sanjeev Kumar, Sukhwinder Singh Sukha and other prominent figures in Indian hockey.