Arun Babu shines in Karnataka's win

Karnataka 2 IHF Juniors 1

Mumbai 2 Bengal 1

By Our Hockey Correspondent

CHENNAI, JULY 10. Sparkling moments in the last quarter, the highlight of which was the intrepid goal-keeping by Karnataka's Arun Babu, compensated for the periods of ennui in the earlier part. The verdict against IHF Juniors gave Karnataka a fresh lease of life in Pool B of the MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup hockey tournament at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium this evening.

Karnataka has three points with a match remaining against Punjab and Sind Bank on Wednesday. It lost to Air India on Saturday. The IHF Juniors finished its programme without a point. In the other pool, Bengal drew a blank after being conquered by Mumbai by the odd goal in three. This was the first win for Mumbai in two matches. Mumbai has a game left against Indian Airlines. Both IHF Juniors and Bengal have completed their engagements.

Neither Karnataka nor IHF Juniors scored in the first half although the IHF Juniors flunked a penalty stroke by Inderjit Singh close on half-time. Inderjit barged in delectably only to be obstructed by goalkeeper Arun Babu. Umpire V.B. Singh awarded the stroke. Inderjit, however, in attempting to find the angle and trajectory failed to direct the ball accurately.

There was not a single penalty corner also in this session; the IHF Juniors had six in the second but Karnataka finished with a blank. Even the one it earned was withdrawn by umpire V.B. Singh when John Varghese protested demanding a stroke for the infringement inside the circle.

Karnataka's victory became possible not owing to the performance of the frontline but due to the tenacity of the defence. Goalkeeper Arun Babu symbolised the fighting spirit of the team effecting two brilliant saves off Len Aiyappa. Earlier, Krishna Reddy brought off a spectacular interception of a shot by Bikramjit Singh in a penalty corner. The hard work put in by John Varghese in the mid-field must also be noted with admiration. He kept the frontline busy although Prakash Chalke messed up a couple of easy chances. The Juniors functioned in fits and starts, with little cohesion in the frontline. Only late in the second half was there a semblance of some activity in the forward segment. But flippant finish by Ajitpal Singh and Amarjit Pratap forced the team to play second fiddle.

However, Amarjit Pratap produced a lovely backhander in the final minute to restrict the margin.

There were phases when Karnataka looked well settled. When Cyprian Aind struck off a pass by John Varghese and Kamal Horo increased the lead with six minutes remaining, Karnataka was on full throttle.

If the frontline had shown the co-ordination and vigour needed to outwit the rival defence, the margin could have been bigger.

Needlessly, too, the defence buckled under the pressure leaving goalkeeper Arun Babu to fend for himself. And the stout hearted player lived up to the confidence reposed in him by the team. But for Babu the verdict would have gone against Karnataka.

A trace of monotony was evident in the other match with neither Mumbai nor Bengal exerting the pressure needed to keep up the tempo. The exchanges were confined to the mid-field. However, the Mumbai forwards, led well by Manoj Lokande, caused some alarm at the rival end. Manoj set the ball beautifully for Santha Kumar to hoist the lead midway through the first half.

But the joy the goal produced proved evanescent as Bengal levelled with Peterus Ekka hitting in the equaliser off a neat pass from Rajat Minz.

The teams were level at 1-1 during half-time, raising visions of Bengal securing a point. But Sunil Kumar put Mumbai ahead with an impeccable penalty corner in the early minutes. Mumbai had five penalty corners, and Bengal, which gave a few anxious moments for the rival in the final minutes, had three penalty corners.

Tuesday's matches: Indian Airlines v Tamil Nadu (2-30 p.m.); Punjab and Sind Bank v Air India (4-30 p.m.).

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