Michael takes Karnataka into semifinals

U.P. 0 Orissa 0

Chandigarh 5 Bhopal 0

Punjab 5 SAIL 2

Karnataka 1 PSB 0

CHENNAI, FEB. 16. In more ways than one, it was an eventful day in the Junior National hockey championship at the SDAT- Radhakrishnan Stadium here on Friday. The exit of the defending champion, Air India, from contention was the major topic on the day until Sandeep Michael put Karnataka into the semifinals with a peach of a goal against Punjab and Sind Bank (PSB).

The defeat of PSB signalled the end of the institutional outfits from trophy contention in this championship.

Karnataka richly deserved the win for its persistence and pugnacity displayed against a combination whose strength and power were quite visible. Rajwinder Singh caught the eye most in the PSB attack with Naginder Singh from the mid-field providing adequate support. The dominance of the Bank outfit could be gleaned from the 10 penalty corners it forced against the three by the opponent.

Karnataka's mid-fielder Sonu brought off a goal-line save in the first half when Gowda saved a shot by Rajwinder Singh in a penalty corner. Later, Rajwinder's reverse flick flew over the post. After that it was the pleasing sallies by Karnataka front- line that were prominent. Captain Dinesh worked hard along with Ajay Ayappa and Sandeep Michael. In the mid-field, other than Sonu, wing half-backs Thimmiah and Tirkey were outstanding. The match winner for Karnataka was a splendid effort that came around 10 minutes from the end. Ajay Ayappa did the spade work with a neat run and Sandeep Michael provided the finishing touches amidst spontaneous cheers. PSB, however, did not give up till the final minute during which it forced a penalty corner, but the Karnataka defence stood the pressure well.

Air India experienced its moment of distress and dejection when Chandigarh pumped in five goals against Bhopal without reply. This verdict knocked Air India out of the competition and brought Chandigarh into the last eight in Pool-A.

Both the teams finished with seven points but Chandigarh moved up with a tally of 20 goals with nothing against; Air India's figures were 18-1. Cyril Ekka(2), Mandeep Singh and Inderjeet Singh (2) scored for Chandigarh.

Punjab won comfortably against SAIL to top Pool-E with nine points, undefeated in all three matches. Jugraj Singh (3), Gurjant and Jagbir figured in the scorers' list. Gurvinder Singh and Sunil Kiro scored for SAIL.

Uttar Pradesh needed only a draw to make it to the last eight and achieved it without scoring against Orissa in Pool-C.

The quarterfinal line-up for Sunday: Haryana v Mumbai; Punjab v Bengal and Chandigarh v U.P. Saturday is a rest day.

Fair Play Trophy for Gujarat

The Tamil Nadu Hockey Association instituted `Fair Play Trophy' in memory of its late president, Arasan Vijaykumar, was presented to Gujarat in appreciation of the spirit and fortitude displayed by its players who took part despite the tragedy back home. The trophy was presented to the team by Mr. Robert Lawrence, executive director, Development and Co-ordination, IHF, on Thursday, along with a contribution to the relief fund of Rs. 4,000.

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