Sport - Hockey

IA gets the better of EME, Jalandhar

By Our Special Correspondent

MUMBAI APRIL 22. Field hockey is a confusing sport on most occasions; sometimes the players display such clarity of thought and action on turf that the game becomes a revelation. Indian Airlines and Electrical & Mechanical Engineers (EME) were involved in one such refreshing contest on Tuesday, converting a quarterfinal league game of the 41st Bombay Gold Cup hockey championship into entertainment unlimited for faithfuls at the Mahindra stadium.

Six goals were scored in this Pool B game between semifinal hopefuls at the Mahindra stadium, Indian Airlines grabbing a lion's share due to its competitive edge for a 4-2 victory.

EME (Jalandhar) joined in with pacy hockey to hit back through two goals after trailing 0-2 before the former sprinted away on the home stretch, confirming a semifinal berth in the process (six points, two league games).

Western Railway, Mumbai, strengthened its qualifying prospects as the second side from the pool with a 4-1 win over Sikh Regiment Centre, New Delhi.

Bimal Lakra got the ball rolling with a diagonal pass to tireless playmaker Vikram Pillay, who set up Sameer Dad. Dhanraj Pillay's anticipation and acceleration got him into position for deflecting the center home.

EME, getting a first-half taste of feast in store for fans at its expense, let in another in the 48th minute after conceding its first short corner. Lazarus Barla, determined for a national comeback as a utility defender, converted via the direct route with a thundering drive.

The Jalandhar side reduced the deficit through Herenj, the ball rolling back off the IA custodian's pads after a melee for the finish. Avtar Singh Jr got his name onto the scoresheet with a 57th minute goal off a short corner, Bhupinder pushing forward for the EME striker to deflect in, setting the stage for an enthralling contest.

IA needed just 10 minutes to break the deadlock, the third and fourth goals coming off indirect short corner variations. Barla drew the EME chargers towards him by shaping up for a direct hit but passed square for Mukesh Kumar to notch his first goal, the ball going in off the goalkeeper's pads.

Then Dhanraj stepped into the short corner picture, accepting a Mukesh relay off a Barla pass and beating a defender with a sudden burst before pushing in.

Western Railway, having watched this goal glut from the stands, stepped forward to strut its stuff in the second league match. The Mumbai side, drawn to play IA in the concluding pool game, got the first goal off a penalty stroke which Gursevak Singh converted in the 26th minute.

The next goal happened after Chanderpal Singh took two cracks at target, both blocked by the SRC custodian who was beaten the third time when Shanta Kumar homed in on the rebound and smashed the ball in.

SRC pulled one back through A. Kujur, a 33rd minute direct corner hit, but visions of a fightback vaporized when the Western strikeforce exploded into action for two more goals.

A burst of passes between Chanderpal and Shanta found the former pulling the ball back towards the penalty spot for Ingo Singh to fire (3-1), then a Shanta-Ingo-Shanta combine saw Chanderpal in menacing mood (4-1).

The results (quarterfinal league pool B): Indian Airlines 4 (Dhanraj Pillay 2, Lazarus Barla, Mukesh Kumar) bt EME 2 (S. Herenj, Avtar Singh Jr). Western Railway 4 (Gursevak Singh, Shanta Kumar, Ingo Singh, Chanderpal) bt Sikh Regiment Centre 1 (A. Kujur).

Wednesday's matches: Bhopal XI vs Central Industrial Security Force; Indian Oil vs Karnataka XI (quarterfinal league pool A).

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