Hockey National Junior C'ship: Chandigarh, Haryana, UP and Odisha win in quarter-finals

Hockey Chandigarh, Hockey Haryana, Uttar Pradesh Hockey and Hockey Association of Odisha registered statement wins over Hockey Punjab, Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu, Delhi Hockey and Hockey Bihar respectively to secure their berth in the semi-final of the 11th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2021 here in Kovilpatti in Tamil Nadu.

In the first Quarter Final match of the day, Hockey Chandigarh edged out Hockey Punjab 3-2 in a closely contested encounter. After Sumit (8') gave Hockey Chandigarh an early lead, Simranjot Singh (22') levelled the score for Hockey Punjab in the second quarter. As both teams went back and forth in the third quarter, Rohit (44') put Hockey Chandigarh in front again, only to be pegged back by Rajinder Singh's equaliser in the 45th minute. Rohit (51') then doubled his tally to give Hockey Chandigarh a decisive 3-2 lead, which they saw out to book their place in the semi-final.In the second Quarter Final, Hockey Haryana earned a clinical 7-3 victory over the home side Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu. Hockey Haryana's surge towards a semi-final berth was led by a hat-trick from Deepak (4', 27', 46'), a brace from Amandeep (4', 32') and one goal each from Pankaj (19') and Rohit (59'). For the hockey unit of Tamil Nadu, Aravind Kumar S (5'), Sathish B (49') and Aravind (55') got on the score sheet.Uttar Pradesh Hockey notched a decisive 9-0 victory against previously unbeaten Delhi Hockey to book their place in the semi-final. Sharda Nand Tiwari (3', 12', 22', 27', 51') led the charge with five goals to his name, followed by Manish Sahani (16', 29'), Captain Vishnukant Singh (43') and Mohammad Haris (54').

In the fourth Quarter Final, the Hockey Association of Odisha ran out 4-1 winners over Hockey Bihar thanks to a late burst of goals. After an intense first half where the score remained 0-0, Amandeep Lakra (38') gave the Hockey Association of Odisha the lead, before Sushant Toppo (44') doubled their advantage. Monu Kumar (50') pulled one goal back for Hockey Bihar, but Sudeep Chirmako (51', 60') dashed their hopes thanks to two late goals.

( With inputs from ANI )

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