Birendra Lakra plays his 100th International match

Bhubaneswar, May 3, 2015: India’s clash against Japan at the India- Japan Series marked the 100th International match for Birendra Lakra, who as a defender has been a great asset to the Indian Hockey team since his debut on the International platform.

 

The 25-year old has been the backbone of the team and even been part of all important international tournaments since he made his debut during the test series against South Africa in 2012. His outstanding performance over the last year resulted in he being adjudged the Player of the Year for 2014 at the first edition of Hockey India Annual Awards announced recently.
 

Congratulating him on the feat, Hockey India President Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra said, “We congratulate Birendra on his achieving this landmark. He has played a key role in the defence line-up since he started playing for India on the international arena. We wish him all the best for his future endeavours and hope he continues his good form in the times to come.”

Hockey India Press release

Railway Sports Promotion Board to take on Jharkhand in women's hockey final

 Madhya Pradesh vs Jharkhand

Railway Sports Promotion Board vs Hockey Punjab

Saifai (Uttar Pradesh), May 2, 2015: The 5th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship 2015 (Division A), witnessed two powerful clashes to win the race for the finals. Entering into the final phase, Railway Sports Promotion Board will fight against Hockey Jharkhand on May 3, whereas, Punjab Hockey and Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy will clash for the 3/4th position of the tournament on the same day.

The first fight for the finals between Railway Sports Promotion Board and Hockey Punjab was a one sided match where Railway Sports Promotion Board blanked the opponents with 8-0 and booked their berth as one of the finalists. The second clash was a neck to neck competition which ended with a victory of Hockey Jharkhand who defeated Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy with 3-2

In the first semi-final clash for the day, it was Railway Sports Promotion Board who emerged victorious going on to claim the final spot tomorrow. In a one sided match Railway Sports Promotion Board, it was Soundarya Yendala who opened the account for her team as she scored through a brilliant field goal in the 7th minute.

This was followed by two quick back to back goals in the 9th and 10th minute by Anuradha Devi TH giving her team a 3-0 lead and leaving the opponents frustrated. Just before the end of first half, Railway Sports Promotion Board added one more goal to the tally in the 24th minute when Amandeep Kaur deflected a beautiful pass and taking the scores to 4-0.

Second half unveiled the same story as Railway Sports Promotion Board continued its dominance and registered goals at regular intervals. Minute 40th and 43rd marked two more goals coming from the stick of Manjit Kaur and Anuradha Devi TH. This was followed by two quick goals in the 50th and 51st minute, resulting in Railway Sports Promotion Board winning the semi-final clash against Hockey Punjab and advancing to the final. 

The second semi final clash was a neck to neck competition between Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy and Hockey Jharkhand which resulted in favour of Hockey Jharkhand who defeated the opponents with 3-2.

The first half of the match itself saw crucial moments where both the teams were trying to get better of each other and score the first goal. However, it was Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy which opened their account first with a field goal in the 15th minute of the game coming from Ramngaihuuali R.

Hockey Jhrakhand did not wait for the second half and retaliated for this shot in the 30th minute when Anima Minz struck the first goal for the team which was a field goal concluding the first half with a draw 1-1.

The second half was more of a struggle by both the teams to lead. By the last minute there were no further goals leading to a draw between both the teams and called for a shoot out phase. Hockey Jharkhand kept its nerves against Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy and enter the finals.

Results of the day:

Semi-final 1 - Railway Sports Promotion Board 8 Soundaraya Yendala (7 min-FG), Anuradha Devi TH (9 min-FG, 10 min-PC, 43 min-FG), Amandeep Kaur (24 min-FG), Manjit Kautr (40 min-PC), Punam Barla (50 min-FG), Navjot Kaur (51 min-PC), vs Hockey Punjab 0

Semi-final 2 - Hockey Jharkhand 1 Anima Minz (30 mins-FG) vs Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy 1 Ramngaihuuali R (15 mins-FG) 

Shoot Out Phase - Madhya Pradesh Hockey 2 Kavita Vidyarathi, Shivani Singh vs Hockey Jharkhand 2 Etwari Mundu, Rookmany Dodray

Sudden Death - Hockey Jharkhand 1 Etwari Mundu

Hockey India Press release

India face spirited Japan in the first match of the 4-match Test series today

Bhubaneswar,  May 2, 2015: As the FIH Hockey World League Semi-Final (Men) 2015 proves to be a crucial tournament for all the hockey national teams in the world, India and Japan have started their preparation with the India-Japan Test Series in Bhubaneswar, to be contested at Kalinga Stadium on 3rd – 9th May 2015 in front of the hockey-crazy crowd.

After finishing 3rd at the 24th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup recently, the Indian team is looking to continue their form and will try-out new strategies in the Series. With a 24-member squad, chief coach Paul van Ass aims to utilise all the players on the field and use new team-combinations in preparation for the World League semifinal round.

Knowing the fact that Japan has a strong forward line and their players very skilful with speed, Indian players have started analysing their previous games and working on various strategies to tackle them. FIH Rank # 9, India has more strength than FIH Rank 16 Japan, but the host team is not taking any chance and they will utilise their full strength of the squad against the visitors.

Last time the two teams met in the 2013 AHF Asian Champions Trophy in Japan, the host team defeated India by 2-1 in the tournament. The team management has called back a few young players, such as forward player Lalit Upadhyay, defender Yuvraj Walmiki and midfielder Pardeep Mor, in the senior team and have included them in their key game-plans against Japan.

On the other hand, Japan has arrived with full strength and all the senior players in their 19-member squad for the India-Japan Test Series. After finishing in the 6th position in the Incheon Asian Games 2014, the Japanese team is taking the series very seriously as they are also preparing for the FIH Hockey World League Semi-Final in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Japan will face the toughest teams of the word there and this series against India will give the ample opportunities to improve the skills of their players. However, they have not played matches against India in the last few years and due to that, they don’t know much about the Indian players and their individual styles. Japan’s first match will be the most crucial for them as they have to understand the Indian’s in a very short period of time and strategise their style according to their opponent.

Speaking after the practice session, Paul van Ass stated: “In the present day International Hockey, you can’t take any team lightly. Once The Netherlands lost a match to Japan, just because they took them lightly and didn’t utilise their full strength. Though they are ranked below us, the Japan team is a good team and they have been improving in the right direction. They have a very strong forward line-up and speed is their key strength. With the new South Korean coach Keonwook Kang, the Japan team has improved a lot in all areas. Being an Asian team, they are playing European style of hockey, which make them a tough opponent. We are glad that they are here to play with us and we will play competitive hockey. I am hoping for a good start against them.”

Speaking at the Practice Session at Kalinga Stadium, Japan Coach Keonwook Kang said: “This will be an important Test Series for us as we are preparing for the FIH Hockey World League Semi-Final and this series will give us good opportunities. We haven’t played against India in the last few years and we don’t know how they will play tomorrow. We have to read their game as early as possible in tomorrow’s match and draw our strategies according to that. We will start with our natural game and play with full force. India is a strong team and they have been playing good hockey in the last few years. It will be a tough contest between us and we are looking forward to it.”

The four-match Test Series between the two Asian teams will start on May 3, 2015 at 07.00 pm, which will be telecast LIVE on DD Sports.

Hockey India release

Hockey Bihar get the better of Andhra Pradesh 2-1

Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh,  May 2, 2015: The 5th edition of the Hockey India Junior Women National Hockey Championship 2015 (Div B) being played in Rajnandgoan, Chhattisgarh today witnessed tough competition between Hockey Bihar and Hockey Andhra Pradesh and headed towards the semi-final phase.

With the tournament entering the Semi final phase on 4th May 2015, Hockey Patiala will be seen battling it out against Hockey Uttarakhand and Chandigarh Olympic Association will clash Hockey Gangpur-Odisha with an aim to book their place in the Finale of the 5th edition of the Hockey India Junior Women National Hockey Championship 2015 (Div B).

In the match between Hockey Bihar and Hockey Andhra Pradesh, it was the former who was trailing the game but bounced back in the last few minutes to claim the win. The first half of the match proved to be a dry run as both the teams were seen trying to score on the opportunities but failed during the entire session. 

It was in the 48th minute when Hockey Andhra Pradesh who finally broke the deadlock to score the first goal of the game coming from the stick of Mallwswari Thalari. Looking at making a comeback, Hockey Bihar scored in the 55th and 57th minute leaving the opponents stunned. The first goal for Hockey Bihar was a penalty corner conversion hit on target by Shwet Nisha and the second a field effort by Kajal Lakra giving the team the win of 2-1.

The third match of the day between Hockey Puducherry and Hockey Madhya Pradesh is scheduled for 6:00pm but the results will not influence the Semi Finals line up for 4th May (Monday).

Results of the day-

Pool A  Hockey Patiala vs Steel Plant Sports Board-Teams did not turn up

Pool A Hockey Bihar 2 Shwet Nisha (55 min-PC), Kajal Lakra (57 min-FG) vs Hockey Andhra Pradesh 1 Mallwswari Thalari (48 min-FG)