22-February-2015 ~ Page No.

SPORTS
IMPHAL SUNDAY 22 FEBRUARY 2015
Hockey India League
Hazari and Tombi State polo tournament
Ranchi Rays beat Uttar Prasdesh Wizard, enter final ESC-A, ITPC-A enter quarters
mobile and attacking,
midfielders de Voogd and
Sander Baart pressed forward and combined nicely
with seasoned Australian
Eddie Ockenden, who
earned their first penalty
corner in the 39th minute.
Raghunath stepped up
and his flick to the top-left
easily defeated Lovell to
make it 1-0 for Wizards.
Ockenden
regularly
avoided
his
markers
Birendra Lakra and Kothajit
Singh to keep Rays on the
guard. However, Rays
equalised in the 42nd
minute as an inspired run
from South African Austin
Smith was halted inside the
box. That earned a penalty
stroke which was easily
converted by Jackson.
Enthused after the
equaliser, Rays looked a
vastly improved side and
continued
to
attack.
Sreejesh was called in to
action and he had a very
good game apart from the
stroke.
Two Australians Beale
and Nick Budgeon played
crucial roles in staving off
strong challenges from
Wizards.
Mandeep earned a penalty corner in the 59th
minute for Rays. But
Jackson failed to make the
most out of two back-toback chances to enter the
shootout. –– Agencies
Indian hockey team to tour
Australia in next 3 years
Ranchi Rays and Uttar Pradesh Wizards players in action
NEW DELHI, Feb 21
Ranchi Rays beat Uttar
Pradesh Wizards 9-8 via
penalty shootouts, which
reached sudden death, to
enter the final of the Hockey
India League (HIL) at the
Major
Dhyan
Chand
National Stadium here on
Saturday.
Wizards’ VR Raghunath
(39th minute) and Rays’
Ashley Jackson (42nd)
scored but both teams refused to be separated after
60 minutes of play, taking
the game to penalties.
The competition saw a
neck-and-neck contest even
in the decider. Wizards’
Jeroen Hertzberger converted thrice but others
were inconsistent while
their swap of PR Sreejesh
with George Bazeley didn’t
work out eventually.
For
Rays,
skipper
Ashley Jackson, even
though failing to convert a
stroke, scored thrice to
show them the way. Barry
Middleton also scored thrice
while Australian Daniel
Beale scored the winner in
the shootout. Manpreet
Singh failed twice but others made amends for the
mistake.
With the loss, the Wizards have failed to win three
consecutive HIL semi-finals.
At the start, both teams
were defensive and didn’t
want to lose ball possession.
Jackson and Middleton
were in the thick of action
from the beginning. The
31-year-old Middleton, especially, supplied twice
inside the circle but
Mandeep Singh and Nick
Wilson failed to make it
count.
Wilson played with
much more accuracy in the
second quarter and earned a
penalty corner in the 21st
minute. It needed a diving
PR Sreejesh to ward off
Jackson’s flick.
A couple of minutes
later, Jackson again failed
to go past India goalkeeper
Sreejesh twice in the second quarter.
After being dominated
for the most part of the
second quarter, the Wizards
hit back. Dutch striker
Hertzberger led a fierce
counter-attack and shrugged
off two Rays defenders but
he poked it wide. Another
Dutchman Bob de Voogd
fed Nithin Thimmaiah inside the box but the Indian
saw his effort being
blanked by a save from
Tyler Lovell.
Wizards showed a very
good game of defence,
counter-attack and man-toman marking.
While India international
Jasjit Singh Khullar never
allowed Mandeep to break
free, Wizards skipper
Wouter Jolie kept a close
eye on Trent Mitton.
Continuing to be more
NEW DELHI, Feb 21 : Hockey India (HI) and Hockey
Australia on Saturday signed a strategic bilateral agreement
that will see India men’s hockey team tour Down Under
every year for the next three years, i.e. from 2016 to 2018,
a move that is expected to give a fillip to the sport back home.
As per of the understanding, Hockey Australia will
release its national players for the next three seasons of
the Hockey India League, including 2016 just six
months prior to the Rio Olympics.
The agreement was signed between HI CEO Elena
Norman and Hockey Australia Chief Executive Cam
Vale on the sidelines of the semifinals of the third Hero
Hockey India League at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here today.
As per the agreement, India will tour Australia for a
six-match Test series in the coming three years.
The arrangement will not only be limited to the men’s
team, as both the federations are working on plans to
also include women’s sides in the agreement.
“This is a milestone moment for Australian hockey.
This arrangement is the first step in honouring our
commitment to building a calendar of top class events
for Australian hockey team and raising the profile of the
sport,” Vale said.
“We are committed to show our support towards
Hockey India, the Hockey India League and the International Hockey Federation (FIH) in their endeavours
to grow the sport globally. We believe that for the sport
to grow Hockey India League needs to be successful.
Hockey India CEO Norman feels this tie-up augurs
well for both the nations. “This move will work in both
ways as when we play against each other we will learn
from each other and better ourselves in the process,”
she said. –– PTI
By Our Sports Reporter
IMPHAL, Feb 21 : Eastern
Students' Club (ESC)-A and
Ibudhou Thangjing Polo Club
(ITPC)-A stormed into the
quarter-finals of the ongoing
30th N Hazari and Dr N Tombi
State Polo Tournament 2015,
organised by Manipur Horse
Riding and Polo Association
(MHRPA) today at Imphal
Pologround.
In today's pre-quarter final, Eastern Students' Club
(ESC)-A
outclassed
Nongchup
Pana
Sagol
Kangjei Lup (NPSKL)-B by
a margin of 11 goals to three
to book a berth in the quarterfinal.
The match began with a
brace from ESC-A's Ch Ajit
followed by a goal from Th
Momocha in the first chukker.
NPSKL-B also witnessed a
goal from A Joychandra in
the same chukker.
In the second chukker,
NPSKL-B's Th Rishikanta
pulled back a goal but brilliant strikes from Ch Ajit and
Th Momocha helped ESC-A
take a comfortable 4-2 lead.
A hat-trick from Th
Momocha in the 3rd chukker
made the scoreline 7-2.
In the final chukker,
NPSKL-B managed to score
a goal but ESC-A's N Houbi,
Th Jacob and Th Basanta
made the final scoreline 11-3.
In another pre-quarter final, Ibudhou Thangjing Polo
Club (ITPC)-A registered a
convincing 10-1 win against
Kangleipak
Polo
Club
(KPC)-B.
In the first chukker, a treble from M Manihar and a
brace from S Sadananda
helped ITPC-A to take a com-
Victories forYCPAand COSMO
YCPA, Chandel and UYC, Lairikyenbam Leikai players in action
By Our Sports Reporter
Pakistanis stage mock funeral for cricket team after defeat
IMPHAL, Feb 21 : YCPA,
Chandel downed UYC,
Lairikyenbam Leikai by a margin
of 7 goals to three while
MULTAN, Feb 21
Pakistani cricket fans in the
southeastern city of Multan
held a mock funeral for their
national cricket team on
Saturday after a recordshattering World Cup defeat
at the hands of the West
Indies.
Residents of the city organised a symbolic funeral
procession, replete with a
coffin with several cricket
bats placed over it, directing their anger at the
Pakistani national team after a poor start to the
tournament that has also
seen it defeated by arch-rivals India.
“This time we were really hoping for Pakistan to
win,” Shama Bibi, one of
those taking part, said.
“We don’t want to watch
this anymore.”
Another demonstrator
who gave her name only as
Rafia blamed the Pakistan
Cricket Board for what she
said were poor selections
and politicisation of the
game.
Cricket fans elsewhere in
the country, meanwhile,
staged their own protests to
show their frustration with
the national side.
Chasing
the
West
Indies’s first innings total
of 310 runs, Pakistan gave
up its first four wickets for
just one run — the worst
start in one-day international history — before
eventually losing by 150
runs.
Pakistan, winners of the
1992 World Cup, now sit at
the bottom of Pool B and
will resume their faltering
campaign against Zimbabwe in Brisbane on March
1, 2015.
–– Agencies
fortable 5-0 lead.
The solitary goal for KPCB was scored by A Churchil
in the second chukker. L
Premjit slammed home two
goals while S Sadananda slotted one for ITPC-A in the
same chukker.
M Dalen and O Somerjit
contributed one goal each in
the third chukker to claim a
convincing 10-1 win against
a hapless KPC-B.
5th Kanti Mukherjee hockey tournament
ICC World Cup 2015
Pakistan fans outrage in Multan
ESC-A and NPSKL-B players vie for the ball
COSMO, Wangkhei blanked
YAC, Yaiskul 7-0 in the ongoing
15th Dr Kanti Mukherjee
Memorial Invitation Hockey
Tournament organised by
Hockey Manipur today at
Khuman Lampak Hockey
Stadium, Imphal.
In the first match, YCPA's
Th Ronaldo alone banged in
four goals in the 1st, 19th,
23rd, 25th and 48th minute
while G Ravaldo and Ng
Rakesh contributed one goal
each in the 27th and 44th
minute to give 7 goals for the
Chandel team.
On the other hand, a brace
from W Chitra in the 24th and
42nd minute and a strike from
T Umakanta in the 22nd minute
gave 3 goals for UYC.
In the second match of the
day, K Matilan struck twice in
the 21st and 35th minute while
S Swami (3rd), K Johnson
(7th), RK Bikramjit (9th), L
Sanajaoba (41st) and S Kash
(51st) contributed one goal
each to help COSMO,
Wangkhei claim a convincing
7-0 win against YAC, Yaiskul.
AFC appoint two State referees Trial selection
By Our Sports Reporter
IMPHAL, Feb 21 : The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has
selected State referees Sapam Kennedy and Moirangthem Magho
Singh to officiate the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia-Preliminary
Asian Zone Round 1-first leg match between Chinese Taipei and
Brunei DS to be held on March 12 at National Stadium, Kaohsiung
City, Taiwan.
The selected referees are informed to confirm their availability by email at [email protected] within 48 hours,
informed a statement issued by All Manipur Football Association (AMFA).
Ronibala selected as U-14 goalkeeper coach
By Our Sports Reporter
IMPHAL, Feb 21 : L Ronibala has been selected as the
goalkeeper's coach by the All India Football Federation (AIFF)
for the U-14 Girls' National selection trial/coaching camp to be held
from March 4 to April 18 at SAI Centre, Gandhinagar.
The said team will participate in the AFC U-14 Girls
Regional Championship to be held from April 18 to 25 at
Kathmandu, Nepal, informed a statement issued by AMFA.
IMPHAL, Feb 21 : A trial selection for induction in the
SAIL Football Academy,
Bokaro, Jharkhand and
Burnpur, West Bengal for the
session 2015 will be held on
February 27 at Khuman
Lampak Main Stadium,
Imphal, stated a press release
issued by football coach
Maniratan Singh.
Players born between
January 1, 1999 and December 31, 2000 are eligible for
the academy in Bokaro while
players born between January
1, 1996 and December 31,
1997 are eligible for the academy in Burnpur.
Intending players are informed to report to coach
Maniratan along with their
playing kits and birth certificates, added the statement.
ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: India vs South Africa preview
MELBOURNE, Feb 21
Buoyed
by
their
overwhelming victory against
arch-rivals Pakistan in the
opening game, India will aim
to turn the tables when they
meet a formidable South
Africa in the cricket World
Cup, here on Sunday.
While Pakistan failed to
buck the trend against the
defending champions for the
sixth time, Mahendra Singh
Dhoni’s men will hope that
they turn fourth time lucky
after losing to South Africa
on three previous editions at
the mega event in 1992,
1999 and 2011.
Whether it is Peter
Kirsten in ’92, Jacques
Kallis in ’99 or Kallis and
AB de Villiers in 2011, India have always found a
Protea batsman, who had
turned out to be a thorn in
the flesh for them.
In all three defeats, India
have batted first and it will
interesting to see what decision Dhoni will take if he
wins the toss.
Although a group league
match in this tournament is
of little consequence but the
winner of this game might
just go a long way in clinching the top spot in group B,
considering that the other
teams are just not world
beaters.
So there’s a few things
that will be at stake and
teams have a lot to play for.
As the two teams clash at
the Melbourne Cricket
Ground (MCG), South Africa under De Villiers will
certainly start as clear favourites against a young
bunch of bravehearts led by
Dhoni.
Player to player, South
Africa seem to possess a far
more formidable line-up
compared to India, who are
just trying to hit the right
rhythm post Pakistan victory.
While South Africa were
a bit patchy in their 62-run
win against Zimbabwe, JP
Duminy and David Miller’s
magnificent late blitz turned
the course after the minnows dominated the better
part of the match.
As South African captain
Graeme Smith has aptly
pointed out that it will be a
battle between India’s famed
batsmen and South Africa’s
world class pace attack, the
inexperienced Indian bowling will also be put to Test
against a quality batting line
up led by their talismanic
captain, who recently scored
the fastest ODI century in
just 32 balls.
Virat Kohli’s 22nd ODI
hundred, Suresh Raina’s
form during the business
end of the innings and
Shikhar Dhawan being back
among runs is a boost
team’s confidence, they will
face an entirely different test
against a far superior South
African bowling attack.
An attack led by world’s
finest fast bowling pair in
Dale Steyn and Morne
Morkel is not an easy
proposition on any track in
the world, let alone the
MCG, where one can expect
even bounce. If that’s not
enough, Vernon Philander
as third seamer can be a
handful on track that offers
a little bit of help. Steyn,
suffering from sinus, was
not in his element in the
opening match against Zimbabwe. He came in as first
change, and gave away 64
runs in 9 overs.
While Rohit Sharma
would quickly like to get
over the disappointment of
not scoring against Pakistan,
the Kohli-Steyn battle can be
as intriguing as the
Tendulkar-Steyn battle used
to be during earlier days.
While Steyn is likely to
torment the Indians with
pace and swing, the steep
bounce generated by 6ft 4
inch tall Morkel and the
movement that can be ex-
SQUADS
INDIA
Mahendra Singh Dhoni
(captain), Shikhar Dhawan,
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli,
Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh
Raina,
Ravichandran
Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja,
Mohammed Shami, Umesh
Yadav, Mohit Sharma,
Ambati
Rayudu,
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Axar
Patel and Stuart Binny.
SOUTH AFRICA
AB de Villiers, Hashim
Amla, Quinton de Kock, Faf
du Plessis, David Miller, JP
Duminy, Farhan Behardien,
Morne Morkel, Dale Steyn,
Vernon Philander, Imran
Tahir, Kyle Abbott, Rillee
Russouw, Aaron Phangiso,
Kyle Abbott, Wayne Parnell.
Umpires:
Richard
Kettleborough (England)
and Aleem Dar (Pakistan).
Match starts: 8:50
tracted by Philander will
definitely test both technique
and temperament of the batsmen.
If Philander fails to make
it, Kyle Abbott or Wayne
Parnell will take his place.
Also Indians haven’t had
much problems tackling the
leg-spin of Imran Tahir.
Whether South African
team management would
opt for a restrictive left-arm
spin option like Aaron
Phangiso is there to be
seen. There are a few areas
where India will like to
worry despite their fabulous
win
against
neighbouring
country.
Skipper Dhoni’s poor form
is a cause of concern for
the team although the captain seemed to work extra
bit at the nets trying to find
ways to counter the shortpitched stuff dished out by
the South African attack.
The other worry will be
India’s batting slump at the
death where they lost five
wickets for 23 runs.
While Pakistan’s batting
resources were not enough
to chase down the total,
Proteas’ batting line-up is
quite strong as it starts with
ever consistent Hashim
Amla and is followed by Faf
du Plessis, De Villiers,
Miller and Duminy.
Miller and Duminy’s 111
run stand in last six overs
against Zimbabwe showed
what they are capable of.
India’s pace trio of
Umesh
Yadav,
Mohit
Sharma and Mohammed
Shami can hardly err in
length as they can expect
some heavy punishment for
lack of discipline.
But the key to India’s
chances will be their spin
duo Ravindra Jadeja and
Ravichandran Ashwin.
If the 20 overs bowled
by the Indian spinners can
pose a few problems for the
South Africans, Dhoni and
Co. Might find the wind
blowing in other direction
unlike last edition or the one
before that. –– PTI
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