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Pune, Jan 19: Riding on striker Deepika’s brace, Haryana survived a last-quarter scare before beating Jharkhand 2-1 to win the Under-17 girls' hockey competition at the Khelo India Youth Games at the National Defence Academy Complex here on Saturday.
The Jharkhand team put up a determined show and though they were beaten and had to settle for silver, they won the hearts of the fans.
Earlier in the morning, Odisha warded off a determined Punjab challenge to emerge 3-2 winners and claim the bronze.
In a well-contested final, Jharkhand muffed several chances and paid the penalty. They dominated the first quarter and had a fair share of ball possession in the second quarter but again failed to make use of the advantage.
The Haryana girls defended well and made incisive counter moves which rattled the Jharkhand defense. Four minutes into the second half, Deepika gave Haryana the lead with a superb field goal and three minutes later she made it 2-0 with another opportunistic strike.
Jharkhand tried hard but time and again their strikers let go of the chances that came their way.
However, just before the final whistle, Prini Kandir made no mistake in converting a chance that came her way to reduce the deficit. But it was a case of too little, too late.
Odisha take bronze
Earlier Odisha got the better of Punjab 3-2 to claim the bronze. The battle for third place was bitterly fought and the 60-minute match turned out to be a thriller.
For Odisha who led 3-1 at half time, the goal scorers were Sunita Xaxa, Jyoti Chhatri, and Nimabati Singh. Chewang Tamang, Simranjeet Kaur got a goal each for Punjab.
Odisha started with a flourish, pounding the Punjab goal thrice in a space of nine minutes. Sunita Xaxa put her team in the lead with a superb goal in the fourth minute itself and two minutes later the lead was 2-1 as Jyoti Chhatri converted a penalty corner.
Odisha consolidated their lead in the 13th minute with Sonia Topno intercepting a cross and sending the ball home, leaving goalkeeper Simran Chopra stranded. At this point in the game, Punjab looked like heading for a big defeat but that was not to be.
Even as the first quarter was drawing to a close, Punjab was awarded a penalty corner and Chewang Tamang converted to reduce the gap to 1-3.
Punjab thereafter went on the offensive and piled tremendous pressure on Odisha who crowded their defense to protect their two-goal lead.
Punjab took over the midfield and launched a flurry of attacks but found it hard to breach the crowded defense. Their strikers also failed to capitalize on the chances that came their way.
Seven minutes before the final whistle, Simranjeet Kaur cut past a couple of defenders to send the ball home, but that was all Punjab could do as Odisha managed to hold on to their slender advantage till the end.
On Sunday, Haryana once again meets Jharkhand for gold and Odisha take on Punjab for bronze, but this time in the Girls’ Under-21 section.
