Uttar Pradesh rode on Arun Sahani’s brace to script a 3-1 win over Chandigarh in the final of the 11th Hockey India junior National men’s championship here on Saturday.
It was a complete domination by Uttar Pradesh, which was clinical in all departments. Nipping the Chandigarh attack in the bud and attacking from both flanks, Uttar Pradesh, with three World Cuppers in its team, proved why it is the best side of the tournament.
World Cupper Uttam Singh was the fulcrum of the team. He was not only the midfield general but also worked hard on both flanks.
Uttar Pradesh’s Sharda Nand Tiwari opened the scoring with a perfect strike off a penalty corner at the start of the second quarter and Sahani’s two goals in the space of nine minutes sealed Chandigarh’s fate. Raman reduced the margin.
The results (final): UP 3 (Sharda Nand Tiwari 15, Arun Sahani 16, 34) bt Chandigarh 1 (Raman 51).
Third-place: Odisha 3 (Deepak Minz 27, Sushant Toppo 47, Sudeep Chirmako 49) bt Haryana 2 (Rohit 34, Deepak 36).
