Rourkela, Dec 29 (PTI) Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers defeated Hyderabad Toofans 3-2 in a nail-bitting match to register their first win at the Hockey India League here on Sunday.
Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers scored through Jugraj Singh (9th minute), Sukhjeet Singh (20th) and Affan Yousuf (36th), while Timothy Daniel (41st) and Arthur de Sloover (59th) were the goal-getters for Hyderabad Toofans.
Hyderabad Toofans made the first big attempt at goal when Arshdeep Singh made a swift circle entry to assist Daneil, who was poised in front of the goal post. But he couldn’t connect the ball, thus missing a great opportunity to take the lead.
However, Bengal Tigers made no such mistake when they won a penalty in the ninth minute.
A brilliant injection by Abhishek was beautifully converted by Jugraj, who found the top-right corner of the post to earn his team a 1-0 lead.
Two minutes before the first hooter, the Toofans had a great chance to equalise when they won a penalty corner, but the chance went begging after Gonzalo Peillat’s drag-flick went wide.
Bengal Tigers doubled their lead in the 20th minute via Sukhjeet with a tactful stick-work by Sebastian Dockier and Abhishek doing the rest.
With a 2-0 lead at half-time, the Tigers looked aggressive in their attack and extend the lead in the third quarter.
Tigers struck a splendid field goal in the 36th minute via Yousuf, one of the craftiest strikers in India’s talent pool.
Seconds later, Hyderabad Toofans’ forward Daniel took a brave shot on goal but Tigers’ goalie Carr made a diving effort to keep his team ahead 3-0.
They finally scored in the 41st minute, thanks to some clever thinking by 16-year-old Rohit Singh Erengbam who made a swift cross pass from the left flank to Daniel, who made no mistake in deflecting it past Carr.
Narrowing the lead to 1-3, Toofans looked to bounce back in the last quarter but the Bengal Tigers were vigilant in defence.
There were some tense moments before Toofans could win their fifth penalty cormer in the 59th minute.
A good injection by Talwinder Singh and fierce drag-flick by Peillat saw Arthur de Sloover redirect the flick to the back of the net, further narrowing Tigers’ lead to 3-2.
With seconds left on the board, Toofans appealed for another penalty corner but the on-ground umpires turned down the appeal, which led to Bengal Tigers earning three points. PTI SSC AM SSC AM AM
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