Punjab Warriors third time lucky

Ranchi, Punjab Warriors clinched their maiden Hockey India League title after thrashing Kalinga Lancers 6-1 in a lopsided summit clash here today.
Punjab were third time lucky as they had finished runners-up in the last two editions. They lost to Delhi Waveriders in 2014 and to Ranchi Rays last year.
Earlier in the day, Delhi Waveriders got the better of defending champions Ranchi Rays (2-0) to finish third. Mandeep Singh’s field goal in the 18th minute proved to the winner.
The Warriors, who had finished second in the league phase, totally dominated the final. They led 2-1 at the end of the second quarter but pumped in two field goals in the third quarter to take the game away from Kalinga Lancers. Armaan Qureshi (4th minute), Matt Gohdes (39th) and Satbir Singh (42nd) found the target for Punjab Warriors, while captain Moritz Furste scored the consolation goal for Kalinga Lancers in the 24th minute.
The Warriors’ forward line was too good to handle for the Lancers, who had to defend their citadel for most part of the final two quarters.
The match started on an attacking note as Kalinga Lancers were straightaway put under pressure by a series of attacks from Punjab.
The Warriors struck early in the game through a field goal. Qureshi received the ball in the middle of the circle; he shook off the defender behind him before scoring through the goalkeeper’s pads with a reverse hit. The first quarter came to an end with the Warriors leading 2-0.
The second quarter began with Kalinga Lancers launching successive attacks but they were unsuccessful in converting any opportunity. The Lancers finally broke the deadlock in the 24th minute through a penalty corner conversion by Furste.
The third quarter began with the Warriors keen to extend their lead. Their consecutive attacks on the Lancers goal finally yielded results through back-to-back field goals.
Gohdes fought off two defenders to squeeze in the ball past the goalkeeper after being set up by SV Sunil in the 39th. Three minutes later, Satbir made it 6-1 after doing all the hard work. He stole the ball in the rival third, found Qureshi on the right and sprinted forward to deflect in the cross from Qureshi.
With the Warriors leading 6-1, the pressure was on the Lancers to bring themselves back into the game. But the Warriors’ defenders were in no mood to loose their grip on the title that had eluded them for two years. Defender Mark Knowles was named the Man of the Match.
The Warriors walked away with a winners’ cheque of Rs 2.5 crore. Kalinga Lancers pocketed a cheque of Rs 1.25 crore. Delhi Waveriders’ Rupinder Pal Singh was named the Player of the Tournament, winning Rs 50 lakh.
The Maximum Goals award went to Kalinga Lancers’ Glenn Turner for his 16 goals. He got a cash prize of Rs 20 lakh. Ranchi’s Sumit was named the Upcoming Player of the Tournament, winning Rs 20 lakh.