RAWALPINDI: National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and Pakistan Air Force (PAF) won their respective matches in the Chief of Army Staff Challenge Hockey Cup at the Army Hockey Stadium here on Tuesday.

The bankers overcame Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) 4-1 while the airmen defeated Punjab 2-1.

“Things will be clearer on Wednesday after the match between NBP and Navy, at the moment I can only guess that PIA, Army Seniors and NBP have confirmed their places in the semi-finals,” Rana Mujahid, PHF secretary, told Dawn.

Meanwhile, SSGC captain Shakeel Abbasi said: “Organisers will have to check scoring points if Navy defeat NBP in the Wednesday’s match otherwise we have also booked our place in the semi-finals,” he said.

Tuesday’s first match was played between NBP and SSGC, which was convincingly won by the former.

The SSGC looked minnows without their captain Shakeel Abbasi, who could not take part in the match, while playing against the well-balanced side of the bankers.

“Due to groin injury, I could not participate in the match. I’m recovering and will play next matches,” Shakeel said.

SSGC forwards lacked coordination and their defenders also made several mistakes that resulted into their defeat.

Throughout the match, SSGC players failed to penetrate through the bankers’ defence and receive a penalty corner.

On the other side, NBP’s forwards including Arslan Qadir, Tousiq Arshad, Ali Shan and Dilber Hassan dominated the game by keeping control of the ball and attacking.

Dilber scored first goal for his team in the 13th minute. Ali Shan doubled the lead in the 33rd minute by scoring a goal on a long pass from Tousiq.

Five minutes later, he scored another goal for his team.

The NBP finished the first three quarters with 3-0 lead.

In the final quart, SSGC somehow made a comeback, but it was too late. Their forward Abbas Haider scored lone goal for his team in the 51st minute.

However, seven minutes later, NBP’s Ali Shan scored another goal for his team, finishing the match with the score of 4-1.

The second match of the day was played between PAF and Punjab.

It was a mere formality as both teams have already missed the chance to reach the semi-finals. However, they showed aggression in their game, making it an exciting encounter.

PAF forwards Shahbaz, Asif Raza and Fahid displayed artistry with sticks and made several attacks on Punjab’s defence.

Their efforts brought fruit in the 12th minute when their striker Samiullah scored their first goal.

Punjab’s forward Mohammad Adnan, through a beautiful field goal, equalised the score.

Then both teams played quality game and kept the ball rolling in both halves attacking each other.

At the very last minute of the third quart, PAF’s Mustaq managed to score their second goal on a penalty corner.

In the fourth and final quart, Punjab’s strikers made several efforts to equalise the score but PAF’s goalkeeper frustrated their attempts.

Wednesday’s fixtures: Army (Juniors) vs Wapda, Army (Seniors) vs PIA, Navy vs NBP.

Published in Dawn, January 28th, 2015

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