LONDON: Pakistan suffered a massive 7-0 loss in a lopsided match against hosts England in their final FIH Pro League match at the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre in London on Saturday.
The result kept Pakistan winless at the nine-team league as the Green-shirts lost all of their 16 matches — two each against the eight participating sides — and finished at the bottom of the table with a highly distressing goal difference of minus 57.
Sam Ward opened the scoring for England in the ninth minute by converting a penalty corner, while Nicholas Bandurak doubled the lead in the dying minutes of the first quarter through a field goal.
Pakistan’s defence offered notable resistance in the subsequent quarter, but England converted the second penalty corner through Samuel Taylor and further extended their lead to 3-0 before halftime.
The penultimate quarter followed the same pattern as England struck in the 38th minute, through a penalty corner, by Samuel Hooper to make it 4-0.
England in the final quarter launched an all-out attack, inspired by Bandurak, who struck his second goal (48th) through a penalty corner, while Zachary Wallace scored from the spot a minute later.
Henry Croft then rounded up a comprehensive victory for the home side by smashing a field goal in the 52nd minute.
The resounding victory, which was England’s eighth, consolidated England’s second position in the Pro League standings with 34 points, two below table toppers Belgium and four ahead of third-placed Australia.
INDIA OUTPLAY GREEN-SHIRTS
On Friday, India in a dominant show outclassed arch-rivals Pakistan 7-1 in their second meeting of the Pro League at the same venue
The victory marked India’s second consecutive over their traditional rivals in the nine-team tournament as they won the first leg with a narrow 4-3 margin played at the same venue last week.
The recently-concluded blockbuster fixture, however, got off to a contrasting start as Pakistan secured an early lead in the first quarter when Abu Bakar Mahmood successfully converted the penalty corner in the 13th minute.
Pakistan’s lead, however, lasted only around seven minutes as India equalised through Sukhjeet Singh (20th) while the advantage shifted into the latter’s favour five minutes later as Harmanpreet Singh converted another penalty corner for the side.
The penultimate quarter saw India take control of the fixture by scoring four more goals through Hardik Singh, Jugraj Singh, Abhishek and Raj Kumar and thus went into the final quarter leading 6-1.
Dilpreet Singh further added to Pakistan’s woes in the final quarter as he too successfully converted a penalty corner to further bolster India’s lead to 7-1.
Published in Dawn, June 28th, 2026
