Harpal Singh Bedi
New Delhi: India over powered Canada 2-0 in their final Junior Women hockey warm up game prior to the Cantor Fitzgerald U21 International 4-Nations tournament in Dublin (Ireland) Thursday,.
In a closely contested match a lack of clear-cut chances and some smart defending saw the first quarter ending goaless.
Canada were quicker out of the blocks in the second quarter and earned the first penalty corner . Bichu Devi, in India’s goal foiled that attempt. The visitors pressed forward from there but with little result. The two teams went into half time with the score still a 0-0 stalemate.
The third quarter proved to be the turning point of the game, as both teams threw caution to the wind and went forward in search of goals. India had the first of the opportunities with a PC that was well saved by the Canadian goalkeeper.
Bichu Devi was called into action soon after, saving from a Canada PC. Within minutes of that save, India had the lead, Sharmila Devi capping off a fine move with the opener. India went into the break with the 1-0 advantage.
The opening period of the last quarter saw the two teams exchange PCs but with little effect — both goalkeepers on top of their game to deny the chances. With Canada forced into action, India had more opportunities to avail on the counter, and duly earned their second PC of the game soon. Mariana Kujur slotted home from the ensuing drag flick to double India’s lead and guarantee a comfortable victory.
