Later, a determined Karnataka XI gave a torrid time to title contenders IHF Seniors XI before the breather and the final 4-0 verdict in favour of Seniors does not portray the tough competition the Pool A match witnessed.Two quick goals in the space of four minutes early in the second half provided relief to the Seniors who were on tenterhooks till then. If their goal did not succumb to the pressures of a well-organised Karnataka attack, it was due to the solid defence manned by skipper Rajnish Mishra and ever-dependable Lazarus Barla.

It was Barla, the cool youngster from Orissa, who provided the lead for IHF XI with a direct penalty-corner conversion seven minutes before crossover. A swift JaganSenthil push was set-up perfectly by Jagmohan and Barla sounded the boards with a stinger that left goalkeeper Arun Babu stranded.

The Indian probables muffed four short-corners till then, and missed two more later in the match before Rajnish Mishra combined successfully with the ever-popular Dhanraj Pillay, to complete an indirect conversion off the last one in the 64th minute.

The introduction of Ravinder Singh in the second session brought life into the IHF attack. In the third minute after breather, Ravinder sent a powerful angular cross from the right which came back into play off a defender's stick in the goalmouth and Hasrat Qureshi found the mark in a jiffy. Four minutes later, with two defenders after him, Pillay put unmarked Ravinder in possession. Ravinder entered the D and unleashed a fierce hit that brooked no answer from Karnataka custodian Babu. The two quick goals turned the tide of the match and the Seniors had a relatively relaxed time later on.

Tamil Nadu dominated the proceedingsright from the word go. Striker Rajendra Prasad put in control by Radhakrishnan saw a brilliant block by Bombay 'keeper Brian D'Souza and later, Radhakrishnan too missed a close chance when defender Ajay Saroha made a timely clearance. The Bombay defenders Ajay, MK Prakash and Callistus D'Souza had their hands full and did a tremendous job but for whom the match would have gone the other way.Tamil Nadu repeatedly raided the rival citadel and enjoyed better part of the exchanges and did everything but score. While the Mumbai team had only one chance, so to say, and they marched ahead and defended dourly thereafter.In the 17th minute, mid-fielder Allen Barla gave a measured pass to Ravi Nayakar, who moved ahead and passed to Varkey in the striking circle. Varkey dodged past a couple of defenders turned around and sent in a powerful reverse hit. Tamil Nadu increased the tempo in the second session and even earned four more penalty corners but failed to find the equaliser. Bombay goal almost fell when Cedric,after a solo run with only the goalkeeper to beat, shot straight to him and later, Radhakrishnan's drag push was saved by the custodian.