Hour of glory for Indian women

Hour of glory for Indian women
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Hong Kong, November 19: India made it a maiden memorable triumph whipping Japan 4-1 in the final of the inaugural Asian Hockey Federation Cup championship for girls under-18 at the Kings Park ground on Sunday.

So authentic was India's win that as a final it fell short of expectations.In a one-sided contest, India played with the same eleven throughout the match in a delightful exhibition of controlled aggression to leave Japan shell-shocked.

In the end, it also turned out to be a sweet revenge for India, who had suffered a 1-2 reverse at the hands of the same team on the opening day.

India had six penalty corners to the four which Japan had, but India's domination was so pronounced it did not really matter that the margin of penalty corner conversion was not on par to their level of play on the day.

Nilima Kujur's spot on penalty corner conversion in the seventh minute put the Indians in the right frame of mind. The award came when skipper Surinder Kaur wove her way in delectably only to be halted in her tracks.

Annarita Kerketta got into the act making the most of the melee to push it in, her effort coming in the 15th minute.

Not much later Annarita was found wanting in giving the finishing touch to a goal-bound Surinder Kaur cross.

Japan had very little to offer in the first half. So shattered were the Japanese girls, they found it hard to wriggle out of the spot and could earn only two penalty corners.

The only time Indian goalkeeper Marita Tirkey had some work to do was when she used her pads to delect away a Yuko goal-bound shot.

The Indians were in no mood to sit on their 2-0 lead. A peach of a penalty corner goal from Surinder Kaur (44th) took it further from the battered Japanese. Manju Phalswal was at her steady self in the rear. So cool and effective was she that her clearances invariably found a well-placed colleague.

Surinder Kaur was again in the thick of action delightfully packing a reverse hit home even while she lay sprawing on the ground. That came in the 52nd minute and as a contest, the final was all over by then.

Japan were not to be denied the consolation goal. In a melee, Erika Miwa was a little sharp to place it in, getting the better of the crowded defence in the 56th minute.

Coach Satinder Walia attributed the win to team spirit.``Each girl played her part. It is a special moment for me and the girls''.Team manager M Renuka Lakshmi said this was the nucleus of the side for the future. ``I am happy the girls did not allow the pressure factor to play on their minds''.

With a haul of 13 goals, skipper Surinder Kaur bagged the prize for the highest scorer and Mamata Kharb clinched the award for the Best Player of the tournament.

Earlier, Hong Kong took the third place beating Sri Lanka 2-0. Sandra Frankland (31st) and Christina Lind (44th) were the scorers.