Wellingdon YMCA, Agripada, wrote their names on the DB Prabhu Memorial roster for the first time while Agradneya Vyayamshala, Dombivli, retained the title they annexed so tellingly in the eighth edition last year, in two insipid summit clashes at the Indian Gymkhana today.Agradneya girls defeated Indian Gymkhana 36-14, while the Wellingdon boys outplayed Nagpada Neighbourhood House 49-31. That Agradneya have managed to churn out promising lots of girls in succession, and Wellingdon YMCA have added to the diminishing pool of talent in the city, were the only redeeming factors in the two finals.A 11-1 lead in the first quarter, and the writing on the wall looked bleak for the hosts. Though Ketaki Guhagarkar and Jyoti Rao gamely battled on, the combined power of the Agradneya girls - Devashree Patwardhan, Sadhana Datar, Shruti Pai and Arti Samant - was overwhelming. The Dombivli girls were easily superior in the basics, and they must thank their mentor, Milind Apte, for insisting on the drills everyevening.The only blot in Agradneya's performance was their forcing two young girls, Aditi Kulkarni and Dipti Mali, to forcibly commit fouls. Much has been said and written about this glaring anomaly in minis basketball, which encourages coaches to play their superior players longer by sending innocent weaklings to the slaughterhouse. That Agradneya had to do this, despite enjoying a comfortable lead, was sinful.The Wellingdon-NNH encounter was basically a confrontation between the tall Siraj Ansari of the winners and the quick Karim Ahmed Qureshi of the latter.Both players, judging from their movements, looked to be on the wrong side of 13, to be eligible for the tournament. With the games revolving around them, tactics were predictable, dull and scrappy. Mohammed Sayeed and Jameel Khan, among the winners' support cast, were impressive.ResultsBoys (final): Wellingdon YMCA 49 (Siraj Ansari 11, Afzal Shaikh 10, Faisal Mohd 9, Zaheruddin Shaikh 5) bt NNH 31 (Karim Ahmed Qureshi 12,Shoaib Khan 4, Mohsin Karjekar 4) HT 25-14; (Semis): Wellingdon 62 (Siraj Ansari 20, Afzal Shaikh 16) bt Bombay YMCA 56 (Naved Khan 14, Faisal Shaikh 12, Ubed Shaikh 12) HT 25-25; NNH 47 (Karim Qureshi 16, Hannan Shaikh 8) bt Agradneya 10 (Ninad Katre 4) HT 31-10.Girls (final): Agradneya 36 (Devashree Patwardhan 14, Arti Samant 6, Sadhana Datar 8) bt Indian Gymkhana 14 (Ketaki Guhagarkar 7) HT 20-6.Best players (Colgate Trophy): Boys: Siraj Ansari (Wellingdon); Girls: Devashree Patwardhan (Agradneya); Most promising players: Boys: Akshay Ganesh (Indian Gym); Girls: Shabda Choudhari (Agradneya).
