Bombay miss the train to Federation Cup final

The final tomorrow will be repeat of last year’s senior Nationals in Chennai in which Railways beat Haryana.

Contrary to predictions, the second semi-final between Railways and Bombay provided a keen fare at least for the first 25 minutes of the match as Bombay straight away went into the attack, controlling the game totally.

Centre-forward Sanghai Chanu and Papki Devi made some good moves and gave the first tense moments to the Railways defence, which, of course, stood like a rock with all the experience at their command. Poonam Surin and PaulinaSurin gave good support to the Bombay frontline.

Railways, boasting of 15 players from the National squad, struggled to take possession of the ball and were hampered in their attack with star striker Pritam Rani, being well-marked throughout the match.

However, experience prevailed in the end as Railways managed to break the ice in the 26th minute through Suraj Lata.

Enjoying a 1-0 lead at the change of ends, Railways came back strongly and earned a penalty stroke in the 38th minute following a penalty corner. In a melee after the corner was taken, Bombay defender Shahina Kispota raised her stick to block the ball and umpire Radha Sukumaran pointed to the spot. The stroke was converted by Manjinder Kaur, whose shot beat Bombay goalkeeper Seema Lakra.

Jyoti Kullu scored the third goal of a move initiated by Manjinder Kaur in the 57th minute. Jyoti replaced Kamala Dalal, who suffered a cut injury and was rushed to the hospital. She is unlikely to play in the final.

Earlier, Bombay could have evenscored the first goal against the Railways when they forced their first penalty corner in the 22nd minute after a counter attack. Sylvenia Toppo’s rasping shot, was, however, saved by the dependable Tingalima Chanu, who, for the first time in the tournament, came under some pressure.

Railways’ margin would have been much bigger but for some good saves effected by Bombay custodian and the stout defence.

Railways’ coach Ashok Dhawan said he was not satisfied with girls’ performance and hoped they would improve it tomorrow. He said with Pritam having been marked, the frontline lacked the punch. “However, we have won and it is the victory that matters,” he said.

In the other tie, Haryana overcame Bihar 2-0. The goals were scored in the first half, with frontline comprising Surinder Kaur, Kiran Bala, Meenakshi and Simranjit Kaur working in tandem.

However, they lost rhythm in the later stages as Bihar got back into the game and mounted frequent attacks. Haryana applied pressure from the start and had achance in the first minutes itself when Surinder Kaur, who had struggled to find her touch in the league phase, made a superb run and invaded the Bihar defence. But her shot went wide.

Six minutes later, Haryana took the lead off long ball, Surinder Kaur sounded the boards. The very next minute, Surinder Kaur could have increased the load but after getting close to the goal, she failed to hit the ball cleanly.

Encouraged by the success, Haryana forwards improved their game and worked out good passes as they kept raiding the rival defence. The second goal came in the 21st minute when Simranjit scored off a combined move by herself, Surinder Kaur and Meenakshi.

But, Bihar fought back scoring their first goal in the 30th minute through a penalty corner conversion by captain Pushpa Pradhan. Her powerful shot brooked no response from Haryana ‘keeper Suman Peswal.

The second half went without any goals even as Bihar went all out for the equaliser. The Haryana defence, led by captain Suman Rani, did a goodjob and foiled Bihar’s attempts.

Haryana coach Baldev Singh, said Surinder Kaur and Simranjit Kaur were still suffering from fever and attributed it as the reason for their poor show after taking the lead.

Meanwhile, tournament director Satinder Walia today said he had given a written warning about the conduct of Baldev Singh, which became a controversy, to the Haryana team manager. Baldev Singh shouted at umpire Happy Mann for awarding a penalty corner in Haryana’s last league match against Orissa on Friday.

FINAL LINE-UP

Railways vs Haryana