Much needed,not deserved

Air Indias 3-2 win was the classic of the day,but better team in Karnataka lost

Nearly all hockey players in this young Karnataka side have grown up idolising Arjun Halappa,a happy-go-lucky guy from Coorg,who plies his trade for Air India. A mere mention of his name instantly summons profound respect. And the former India striker,too,is full of brotherly warmth and affection whenever he meets them,which happens quite often,considering they all hail from the same state.

On Monday evening,though,his name summoned instant disgust and rage among the host team Karnataka,while Halappa,the Air India captain,was full of wrath and had to be contained as he charged at a fellow Coorg resident,VR Raghunath,in a mid-pitch showdown.

The second semis of the national championships had every thing that the first one played out between Haryana and Punjab had promised but didnt deliver. The defending champs were beaten 4-1 in a one-sided game by a rampant Punjab,who couldve scored as many more.

But what followed,more than made up for that no-contest. Karnataka versus Halappas boys was packed with unrelenting intensity and had so much drama that it wouldve made for a fine script. Above all,there were some spectacular goals with the last one of those,a buzzer beater,drilling a hole in the hearts of the partisan crowd. Halappas Air India had just won 3-2,setting up a summit clash with Punjab. An inconsolable Karnataka,meanwhile,will fight it out with Haryana for the consolation prize.

Inconsolable

Inconsolable,for they sat their in the dug-out wondering just how they had ended up squandering a 2-0 lead. The more they wondered,the more it fuelled their anger,towards the referee,who gave two penalty strokes to Air India in 11 minutes,and Halappa,after converting both got involved in a fracas with Raghunath that ended up with both of them being sent-off in the 62nd minute.

Not soon after,Karnataka were down to nine men when Nikin Thimmaiah was also shown a yellow card five minutes suspension. This came at a time when the momentum had shifted in Air Indias favour as their attacks were yielding PCs after PCs eight out of nine in the second half,the last one was given one second before time.

Another Coorgi and former India player VS Vinaya,who hadnt even come close to beating the keeper with his strikes earlier,crouched again as the buzzer went off. Knowing that there would be no second chance,he put all his experience into that strike. It sounded,however,not the board but the upright and rebounded to fall,fortuitously,in front of Vinaya. Keeping his wits about him,he pushed it back in to pull off a stunning heist.

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Halappa leapt out of the chair in joy and Raghunath slumped further into his. The better team on the day had lost. Part of the blame,however,goes to Raghunath as he wasted four PCs in the first half. For someone who has made a reputation as one of the countrys finest corner converters,he was a disappointment in these nationals.

Still,Karnataka ran harder,tackled faster and looked on course after Pundalik Bellary put them ahead with a field goal. The match was all but in the bag when the talented Nitin Thimmaiah,a force of nature and Karnatakas best,scored what perhaps was the goal of the nationals.

The strapping 62 forward stole the ball near the centre,dribbled his way past four more in a spectacular solo run before slamming a reverse hit past the astounded keeper.

However,AI clawed back with two penalty strokes the first of which was hotly protested and probably set the stage for the later face-off. It came about when the powerfully built Raghunath,after defending a cross,ran into Halappa with the ball. Halappa pushed Raghu back,tempers flew and a brawl left Karnataka without a vital cog in the defence.