Men’s HIL: Dragons notch up second straight win

CHENNAI: When it comes to set-plays and sheer pace in transition, Tamil Nadu Dragons is second to none. The way the team marshals itself on the pitch is a sight to behold. JSW Soorma, on the other hand, has been fairly ordinary so far in this edition of the Men’s Hockey India League.

On Tuesday, at the SDAT–Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium, the Dragons snuffed out a strong second-half challenge from the visitor to register a 3–2 victory, and seal its second successive win.

The first half belonged to the Dragons. After a goalless opening quarter, the host cut loose in the second.

A brilliant interchange between Blake Govers and Chandan Yadav saw the latter find Selvaraj, who was perfectly placed to deflect the ball home.

Just two minutes later, Dragons doubled their advantage through forward Uttam Singh, who slid in to push the ball into the net.

The goal resulted after Selvaraj was blocked by Soorma defender Jeremy Hayward and Uttam dived in front to pounce on the loose ball. He made no mistake as Dragons went into the half-time 2-0 ahead.

Marked difference

Soorma returned after the break as a different side and made repeated inroads into the Dragons’ circle.

A long ball by birthday boy Harmanpreet Singh resulted in Dragons defender Sander de Wijn fumbling inside the circle. Maninder Singh made the most of the error and unleashed a powerful forehander that crashed into the board.

The Dragons, however, struck again. Govers positioned himself perfectly on the right to control a pass from Tom Craig and fired it past Vincent Vanasch to restore control.

Harmanpreet strikes

Soorma continued to press forward and earned six of its seven penalty corners in the final quarter. Soorma reduced the deficit through a drag-flick by Harmanpreet with two minutes to go. But the Dragons’ defence held firm to see the match through and condemn Soorma to its second successive defeat.

The result: Tamil Nadu Dragons 3 (Selvaraj 28, Uttam 30, Grovers 47) bt JSW Soorma 2 (Maninder 45, Harmanpreet 58-pc).