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Krida Prabodhini come from behind to win all-India u-16 hockey final
Both teams (Krida Prabodhini and MP Academy) came out in the second half hoping for an early goal to set the foundation for victory, bit neither did quite enough to find the back of the net
Cityside Krida Prabodhini defied all expectations as they managed to make the most of their marathon run to topple defending champions MP Academy by a 2-1 scoreline in the final of the 3rd SNBP all-India hockey tournament (Boys Under-16) at the Shiv Chhatrapati sports complex, Balewadi on Sunday.
The side from Madhya Pradesh started the game as the stronger of the two sides didn’t come as much of a surprise to the fans when they drew first blood in the initial stages of the contest.
Priyo Batra held his nerve when the onus was on him to open the scoring as a well-worked penalty corner routine found its desired target into the back of the net to give MP a lead in the 4th minute of the final.
Batra’s opener was the sign of things to come as it opened up the tie with both teams playing an expansive brand of hockey. Despite going up early, MP did not opt for slowing down the tempo and playing a risk-free game as they kept throwing bodies forward in numbers, with the expectations of grabbing a second one quickly.
While the visitors kept threatening their opposition goal, Krida did very well to sustain the pressure and hit them on the break time and again.
The wide players from the home side were extremely pacey and remained full of energy until the very end. It was through one of them, in fact, that Krida managed to restore parity in the contest as his role in winning a penalty corner in the 26th minute proved to be a telling contribution in the overall outcome of the corner.
Captain Mustafa Shaikh, who has been their marksman from penalty corners throughout the tournament held his nerves yet again to strike a venomous shot into the back of opposing keeper Dhanaraj Singh’s net. Up until half-time, Krida took control of the contest as the equalizer spurred a ray of hope in their players.
Both teams came out in the second half hoping for an early goal to set the foundation for victory but neither quite did enough to find the back of the net. Keepers Singh and Harshad Gavand were kept busy but they weren’t forced into making miraculous saves. The former was the busier of the two as the majority of the half was played in MP’s half.
The better share of chances fell to Krida’s attacking players Aditya Lalge and Ashok Uargude, but neither gave the opposition keeper a hard time.
In fact, the game’s next and final goal came in the dying stages when both coaches and fans were prepared to see the trophy being decided courtesy of a penalty shootout.
In the penultimate minute of the epic finale, Lalge stepped up to the occasion and scored from a few yards away from the goal as the MP defence completely switched off, leaving the number 10 unmarked in the penalty circle.
The forward’s goal sent the home fans into raptures and he received a rousing reception from his coach and teammates after scoring the all-important goal of the contest.
Coaches say
MP academy coach Mangal Vaid: “A lot of our players have only just joined the team, so they were quite young and the lack of experience was evident. Yes, I think Krida Prabodhini had an advantage in playing at their home ground. I think this pitch is a lot more slippery than the ones we’re used to playing on. Our pressing worked well in the first half but in the second they learned how to resist it and I think that changed the course of the match.”
Krida Prabodhini coach Taleb Shah: “It’s a wonderful feeling to win the cup. The boys played exactly to the strategy we had decided on and I’m happy with their performance. Despite going a goal down, our morale did not drop and we stuck to our game plan. At half-time we had a look at a few videos of the game and saw the mistakes we made and the mistakes they made and decided to exploit their weaknesses while keeping things tight at our end.”
Turning point
After playing the first 20-25 minutes at a high tempo, MP Academy’s players seemed to tire after their intense high press in the first half.
Despite having a breather at the break, the players still did not seem to play at their hundred per cent, and Krida Prabodhini’s half-time video analysis may have spotted the glaring weakness in their opponent’s game.
In the second half, the hosts prioritised keeping hold of the ball, ensuring that MP needed to cover a lot of grass in order to regain possession. This gave them the opportunity to play the final 15-20 minutes on their own terms and that proved to be the difference come full time.
Player of the match
Mustafa Shaikh was undoubtedly his side’s best performer on Sunday afternoon and played a vital role in Krida’s march to the championship. He marshalled his defence exceptionally against a physical opposition and often pushed forward to link up the play in midfield. He also bagged the game’s second goal and won back possession in key areas which led to his team creating several chances on the counter-attack.
