Jalandhar, Aug 12 (IANS) Punjab, Kerala Hockey, Chhattisgarh Hockey, and Hockey Raj won their respective matches in Division ‘C’ while Hockey Arunachal, Hockey Bengal, and Delhi won in Division ‘B’ in the 15th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship, which kickstarted with four Division ‘C’ and three Division ‘B’ league matches on Tuesday.

57′) scored impressive hat-tricks for Kerala Hockey. Abhishek Yadav (29′, 45′), Shalik K S (23′), Abhinandh P S (30′), and Adity Kumar (52′) also contributed with goals for the winning side. Captain Kalai Khagendra (46′) scored the only goal for Tripura Hockey.

The second match saw Le Puducherry Hockey and Telangana Hockey share points after a 1-1 draw in their Pool A game. Manoj Aggu (10′) scored in the first quarter for Telangana Hockey, but Anbupathi (28′) scored the equaliser in the second quarter to tie the match.

In Pool B of Division ‘C’, Chhattisgarh Hockey enjoyed a commanding 5-1 victory over Goans Hockey. Captain Mohit Nayak (20′, 60′) scored a crucial brace for his side while Om Kumar Yadav (17′), Sumit Minj (25′), and Ritik Yadav (42′) also featured on the scoresheet. Tushar Sharma (56′) scored the lone goal for Goans Hockey.

In the final match of Division ‘C’, Hockey Raj defeated Hockey Gujarat 4-3 to win three points. Gurdayal Singh (58′, 59′) scored a match-winning brace late in the game for Hockey Raj. Raza Mohammad Ubaid (9′) and Anshul (52′) scored goals for the winning side as well. Prathambhai Patel (15′, 19′) and Rutvikbhai Solanki (44′) scored goals for Hockey Gujarat.

In the opening match of Division ‘B’, Hockey Arunachal beat Hockey Himachal 3-1 in Pool A. Abhi Rajbhar (42′, 52′) and Captain Amarjeet Singh (40′) scored goals for Hockey Arunachal while Shivank (37′) scored the one goal for Hockey Himachal.

In Pool B, Hockey Bengal defeated Hockey Association of Bihar with a strong scoreline of 6-3. Karan Shaw (20′, 35′, 36′, 58′) was in incredible form and scored four goals for his side, and Captain Prince Gabriyal Dhan (6′, 19′) also contributed with a brace for Hockey Bengal. Ankit Kumar (38′), Lamu Shanu (48′), and Nandlal Shah (54′) scored the goals for the Hockey Association of Bihar.

In the last fixture of the day, Delhi enjoyed a dominant 10-2 victory over Assam Hockey in Pool B of Division ‘B’. Bhanu (9′, 13′, 38′), Mohd Aamir Choudhary (15′, 47′), Vivek Vats (21′), Rohit (24′), Captain Naitik Rana (34′), Kunal Singh Chhikara (52′) and Anil Kumar (59′) scored the array of goals for Delhi. Ritik Patir ( 22′, 55′) scored the two goals for Assam Hockey.

–IANS

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