Bhubaneswar, Dec 21 (IANS): The day two of the qualifiers - Khelo India Youth Games 2022 (Men's Under 18) here witnessed some captivating performances by Hockey Haryana, Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Hockey Punjab and Hockey Madhya Pradesh as they won their respective matches to strengthen their positions in their specific groups.
The first match of the day saw Hockey Haryana beat Manipur Hockey by a 9-1 scoreline in Pool A. Hockey Haryana dominated the match from the start as Agyapal (5', 44'), Lovepreet Singh (21', 29'), Amandeep (30', 46') and Amit Khasa (31', 34') struck a brace each. Captain Toshant (59') also contributed to Hockey Haryana's victory. The lone goal for Manipur Hockey was scored by Chalamba Meetei (45').
Uttar Pradesh Hockey defeated Hockey Andhra Pradesh 15-0 in the second match of Pool A. Ajeet Yadav (29', 33', 37', 49') netted the most goals for Uttar Pradesh Hockey, while Chandan Yadav (8', 18', 38') and Manoj Yadav (56, 57, 59') scored hat-tricks. Nagendra Kumar (39'), Akash Pal (53'), Suraj Pal (53'), Siddhant Singh (55') and Shahrukh Ali (60') scored a goal each to contribute to the victory of Uttar Pradesh Hockey.
In the third Pool A match of the day, Hockey Punjab registered a narrow 1-0 win over Hockey Chandigarh. Both teams went toe to toe against each other but they couldn't manage to score a goal in the first half. Dilraj Singh (40') scored the only goal of the match to take Hockey Punjab to a victory.
Pool B began with an exciting contest between Hockey Madhya Pradesh and Hockey Jharkhand. The match went right down to the wire as Hockey Madhya Pradesh defeated Hockey Jharkhand by 4-3. Mohammad Zaid Khan (18', 56') scored a brace for Hockey Madhya Pradesh, while Ali Ahmad (28') and Zameer Mohammad (60') netted one goal each. For Hockey Jharkhand, Simon Bodra (29', 59') and Prem Kerketta (53') registered their names on the scoresheet.
The Pool B clash between the Hockey Association of Odisha and Hockey Arunachal was forfeited in favour of the Hockey Association of Odisha.
The third Pool B match between Hockey Bihar and Dadra & Nagar Haveli & Daman & Diu Hockey was forfeited in favour of Hockey Bihar.