The Final match of the 8th Hockey India Junior Women National Championship 2018 (A Division) took place here today which saw Hockey Jharkhand secure the title as they came from behind to defeat Hockey Haryana 4-2. While, it was Hockey Gangpur-Odisha who secured the Bronze Medal as they defeated Uttar Pradesh Hockey 2-1.
In the Final match of the competition, it was Hockey Jharkhand who produced an emphatic display as they came from a goal down to defeat Hockey Haryana 4-2. It was Hockey Haryana who had scored the first goal of the match in the 17th minute through Deepika but Hockey Jharkhand scored thrice in the second half to take a 3-1 lead. Hockey Haryana tried to make a comeback as they scored their second goal which was scored by Kajal in the 66th minute. But Hockey Jharkhand kept their composure in the final few minutes and scored a fourth goal in the 67th minute to secure the title. Goals for Hockey Jharkhand were scored by Salima Tete (44′, 67′) and Albela Rani Toppo (53′, 60′).
In the Bronze Medal match, Hockey Gangpur-Odisha defeated Uttar Pradesh Hockey 2-1 to overcome their disappointment of losing in the Semi-final match. Hockey Gangpur-Odisha started the match well and scored two goals in the opening half to secure a 2-0 lead at the half-time break. Goals for Hockey Gangpur-Odisha were scored by Janhabi Pradhan (24′) and skipper Jiwan Kishori Toppo (35′). Uttar Pradesh Hockey tried to make an impact in the second half as they scored a goal in the 40th minute through Mumtaz Khan but Hockey Gangpur-Odisha held their nerve in the closing stages to secure the Bronze Medal.