LAHORE - Pakistan Wapda struggled hard to beat Punjab University (PU) Club 3-2 in the final to clinch the 3rd All Pakistan Fatima Jinnah Gold Cup Hockey Tournament trophy at the District Hockey Ground Thursday.
Wapda team captain Amina Mir was instrumental in her team’s first two goals while for PU Club, Hina and Sehrish were outstanding. It was a thrilling final which was played in heated atmosphere during which both teams demonstrated aggression in their frequent attacks and brilliance in their skill. The electrified crowd cheered the players for their speed, dribbling and dodging efforts throughout the match.
Amina’s first straight hit from the 25 line in the 23rd minute was neatly deflected by Ambreen, the top scorer of the tournament, to give her team a goal lead. In the 31st Amina again struck an accurate hit which was ably deflected by Kalsoom to score the second goal for their team.
The drama reached atop in the third quart when PU Club, trailing by two goals reorganized their ranks and launched ferocious attacks amid short passes by Hina and Sehrish which surprised star studded Wapda greatly. They fought like tigresses. In the 37th minute, Hina took the ball, dodged two defenders to enter the D where her straight hit reduced the deficit. In the 43rd minute, Azra Naz scored the third goal for Wapda. Unaiza of PU Club scored the second goal for her team.
At 3-2, the match entered an exciting stage as both the teams fought hard to take control of the ball. Hina and Sehrish maintained their speed and stamina while their colleagues were slow to move with their pace which deprived PU Club to level the score in the 56th minute. Kamran Hussain and Zahid Hameed supervised the match.