Sports Bulletin

Mari Petroleum Company Limited, Navy, WAPDA, Pakistan Air Force claim victoriesAbdul Jabbar FaisalRAWALPINDI: Mari Petroleum Company Limited (MPCL), Pakistan Navy, Pakistan WAPDA, and Pakistan Air Force (PAF) posted victories in the 2nd Mari Petroleum Azadi Cup Hockey Tournament 2023 after beating their respective opponents at Lt General Retired Ashfaq Nadeem Hockey Stadium Ayub Park Rawalpindi on Tuesday. It is pertinent to mention here that the tournament is being organized by Mari Petroleum Company Limited (MPCL) under the banner Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF).In the first match of the day-1, host team Mari Petroleum outclassed Pakistan Police 5-1. Arbaaz Ahmed of Mari Petroleum scored 3 goals in a row on the penalty corner to score the first hat-trick of the tournament. Afraz Khan played an important role in his team's victory by scoring 2 goals. Qayyum Dogar could score a solitary goal for Police. Haroon Rasheed and Asad Abbas performed the duties of umpires while Ameer Hamza was the reserve umpire. Technical officials Murtaza Bhatti along with Yasir Lodhi and Tariq Butt performed the responsibilities of the judges.Meanwhile, in the second fixture, Pakistan Navy thrashed Army Whites by 5-1 in a single-sided affair. Basharat, Ehsanullah Khan, Mohammad Sabir, Hamad Ali, Rana Waleed scored one goal each from Pakistan Navy while Zul Noreen scored the only goal for Army White. Umpires’ duties were performed by Irfan Tahir and Fahad Ali Khan while Asad Abbas was the reserve umpire. Technical officials were Akhtar Ali along with Yasir Lodhi and Asif Shahzad acted as judges.In the penultimate fixture of the day, Pakistan WAPDA overcame Army Colour 1-0 in a nail-and-bite competition, thanks to a penalty corner goal by Panchwal Abbas in the last minute of the match. Haroon Rasheed and Ameer Hamza were field umpires while Malik Safdar was reserve umpire. Syed Zia Hussain Bukhari, Asif Shahzad, Yasir Lodhi, and Akhtar Ali were technical officials.The last match of the day was played between Pakistan Air Force (PAF), and Punjab Rangers, which PAF won by 2-1. Mohsin Hasan scored both goals from Pakistan Air Force while Dawood Bhatta scored the only goal from Punjab Rangers. Anwar Hussain and Zahid Ali performed the umpiring duties in this match along with Rizwan Khan who was the reserve umpire. The technical officials included Naveed Mirza, Gulfam Khokhar, and Yasir Lodhi along with Rafiqur Rehman.On this occasion, Tournament Director Olympian Nasir Ali, Olympian Shahnaz Sheikh, Tournament Organizing Secretary Colonel Mohammad Yameen, Assistant Tournament Director Major Tariq Wark, Assistant Tournament Director Raja Shuja Iqbal, Empires Manager Zulfikar Hussain, Assistant Empires Manager Kamran Shah, Assistant Empires Manager Mubarak Ali.   

Sports Bulletin ReportLAHORE: Abdul Hanan Shahid, the young player from the Pakistan hockey team, honored as the Emerging Player of the tournament in the Asian Champions Trophy that was held in Chennai, India.According to Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF), 17-year-old Abdul Hanan Shahid has showcased his talents on various international stages, representing Pakistan in events such as the Asia Cup, Commonwealth Games, Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, Nation Cup, Asian Champions Trophy, Junior World Cup, and Junior Asia Cup.Pakistan Hockey Federation President Brigadier (Retd) Khalid Sajjad Khokhar and Secretary General Haider Hussain congratulated Abdul Hanan Shahid for getting the award of Emerging Player of the Tournament in the Asian Champions Trophy. 

Abdul Jabbar FaisalRAWALPINDI:-The 2nd edition of the Mari Petroleum Azadi Hockey Cup 2023 will be rolled into action at Lt. Gen. Ashfaq Nadeem Hockey Stadium, Ayub Park Rawalpindi. Besides hosts, Mari Petroleum Company Limited (MPCL), WAPDA, Pakistan Army, Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Air Force, Police, and Punjab Rangers will fight for top honour during the six-day national hockey fixture.According to an official, the event will be conducted following International Hockey Federation (FIH), and Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) rules, as the top national technical officials and umpires will supervise the matches. Pride of Performance Olympian Nasir Ali, who secured gold medals in the 1984 Olympics and the 1982 World Cup, has been appointed Tournament Director for the Mari Petroleum Azadi Hockey Cup.Local men, Shuja Iqbal Raja and Major (Retd) Tariq Ahmed have been appointed as Assistant Tournament Directors. Colonel (retd) Mohammad Yameen Khan (Mari Petroleum) will fulfill the role of Organizing Secretary, while Dr. Ahsan Tanveer (Islamabad) has been designated Deputy Organizing Secretary.The position of chief coordinator has been entrusted to Lt. Col. R. Mohammad Asif Naz Khokhar (Lahore). Heading the jury of appeal is Olympian Hanif Khan (Karachi), an ex-captain of the national hockey team, as well as a gold medalist from the 1984 Olympics and the 1982 World Cup. Accompanying him are former international Hockey Player World Cup Gold medalist, Rana Mohammad Shafiq (Toba Tek Singh), and Rai Usman Akbar (Lahore), who will both serve as members.The Mari Petroleum Azadi Hockey Cup Technical Officials Panel includes the following appointed Haji Naeem (Rawalpindi), Tariq Butt (Lahore), Syed Zia Hussain Bukhari (Rawalpindi), Asif Baig (Islamabad), Akhtar Ali (Hyderabad), Yasir Lodhi (CASCO), Mohammad Yasin (Rawalpindi), Rafiqur Rehman (Rawalpindi), Murtaza Bhatti (Rawalpindi), Tahir Sharif Gujjar (Whari), Hamza Tufail (Peshawar), Asif Shahzad (Islamabad), Naveed Ahmed (Islamabad), and Gulfam Khokhar (Islamabad).Empires Panel: Anwar Hussain (Army), Yasir Khurshid International (Railways), Haroon Rashid International (Peshawar), Ameer Hamza (Air Force), Waqas Ahmed Butt (WAPDA), Asad Abbas (Army), Wasim (Army), Fahad Ali Khan (Karachi), Irfan Tahir (Bahawalpur), Zahid Ali (Larkana), Rizwan Khan (Karachi), and Malik Safdar (Islamabad).

Sports Bulletin ReportChennai (India): Pakistan hockey team clinched fifth place by defeating China 6-1 In the ongoing Asian Champions Trophy in Chennai, India on Friday.Pakistan took an early lead with a field goal by Mohammad Imad in the 10th minute. Mohammad Sufyan Khan doubled the lead with two penalty corner goals in 11th & 12th minute of 1st quarter. Abdul Hanan Shahid scored another field goal just before the end of the first quarter.China's CHEN Benhai scored a penalty corner goal in the 35th minute. Pakistan's Mohammad Imad and Rana Abdul Waheed scored through a penalty corner and a field goal respectively in the later stages. CHEN Chongcong of China received a green card, while Pakistan's Osama Bashir got a yellow card during the match. Pakistan scored 7 field goals and 6 penalty corner goals during the event. Pakistan player Mohammad Imad was awarded the Best Young Player of the Match while Captain Umar Bhatta got the Hero of the Match award.

Sports Bulletin ReportLausanne (Switzerland): The Hockey5s Oceania Cup 2023 came to an end today in Gold Coast as Australia, New Zealand and Fiji secured the gold, silver and bronze medals respectively, in both men’s and women’s competition! With the top-3 classification, all three teams, across both genders, have now qualified for the FIH Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024!In the women’s competition Australia were the dominant team in the round-robin stage, winning all 6 of their matches, with New Zealand following closely behind with 5 wins and 1 loss. Fiji and Papua New Guinea joined the two Oceanic powerhouses in qualifying for the semi-finals with Fiji taking 12 points from their 6 games, while Papua New Guinea took 7 points to finish fourth. New Zealand took on Fiji in the first semi-final, and three goals in each half, helped the Black Sticks ease past Fiji and confirm a spot in the final and seal qualification for the FIH Hockey5s World Cup, where they will also be joined by Australia, who breezed past Papua New Guinea in the second semi-final with a 12-1 win, on the back of hat-tricks by Jamie Zimmerman and Dacia Koelmeyer. The bronze medal match was played between Fiji and Papua New Guinea, and Fiji came out 6-2 victors in a close match, where they rode the hot hand of Lora Bukalidi who bagged a hat-trick that sends Fiji to the inaugural FIH Hockey5s World Cup 2024. The finals were a close affair with Australia scoring the first two goals of the game before New Zealand cut their deficit in half at the stroke of half-time. New Zealand’s search for the equaliser didn’t bear fruit and Australia scored a third with a little over a minute to go in the game, to win the gold medal. In the men’s competition Australia finished at the top of the table, winning all 6 games in the round-robin phase. New Zealand and Fiji finished in second and third positions with 13 and 10 points respectively. Interestingly, New Zealand and Fiji played out an entertaining 5-5 draw in their head-to-head match up in the round robin stage, and would be matched up in the semifinals as well. Solomon Islands finished fourth and would face Australia in the second semifinals. Once again it was New Zealand taking on Fiji in the first semi-final, with New Zealand prevailing in a 6-2 win. Taimana Iversen scored a brace to lead the Black Sticks into the finals and seal qualification for the FIH Hockey5s World Cup 2024. New Zealand will be joined in the World Cup by Australia who made light work of their semi-final encounter against Solomon Islands, coming away with a 10-0 victory. Mitchell Pace scored a first-half hat-trick to put the game beyond doubt and Joshua Commins added two late goals in the second half to seal a second hat-trick for the Kookaburras who made the finals as favourites. Fiji dominated the bronze medal match against Solomon Islands, winning 6-1, and joined their female counterparts in qualifying for the inaugural FIH Hockey5s World Cup 2024. The finals produced a thriller with New Zealand shocking the home favourites by taking a 3-goal lead inside the first 8 minutes of the game. But Australia clawed their way back and snatched the lead, scoring 4 unanswered goals over the next 5 minutes! A minute later, New Zealand scored again to draw level. Australian captain Liam Kerr-Nelson stepped up and added two goals in the final 3 minutes of the game to lead the hosts to an incredible 6-4 win over their continental rivals and secured the gold medal! In the women’s competition Namibia, South Africa and Zambia from Africa have qualified for the World Cup, alongside hosts Oman. USA, Uruguay and Paraguay have qualified from Pan America while Netherlands, Poland and Ukraine have qualified from Europe. Australia, New Zealand and Fiji have now qualified from Oceania. The final three teams for the World Cup will qualify from Asia, later this year. In the men’s competition Netherlands, Poland and Switzerland from Europe, and Egypt, Kenya and Nigeria from Africa have qualified for the World Cup, alongside hosts Oman. USA, Trinidad & Tobago and Jamaica are the three qualifiers from Pan America. Australia, New Zealand and Fiji have now qualified from Oceania. The final three teams for the World Cup will qualify from Asia, later this year. 

Sports Bulletin ReportLausanne (Switzerland): Pakistan, China, and Spain will host the Paris Olympics 2024 FIH Hockey Qualifiers January next year in Lahore, Changzhou and Valencia respectively from January 13 to 21.According to International Hockey Federation (FIH), women’s fixtures will be held in Changzhou, China (one tournament) and Valencia, Spain (one tournament) while men’s in Lahore, Pakistan (one tournament) and Valencia, Spain (one tournament), as each tournament will consist of 8 teams.The top 3 teams in each of these FIH Hockey Olympic Qualification Tournaments will qualify for Paris 2024. They will join hosts France as well as the winners of each Continental Championship (African Hockey Road to Paris, Pan American Games, Asian Games, EuroHockey Championship and Oceania Cup).As has been the case since Beijing 2008, 12 teams per gender will play at the Paris 2024 Olympic hockey tournaments, with each squad consisting of 16 athletes.Women’s (Asia: 4, Europe: 8, Oceania: 1, Pan America: 3)Men’s (Africa: 1, Asia: 5, Europe: 7, Oceania: 1, Pan America: 2)

Sports Bulletin ReportLausanne (Switzerland): An emphatic 5-1 victory over Spain for Belgium’s men ensured the FIH Hockey Pro League title fight will go down to one last thrilling showdown in Antwerp. The win means their final clash of the season, against the Netherlands on Tuesday, will determine the destination of the trophy. Belgium need a win against the Dutch to claim it while even a shoot-out loss would be enough for the Netherlands to successfully defend their title. Meanwhile, the USA women have left themselves a seemingly impossible task to avoid relegation in their final match on Wednesday after going down 5-2 to Germany. The victory meant the Germans wrapped up their campaign on 29 points – currently in fourth place but with the possibility of still being overtaken by Belgium, who have two matches remaining.(Women’s) United States vs Germany 2-5Germany took control from the start when a ball was lifted into the circle after deflecting off an American stick. Pauline Heinz did well to control it and beat the keeper to score the opener. Just a minute later Charlotte Stapenhorst received the ball at the top of the D and was afforded plenty of space and time to fire it into the back of the net to double that lead within the first six minutes.The Americans played themselves back into the match towards the end of the first quarter and managed to thwart the German attack in the second period. But a German penalty corner in the third quarter resulted in US keeper Kelsey Bing making two great saves, before Lena Micheel’s third attempt finally got the better of her.Micheel was back in action when she passed in for Jette Fleschütz to drill in Germany’s fourth. They took their foot off the pedal somewhat in the final period and the hard-working USA were finally rewarded for their efforts when Amanda Golini bulleted one in from just inside the circle. A good team effort then culminated with Danielle Grega slotting in their second. The US keeper was pulled to push for another but that only resulted in Sara Strauss claiming Germany’s fifth against the run of play.(Men’s) Belgium vs Spain 5-1Unlike their previous encounter, where the Belgians were 5-1 up by half-time, it was a subdued first half in Antwerp. The home side enjoyed much of the possession but only had four shots on goal to Spain’s two.That all changed in the second half, however. Right at the start of the third quarter, Belgium began a speedy counterattack from the Spanish backline – Felix Denayer’s pinpoint pass finding Sébastien Dockier who had all the time in the world to line up his shot and power it into the back of the net. Five minutes later, Arno van Dessel’s strike was saved by the Spanish keeper, but the ball bounced out to the top of the D where Nicolas de Kerpel pounced on it to fire in Belgium’s second. That seemed to open the floodgates. Alex Hendrickx drilled in the third off a penalty corner which took a big deflection off a Spanish defender, and less than a minute later, Victor Wegnez blasted in their fourth.

Sports Bulletin ReportLausanne (Switzerland):-Netherlands and Argentina men while Australia and Germany women claimed victories in the field hockey ties after beating their rivals at two different venues Lee Valley Tennis and Hockey Centre, London, and Sportcentrum Wilrijkse Plein, Antwerp Belgium in Pro Hockey Leagues competitions.Argentina beat New Zealand 4-2 on SO (2-2)The Black Sticks looked like a different team, playing with much more confidence. They earned their first penalty corner in the second quarter, Kane Russell’s powerful flick to the keeper’s left handing his side the lead.With just over five minutes left in the half, four-goal hero from their last encounter, Tomas Domene, dragged the ball into the bottom left of goal off an Argentinian penalty corner for the equaliser. But the lead didn’t last long after Sean Findlay received the ball in the circle and crossed it in for Hayden Phillips to tap in for the lead just ahead of the half-time break.Nicolas Della Torre then levelled the scores off a penalty corner in the third quarter. While New Zealand were awarded one final penalty corner with 10 seconds left on the clock, the shot went wide, taking the match to a shoot-out, which Los Leones edged 4-2.Netherlands beat Spain on SO 3-1 (2-2)An entertaining first quarter brought Spanish keeper Rafael Revilla into action on several occasions as the Dutch pushed for the opener. But it was the Spanish who eventually scored first in the second period. Borja Lacalle’s excellent run into the D, delivered the ball for Gerard Clapes to provide a beautiful finish and hand the Spanish the lead.With three minutes remaining in the half, Max de Bie hit the post. But teammate Thierry Brinkman made sure his side were on the scoresheet just a minute later, skillfully controlling the ball in front of goal and firing it in for the equaliser. Brinkman was back in scoring action in the third quarter after a defensive slip by the Spanish, his reserve stick shot beating the keeper and taking his side 2-1 ahead.But Spain levelled matters within the first two minutes of the final quarter, Marc Miralles scoring off a penalty corner. The teams remained deadlocked on 2-2, however, taking the match into a shoot-out which the Dutch won 3-1.Australia beat Belgium on SO 3-2 (1-1)Amy Lawton played the ball into space in the circle and a reaching Stephanie Kershaw provided the finish to take her side 1-0 up.After numerous opportunities to score, Belgium finally found the breakthrough off a penalty corner in the second quarter, Stephanie Vanden Borre firing it into the bottom right corner.After a breathless encounter, Australia were awarded a penalty stroke in the final five minutes of the match, but Claire Colwell didn’t get hold of it and Elena Sotgiu made an easy save. That meant the sides were deadlocked at 1-1 by the final hooter, taking the match into yet another shoot-out. After a see-saw series of attempts, the Aussies claimed the 3-2 win.Germany beat Great Britain 4-1Jette Fleschütz’s great solo effort led to the Germans doubling their lead just a few minutes later. A GB counterattack in the second quarter then saw Elena Rayer running three quarters of the length of the pitch to slot in a reserve stick strike and open the home team’s account.Viktoria Huse’s shot off a penalty corner hit the GB keeper’s foot as it popped up into goal for Germany’s third at the start of the second half.GB took off their keeper to push for more goals in the dying minutes of the match, but the Germans capitalised, Pauline Heinz slotting in their fourth from an acute angle to seal the 4-1 win.Lee Valley Tennis and Hockey Centre, London (GBR)Result: Men’s Match 55: Netherlands beat Spain on SO 3-1 (2-2)Player of the Game: Jasper Brinkman (NED)Umpires: Tyler Klenk (CAN), Alison Keogh (IRL), Céline Martin-Schmets (BEL-video)Result: Women’s Match 55: Germany beat Great Britain 4-1Player of the Game: Jette Fleschütz (GER)Umpires: German Montes de Oca (ARG), Céline Martin-Schmets (BEL), Alison Keogh (IRL-video)Sportcentrum Wilrijkse Plein - Antwerp (BEL)Result: Men’s Match 56: Argentina beat New Zealand 4-2 on SO (2-2)Player of the Game: Nicolas Keenan (ARG)Umpires: Coen van Bunge (NED), Xiaoying Liu (CHN), Martin Madden (SCO-video)Result: Women’s Match 56: Australia beat Belgium on SO 3-2 (1-1)Player of the Game: Amy Lawton (AUS)Umpires: Annelize Rostron (RSA), Michelle Meister (GER), Martin Madden (SCO-video)

Lausanne-Switzerland (Sports Bulletin Report):-The Dutch women had to dig deep to earn their 4-2 victory after a brave performance by China as FIH Hockey Pro League action continued in Eindhoven. Later in the evening, the Netherlands men did well to rally back from their worst ever home defeat a day earlier at the hands of Australia to beat India 3-2.(Women’s) Netherlands beat China (4-2)China found some attacking form at the start of the second quarter, however. An excellent penalty corner variation culminated in He Jiangxin deflecting in for a surprise 1-0 lead. But it took only 30 seconds for the Dutch to find the equaliser which was set up by Felice Albers down the right-hand side. The impressive Albers crossed the ball in for Pien Dicke to slot it in to get the home side back on level terms.The Chinese found their second goal in the third quarter. A loose pass out by a Dutch defender went straight to Zou Meirong on the edge of the D who then drilled it in from the right. But the Dutch were back in front by the end of the quarter after China conceded a penalty stroke, with Frédérique Matla finding the back of the net despite Ping going the right way.(Men’s) Netherlands beat India (3-2) Looking for redemption after their heavy loss to Australia a day earlier, the Netherlands were first to score. Sheldon Schouten hit an attacking ball into the circle which found its way through traffic to Duco Telgenkamp to tap it in from the back post.Ten minutes into the third quarter, a fantastic pass from Luke Dommershuijzen to a perfectly placed Boris Burkhardt gave the Dutchman plenty of time to blast it into goal.Another Dutch penalty corner was then saved, but from the ensuing play, Joep de Mol injected the ball back in for Tjep Hoedemakers to produce the faintest of touches and deflect in through the keeper’s legs for the home side to take a 3-1 advantage into the final break.Just 21 seconds into the final quarter a defensive error by the Dutch on their left flank saw Sujit turning over the ball. That allowed Lalit Upadhyay the opportunity to cross it to an unmarked Gurjant Singh who ran into the circle and hit a cracking reverse stick shot past the keeper’s left foot.There was plenty more action in the remaining minutes of the match but the score remained at 3-2, much to the relief of the home side.Result: Women’s Match 46Netherlands 4-2 ChinaPlayer of the Game: Felice Albers (NED)Umpires: Laurine Delforge (BEL), Sarah Wilson (SCO), Céline Martin-Schmets (BEL-video)Result: Men’s Match 46Netherlands 3-2 IndiaPlayer of the Game: Joep de Mol (NED)Umpires: Ben Goentgen (GER), Hannah Harrison (ENG), Laurine Delforge (BEL-video)

Camp to start on June 12 for the preparation of the Asian Champions Trophy Abdul Jabbar FaisalISLAMABAD:-Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has invited 45 players for training camp, which will get underway on June 12, at National Hockey Stadium Lahore aiming to gear up the national field hockey athletes for the forthcoming Asian Champions Trophy Hockey Tournament that will be played from August 3 to 12, 2023 this year 2023 in Chennai, India.According to an official of PHF, on the recommendations of the National Selection Committee, the PHF has invited 45 lads to report to the manager Col (Retd) Umer Sabir joining camp along with team officials.Names of players:Goalkeepers (7):Abdullah Ishtiaq Khan (MPCL), Akmal Hussain (WAPDA), Ali Raza (Punjab), Mohammad Faizan Janjua (Customs), Waqar (WAPDA), Abdullah Sheikh (Sindh), Bilal Khan (Balochistan)Defenders (5):Arbaz Ahmad (MPCL), Mohammad Sufyan Khan (KPK), Mohammad Abdullah (MPCL), Aqeel Ahmed (WAPDA), Mohammad Bilal Aslam (Customs)          Midfielders (8):Junaid Manzoor (NBP), Ahtisham Aslam (MPCL), Mohammad Murtaza Yaqoob (WAPDA), Mohammad Baqir (Punjab), Arbaz Ayaz (Sindh), Mohammad Nadeem Khan (KPK), Mohammad Zain (Customs), Mohammad Ammad (Customs).Forwards (25):Rana Abdul Waheed (WAPDA), Mohammad Umar Bhutta (WAPDA), Afraz (MPCL), Abdul Hannan Shahid (WAPDA), Rooman (WAPDA), Mohammad Shahzaib Khan (Customs), Usama Bashir (PAF), Mohammad Imran (PAF), Arshad Liaqat (MPCL), Abdul Wahab (Sindh), Abdul Rehman (WAPDA), Zikriya Hayat (Navy), Ali Murtaza (Customs), Basharat Ali (Navy), Abdul Qayyum (Customs), Bilal Akram (Punjab), Mohammad Adnan (Sindh), Rana Suhail Riaz (Customs), Waqar Ali (MPCL), Shoaib Khan (KPK), Abdul Wajid (Balochistan), Saad Shafique (Punjab), Taimoor Javed Khan (Punjab), Syed Shahbaz Haider (Navy), Mohammad Arsalan (Punjab).Official Staff:Col (Retd) Umar Sabir (Manager), Olympian Mohammad Saqlain, Olympian Rehan Butt, Olympian Dilawar Hussain & International Abdul Haseem Khan (Coaches), Abdul Ghafoor (GK Coach), Mohammad Shahid (Physiotherapist).