Abdul Jabbar Faisal
ISLAMABAD: Navy, Army, Punjab Red, and Customs have stormed into the semifinals of the 37th National Juniors Hockey Championship 2024 after beating their respective opponents WAPDA (4-3), Police (3-0), Punjab Blues (5-0), and Khyber Pukhtunkawa (4-3) respectively here at Naseer Bunda Hockey Stadium, Pakistan Sports Complex on Wednesday. The semifinals will be played on Friday at the same venue.
In the first quarterfinal, Pakistan Navy overcame Pakistan WAPDA 4-3. Mohammad Wasim scored two goals for Navy while Basharat Ali and Waleed Ashraf scored each one goal for their team. Aaamir Sohail, Mohammad Hasan, Hanan Khan scored each one goal for the Pakistan WAPDA.
Meanwhile, in the second quarterfinal, Pakistan Army stunned Pakistan Police 3-0 after 60 minutes game. Saud Amjad made two goals for the winning side while Mohammad Owais contributed solitary goal for Pakistan Army, set to meet Pakistan Navy in the first semifinal on Friday at the same pitch.
Punjab Reds outclassed Punjab Blues by 5-0 in the penultimate quarterfinal at Naseer Bunda Hockey Stadium. Obaidullah Awan (2), Mubashir Khan (1) Mohammad Aziz (1), and Adeel Afzal (1) were the goal scorer for Punjab Reds. Punjab Blues players failed to reduce margin.
In the last and 4th quarterfinal, Pakistan Customs defeated Khyber Pukhtunkawa (KPK) 4-3 in the well contest match of the day, as the players of both teams displayed skillful hockey and amused handful spectators during the all four quarters. Customs will face Punjab Reds in the second semifinal of top national junior hockey showpiece. Bilal Aslam scored a couple of goals for Customs while Mohammad Ammad and Samiullah contributed each one goal.
