Hockey tour: Pakistan U21s lose one, win one against Spain

Colts defeated 3-2 in opener before claiming second through penalty shootout

KARACHI: The Pakistan U21 hockey team lost their opening match 3-2 against Spain’s junior side in Terrassa, Spain yesterday but won the next match to level the three-match series.

The visitors had won six matches in a row in Netherlands and looked to be in similar form in the first match when they opened the scoring in the 20th minute through a Shan Irshad field goal. However, Spain’s Quique Glez de Castejon levelled the scoring in the 25th minute before Geri gave them the lead just four minutes leader.



Pakistan then converted a penalty corner in the 39th minute of the game to make it 2-2 but Geri once again made the difference when he struck in the 50th minute to give hosts Spain the lead yet again. This time around, there was no leveller for Pakistan who tasted their first defeat of the tournament.

“We did our best but their team had some good skills,” captain Ammad Butt told The Express Tribune. “We didn’t have time to get used to the ground condition as we arrived here at night and played the match the next morning.”

Butt feels they need to cut down the number of mistakes in their game. “We scored two goals against them, but they took full advantage of our defenders’ mistakes and got the winning goal,” he said. “We have to get these small mistakes out of our system if we are to succeed with the national side.”

The team responded in the next game with Pakistan once again opening the scoring through Dilber Hussain in the 20th minute. Spain’s Bulto Gimo made it 1-1 soon after though.



Hussain struck again in the 33rd minute, only to see yet another equaliser for Spain, this time by Jan Lara.

Pakistan’s Atiq Arshad made it 3-2 in favour of the visitors but the visitors could not hold on as De Castejon scored late in the 57th minute to take the match into a penalty shootout.

The Colts kept their nerve in the shootout and won 5-4, to take the series into a decider tomorrow.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 31^st, 2016.

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