Last Updated:
The Hyderabad Toofans secured the win over UP Rudras to take their first win of the season.
Placed in the bottom of the points table, Hyderabad Toofans showcased their intent to win. (Image: HIL)
Hyderabad Toofans came up with an inspired performance to beat UP Rudras 3-0 to register their first out-right victory here at the Hero Hockey India League on Wednesday. It was goals by Zachary Wallace (6′), Rajinder Singh (14′) and Shilanand Lakra (32′) that helped Toofans seal the winning points and claw their way back to no.5 on the points table.
Placed in the bottom of the points table, Hyderabad Toofans showcased their intent to win right from the start. With good attacking structure on display, they took a brilliant 2-0 lead in the first quarter of the game. It was a stupendous back-handed shot by Zachary Wallace that fetched them the first goal of the game in the sixth minute while attacking midfielder Nilakanta Sharma set up Rajinder Singh to score a splendid field goal in the 14th minute.
related stories
Starting the game on the back foott, UP Rudras looked to bounce back in the second quarter. They managed a fine chance through a PC. A good injection by Hardik Singh was picked up well by Kane Russel,l but it was brilliantly stopped by Toofans’ goalie Dominic Dixon. Though Hardik picked up the rebound and took a shot on the goal himself, Dixon was impeccable in his duty. In the following minutes, Toofan,s to,o bagged a PC but could not extend the lead.
The third quarter began with Toofans taking their scoreline to 3-0 in the 32nd minute. An interception when Hardik was with the ball, led to Toofans setting up Shilanand Lakra to score the goal. A shot which went in between the legs of UP Rudra’s goalie Prashant Kumar Chauhan to the goalpost. This goal really put Rudras under pressure.
In the 49th minute of the game, Floris Wortelboer helped Rudras win a crucial PC. Hardik was perfect with his injection yet again but Dixon managed to keep Russell’s effort out. There were two back-to-back PCs awarded to the Toofans’ Captain Sumit made a diving effort to clear the ball. With six minutes left on the clock, Rudras won another PC, but Sam Ward’s shot went wide. Meanwhile, with just 46 seconds left for the final hooter, Toofans earned a PC. Gonzalo Peillat’s flick had a lot of pace but went straight to goalie James Mazarelo. On re-award Peillat made another attempt but the injection was not good enough to see it through. However, they did well to hold on to the 3-0 lead and win their first game at the HIL.
- Location :
Odisha (Orissa), India
- First Published:
January 08, 2025, 22:26 IST
News sports HIL 2024-25: Hyderabad Toofans Register First Outright Win, Beat UP Rudras 3-0 With Dominant Show
