Usha Krira Chakra notched up their third win of the Premier Hockey League when they thrashed a strong Mariner Young’s Club 4-1 at the Moulana Bhasani National Hockey Stadium on Saturday.
Though the joint defending champions, Usha, dominated the game throughout, Mariner wasted at least four scoring chances in the either half of the games. Usha took the lead in the 21st minute, thanks to their newly Pakistani recruit Aleem Belal, who converted the first penalty corner.
Pushkar Khisha Mimo doubled the lead for with a solo effort in the 32nd minute as the national striker broke into the penalty area before flicking the ball home past an advancing Mariner keeper Mehrab Hossain Kiron.
Mariner tried hard to reduce the gap but they wasted six penalty corners which cost the Arambagh-based outfits badly.
They pulled one goal back in the 61st minute when Ashraful Islam converted their seventh penalty corner in the match.
Usha, however, shattered Mariner’s hope of a comeback with two late goals scored by national striker Hasan Jubayed Niloy and midfielder Mahbub Hossain in the 66th and 69th minutes respectively.
Meanwhile, a superb hat-trick from Sajib Hossain helped Azad Sporting Club celebrate a 4-1 win over Railway Sporting Club in the day’s other match at the same venue.
It was Railway, who opened the scoreline in the 6th minute through Tariqul Islam, but Sajib had other ideas as he recorded the second hat-trick of the league with three successive strikes in the 27th, 31st and 47th minutes respectively from penalty corners.
Nasir Hossain completed the rout for Azad with a 59th minute strike.
-With New Age input
