Coimbatore: Uttarakhand and Chandigarh won in Division ‘B’, while Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Hockey Punjab and Hockey Association of Odisha emerged victorious in their respective Division ‘A’ fixtures on the fifth day of the 16th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2026 at the Coimbatore Hockey Ground in Coimbatore on Saturday.
The day began with Hockey Uttarakhand registering a convincing 4-0 victory over Hockey Jammu & Kashmir in Division ‘B’. Vishal Kumar (9′, 51′) scored a brace, while Ankit (41′) and Prince Bhandari (57′) also found the back of the net to seal the win for Hockey Uttarakhand.
In the second Division ‘B’ fixture, Hockey Chandigarh defeated Hockey Arunachal 4-2. Gurjeet Singh (2′, 25′) and Gurpreet Singh (41′, 45′) scored two goals each for Hockey Chandigarh. Mohd Atif (30′) and Samar Ali (31′) scored for Hockey Arunachal.
The Division ‘A’ matches began with Uttar Pradesh Hockey edging past Hockey Bengal 2-1. Captain Rahul Rajbhar (7′) handed Uttar Pradesh Hockey an early lead before Sah Suraj Kumar (41′) equalised for Hockey Bengal. Prajapati Neeraj (57′) scored the decisive goal late in the match to secure all three points for Uttar Pradesh Hockey.
Hockey Punjab registered an emphatic 6-2 victory over Delhi Hockey in another Division ‘A’ fixture. Amandeep (6′, 12′) and Jobanpreet Singh (41′, 43′) scored two goals each, while Charanjeet Singh (32′) and Prince Singh (60′) also added to the scoresheet for Hockey Punjab. Kunal Singh Chhikara (49′, 52′) netted both goals for Delhi Hockey.
In another Division ‘A’ match of the day, Hockey Association of Odisha defeated Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu Hockey 4-2. Bilkan Oram (3′) gave Odisha an early lead before Prashant Rajput (21′) and Himanshu Yadav (25′) put Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu Hockey ahead. Captain Deepak Pradhan (34′, 44′) scored a brace to turn the game around, while Deonath Nanwar (47′) added another goal to complete the victory for Hockey Association of Odisha.
(IANS)
