Indian Oil enter semi-finals in Murugappa Gold Cup hockey

Rupinder Pal SinghChennai, Oct 6 : A 68th minute goal by Rupinder Pal Singh carried Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) to an unimpressive 1-0 win against the Indian Railways in Pool B and also earned them a berth in the semi-finals of the All-India MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup hockey tournament here Tuesday.

It was fourth win for IOC in as many matches while the Railways, who had the better of the exchanges but blew their chances, slid to their second defeat in three outings.

There was very little to commend about in a game that flowed from end to end with both sets of forwards failing miserably at the finish.

The Railways, in particular, came the closest to sounding the boards, but the carefree manner in which the forwards made their attempts did not deserve a goal.

Ultimately, even as a draw loomed large, Rupinder came up with an accurate drag-flick from a penalty corner with two minutes of the match remaining for the only goal of the match.

Earlier, in an inconsequential Pool B match, Punjab National Bank overcame Mumbai XI 4-1 for their first win in three outings.

The match saw both teams struggling to lift their game as neither was in contention for a semi-final spot. Starring in PNB's win was Damandeep Singh (5th, 56th) with two goals while Yudhvir Singh (21st) and Jalwinder Singh (49th) knocked in one apiece.

For Mumbai, who have lost all their three matches, Gursevak Singh scored the lone goal from a penalty corner.(IANS)