Air India, Punjab and Sind Bank in quarter-finals

Reigning champions Air India, Mumbai, and Punjab and Sind Bank, Jalandhar, moved into the quarter-finals after recording contrasting victories in the 40th Bombay Gold Cup hockey tournament in Mumbai on Sunday.

While Air India, who led 1-0 at half-time, scraped past a fighting ONGC, Delhi, 3-2, the bankmen struck once in each half to beat Bombay Customs 2-0 in a one-sided contest.

The Air India-ONGC tie, which was marked by frayed tempers, saw the umpire flashing yellow cards to four players of either side.

Air India shot into the lead when former international and defender Anil Aldrin smartly tapped in a rebound to enable his side to go into the break 1-0 ahead.

In the 46th minute, centre-half Kishore Kumar made it 2-0 when he scored off a rebound after forward Tushar Khandekar's try off a Roshan Tete cross came straight back to him.

Down by two goals, ONGC, however, fought back superbly with Anurag Raghuvanshi converting a penalty stroke in the 53rd minute. The stroke was awarded after ONGC forward Amarjeet Pratap was blocked by the Air India defenders inside the circle.

Four minutes later, ONGC right half Gurpreet Singh equalised off a rebound after Amardeep Pratap's hit ricochetted off Air India goalkeeper Adrian D'Souza's pads.

Despite the local team being reduced to ten men after Aldrin was sent off with a yellow card, they managed to get the match-winner through Khandekar from a counter attack, just two minutes before the final whistle.

In the other match, a brace by Parminder Singh in the first-half was enough for Punjab and Sind Bank to comfortably beat Bombay Customs. The match was totally dominated by the bankmen who took the lead as early as the third minute when a combined move by Parminder Singh and Sanjeev Kumar Dang saw the ball going to Mandeep Singh Ghuman, whose back pass was well deflected by into the goal.

Parminder again got his name on the score-sheet in the 35th minute when he tapped home a Sandeep Singh Ghuman's shot off a penalty-corner which struck the upright.

Yesterday's report
Indian Airlines, Tata's storm into last 8