Hatton National Bank sweep boards in Mercantile hockey
HNB ' A' beat Sampath Bank to emerge winners in the Mercantile Hockey Knockout Tournament at the Astroturf in Torrington last weekend.
HNB and Sampath Bank, studded with ex- Sri Lanka players, displayed a fantastic style of play, witnessed by a large number of spectators, which included VIPs from the two banks and the Mercantile Hockey Association.
Sampath Bank opened scoring in the 12th minute through a penalty strike for an infringement made by HNB full back. Ex-Sri Lanka Under21 player Buwenaka Parahitiyawa converted it successfully. At halftime Sampath Bank lead 1-0.
In the second half both teams played aggressively, creating frequent chances to the score. The pendulum swung both ways. In the 41st minute HNB forward ex- Sri Lanka player Damith Bandara equalised through a penalty strike, followed by a field goal by ex- Sri Lanka player Upul Dhanushka.
Sampath Bank bounced back in the 44th minute to equalise through a field goal through Chinthaka Dilshan. Damith Bandara pierced the strong Sampath Bank defence, displaying some excellent stick-work to score in the 49th minute, to give HNB the lead. However two quick goals by Sampath Bank forward and ex-Sri Lanka player Diluka Weerasuriya, changed the course of the game.
When Sampath Bank was leading 4- 3 in the dying stages, R. Wickremasinghe sounded the board to give HNB the much needed breakthrough, as scores were levelled 4-all at fulltime. In a dramatic turnaround, HNB secured a thrilling win through penalty strokes as they beat Sampath Bank 7- 6 and emerge winners. Umpires N. Paranitharan and Abeetha Fernando controlled the game.
In the ' B' Division final HSBC stunned Hayleys Group 3- 2 to emerge winners. For HSBC Imesh Wimalasiri, Mark Fernando and Razvi Sadeff scored a goal each while for Hayleys Group Bodika Dias sounded the board twice.
Commercial Bank 'A' beat Allianz Insurance 6- 1 to secure the third place in the 'A' Division while in the ' B' Division Seylan Bank beat Commercial Bank 3- 2 to win the third place playoff.