HIL: Kalinga Lancers down Gonasika; rise to third

Vedanta Kalinga Lancers secured their second successive win of the season beating Team Gonasika 2-1 in their Hero Hockey India League match, in Rourkela, on Thursday.

Antoine Kina (28th minute) and Aran Zalewski (33rd) scored for the Kalinga Lancers while S V Sunil (14th) scored Gonasika's solitary goal.

The deadlock between the two teams was broken in the 14th minute by Sunil.

From a free hit, the ball was played to Jack Waller who squared it across goal. Sunil was at the right place to sweep the ball past Krishan Bahadur Pathak in goal.

The Lancers deservedly levelled the score in the 28th minute through Antoine Kina. Kalinga defence failed to clear the ball away from their circle with Kina eventually winning possession before unleashing an unstoppable hit past Payne.

The home side took the lead in the 33rd minute thanks to a well-taken goal by captain Aran Zalewski.

Hendrickx played the ball inside the circle which was deflected towards goal by Zalewski. Goalkeeper Suraj Karkera's vision was impeded by three players in front of him as the ball sneaked past him into goal.

The fourth quarter was a cagey affair as the Lancers held firm in defence even as Gonasika struggled to create any decent chances.

The win sees the Lancers move up to third place in the league standings with seven points. Gonasika, meanwhile, are in seventh place with four points.