NEW DELHI: Haryana were crowned champions of the 15th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2025 after defeating Odisha 3-2 in a thrilling final at Jalandhar on Saturday. Punjab secured the bronze medal with a 4-3 shootout win over Uttar Pradesh after their 3-3 draw in regulation time.
In the final, both teams struggled to break the deadlock early on, sharing possession but failing to convert chances. Odisha gained the upper hand in the second quarter with two quick penalty-corner strikes from Deepak Pradhan (17′) and Pratap Toppo (19′), taking a commanding 2-0 lead. The scoreline remained unchanged through the third quarter, but Haryana mounted a remarkable comeback in the final stages.
Chirag (50′) opened Haryana’s account with a penalty-corner conversion, before Nitin (51′) netted a field goal just a minute later to level the scores. With the match heading towards a stalemate, Nitin produced a moment of brilliance in the final minute, dribbling past two defenders before unleashing a powerful strike to seal the championship for Haryana.
In the bronze medal playoff, Uttar Pradesh struck first through Satyam Pandey (8′), but Punjab responded strongly in the second quarter with goals from Lovenoor Singh (21′) and Japnit Singh (28′). Uttar Pradesh turned the tables in the third quarter as Ujjwal Pal (48′)* and Fahad Khan (57′) gave them a 3-2 lead. However, Japnit Singh struck again in the dying seconds (59′) with a penalty stroke to force a shootout.
In the shootout, Punjab held their nerve with successful conversions from Charanjeet Singh, Lovenoor Singh, Om Rajnesh Saini, and Sunny, clinching the bronze medal in dramatic fashion.
Agencies