Hockey India League 2017 Team Overview: Jaypee Punjab Warriors

The fifth instalment of the Coal Hockey India League which is organised by Hockey India will go underway on the 21^st of January, Saturday. The first fixture post the opening ceremony will see the defending champions Jaypee Punjab Warriors clash against Dabang Mumbai on the latter’s home ground.

The tournament will span across six cities of Mumbai, Bhubaneshwar, Lucknow, Delhi, Chandigarh and Ranchi. The final will be staged on the 26^th of February in Chandigarh. The tournament will feature some of the best hockey players from across the globe and India turning out for the six-team who will vie for the top honours at stake.

Tournament Record

2013- The Punjab Warriors had a season of mixed results in the first edition, finishing fourth overall after losing to the Uttar Pradesh Wizards in the 3rd-4th place match. Malak Singh was the top-scorer for the team with 4 field goals to his name.

2014- The team had a particularly successful outing with a top place finish after the pool stage but failed to go past the last hurdle when they lost the final encounter to the Delhi Waveriders. Sandeep Singh of the Warriors emerged as the highest goal-scorer with a record 11 goals.

2015- Akin to the previous season, Punjab Warriors cruised past the pool stage cementing their place at the top of the tally but somehow again ended up on the losing side in the finals after losing to the Ranchi Rays. Sandeep Singh finished as the second highest scorer behind Ashley Jackson.

2016- Third time lucky! The Jaypee Punjab Warriors emerged as the champions in the fourth edition of the tournament, thrashing the Kalinga Lancers 6-1 in the finals. Young gun Armaan Qureshi emerged as the highest scorer for his team with 8 goals to his name.

Key Players

Sardar Singh- The former captain of the Indian hockey team will lead the Punjab Warriors this time around. The 31-year old is one of Indian’s most prolific midfielders and has been instrumental in many wins for the national side in his career so far. He will play an important role if the Jaypee Punjab Warriors are to defend the title they won last year.

Robert van der Horst- The captain of the Dutch national team is the highest paid player from his country in the HIL. He will be the anchor of the Punjab Warriors’ defence having plenty of international experience, having been a silver medallist at the 2012 Olympics and the 2014 World Cup. Horst was also the FIH Player of the Year in 2015 and will be one of the players to watch out for in the HIL.

Armaan Qureshi- One of the young stars who came into his own when the Punjab Warriors won the league last year and has carried on right from there, to recently win the Junior Hockey World Cup in Lucknow. Playing in the capacity of a forward, he will lead the attack for the Warriors.

Fixtures

Date	Time	Home Team	Away Team	Venue
Friday 27 January	19:00	Dabang Mumbai	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Mumbai
Wednesday 1 February	19:00	Ranchi Rays	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Ranchi
Friday 3 February	19:00	Kalinga Lancers	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Bhubaneshwar
Tuesday 7 February	19:00	Delhi Waveriders	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Delhi
Thursday 9 February	19:00	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Ranchi Rays	Chandigarh
Saturday 11 February	19:00	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Dabang Mumbai	Chandigarh
Tuesday 14 February	19:00	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Uttar Pradesh Wizards	Chandigarh
Friday 17 February	19:00	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Delhi Waveriders	Chandigarh
Saturday 18 February	19:00	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Kalinga Lancers	Chandigarh
Monday 20 February	19:00	Uttar Pradesh Wizards	Jaypee Punjab Warriors	Lucknow

Squad

Forwards: Ajit Kumar Pandey (India), Armaan Qureshi (India), Jackob Whetton (Australia), Jasjit Singh Kular (India), Mark Gleghorne (England), Nithin Thimmaiah (India), Satbir Singh (India), SV Sunil (India)

Midfielders: Baljit Singh Boparai (India), Matt Gohdes (Australia), Robert Van Der Horst (Netherlands), Sardar Singh (India), Simon Orchard (Australia)

Defenders: Christopher Ciriello (Australia), Harbir Singh Sandhu (India), Hardik Singh (India), Mark Knowles (Australia), Varun Kumar (India)

Goalkeepers: Jugraj Singh (India), Tristan Clemons (Australia)

Coach: Barry Dancer

Home Stadium: Chandigarh Hockey Stadium