Hockey India League 2024/25 Points Table: Updated HIL standings on January 9

The fifth set of round-robin games of the Hockey India League got underway on Thursday (January 9) with the Kalinga Lancers defeating Team Gonasika 2-1 even as emotions ran high towards the end of the intense contest.

SV Sunil proved beyond doubt that his goalscoring skills are still intact at the age of 35. He powered Team Gonasika into the lead with his second goal of the competition before Antoine Kina equalized for the Kalinga Lancers.

Aran Zalewski scored the winner for the defending champions just after the long breather thus enabling his team to pull off a second straight win in the Hockey India League.

SV Sunil was unable to connect onto an angled ball across the face of the goal in the fourth minute as Gonasika had the better of the early exchanges.

Not for long though as Antoine Kina and Arthur van Doren sought to create a move for the Lancers at the other end soon after.

Gursahibjit Singh earned a penalty corner for the Odisha side with a sizzling sprint while running the ball with one hand in the 10th minute. However, Alexander Hendrickx was unable to direct his drag-flick on target.

SV Sunil, however, made no mistake after receiving the ball in front of the goal at the other end with an opportunistic poacher-style goal for Team Gonasika in the 14th minute.

Antoine Kina picked out an onrushing Nicholas Bandurak in front of the goal who found the back of the net in the 24th minute. Umpire Coen van Bunge sought the advice of the video umpire who ruled that it was indeed a goal. Bunge then decided to overrule the goal for dangerous play.

The ball, however, had struck the defender's knee while in a crouching position and not in an upright position.

Antoine Kina capitalized on a defensive lapse on the edge of the circle before dispatching a powerful shot that beat Oliver Payne to enable the Kalinga Lancers to draw level in the 28th minute.

Alexander Hendrickx sent in a peach of a pass to Aran Zalewski who deflected the ball into the net to enable the Lancers to take a 2-1 lead in the 33rd minute. Team Gonasika won their first penalty corner in the 41st minute but Krishan Pathak pulled off a save to deny Struan Walker from the top of the circle.

The Lancers had a chance to stretch their lead but Angad Bir Singh's spectacular diving effort failed to produce a goal in the 51st minute.

Angad Bir Singh who had an outstanding game thought he had manufactured a penalty corner for his side in the 53rd minute but the video umpire thought otherwise.

A rampant Kalinga Lancers side pushed hard for a two-goal lead in the final minutes of the game but did enough to earn full points and move to the third position on the Hockey India League points table.

The umpires did have to physically separate a few players from both sides who lost control of their emotions in the final minute before order was soon restored.

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Hockey India League: Updated Points Table Men's League Phase (Thursday, January 9)

	PLAYED	WON	LOST	S/O WIN	S/O LOSS	GF	GA	GD	POINTS
Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers	4	3	1	0	0	9	10	-1	9
Tamil Nadu Dragons	4	2	0	1	1	11	8	+3	9
Kalinga Lancers	5	2	2	0	1	14	10	+4	7
Soorma Hockey Club	4	1	1	2	0	7	9	-2	7
UP Rudras	4	2	2	0	0	6	6	0	6
Hyderabad Toofans	4	1	2	1	0	8	8	0	5
Team Gonasika	5	1	3	0	1	12	13	-1	4
Delhi SG Pipers	4	0	1	1	2	7	10	-3	4

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Hockey India League 2024/25: Men's League Fixtures (Friday, January 10)

Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers vs Tamil Nadu Dragons, 8:15 pm IST (Birsa Munda International Hockey)