FIH Pro-League: Indian joy as women secure shootout victory over Dutch, and men defeat England

After eight days of thrilling matches, the curtain came down on the Bhubaneswar leg of the FIH Hockey Pro League with India’s women giving home fans plenty to celebrate as they pipped the Netherlands in a shootout.

Despite the loss, the women’s tournament sees the Netherlands two points clear at the top of the table with just three points separating the next four teams as the competition heads into a three-month break.

Meanwhile, India beat England and Germany defeated Ireland on Tuesday as the men’s tournament reached the halfway stage with an even more congested table. England and Belgium share the top spot, but with just four points separating them from seventh place, the stage is set for a riveting second half of the tournament.

FIH Hockey Pro League action will resume in Valencia and Amsterdam on 7 June.

(Men’s) Ireland 2 – 4 Germany

Germany had to come from behind twice in their 4-2 win over gritty Ireland.

The Germans dominated possession and territory in the first half, but they struggled to find each other in the attacking third. Jamie Carr made a couple of sharp saves in the Irish goal before his side snatched the lead in the 14th minute when Jeremy Duncan popped a gorgeous pass off the baseline and Matthew Nelson stepped hard in front of his marker for the tap-in. Erik Kleinlein levelled the scores for Germany with his first international goal in the 21st minute. It was then Ben Nelson who tapped in from open play to restore Ireland’s lead five minutes later, only for Thies Prinz to equalise with a penalty corner deflection from the p-spot.

With the scores pegged at 2-2, Ireland enjoyed numerical superiority in the middle of the third quarter after Germany were handed a yellow card for a rash challenge. The Irish failed to capitalise though and Germany went ahead for the first time in the 49th minute, Malte Hellwig rocketing a penalty corner rebound home. Hellwig then made sure of the result with a 57th-minute penalty stroke, putting Germany bang in the middle of the fight for the title.

The player of the match was awarded to Germany’s Niklas Bosserhoff who said: “We wanted to finish on a high note our last game here in Bhubaneswar, we wanted to fly home with a good feeling. And after a big win yesterday we knew it was going to be tougher, but we kept on fighting to the end and very happy with the three points.”

(Women’s) India 2 – 2 Netherlands (SO: 2 – 1)

India looked dead and buried at half time but fought back from two goals down to draw 2-2 with the Netherlands and claim a share of the points. They added a vital bonus point for winning the resulting shootout, ending their home leg on a high against the world and Olympic champions.

The Dutch cruised through the first half, managing the game well and testing a magnificent Savita in goal repeatedly. By contrast, India was guilty of turning over possession too quickly and they couldn’t gain any momentum in the match. Pien Sanders fired the Oranje ahead in the 17th minute with a slick penalty corner variation back to the injector. Fay van der Elst then doubled their lead with a deflection from open play, so breaking clear of the pack at the top of the goal-scorers table. The Netherlands held an easy 2-0 lead at half time, and it looked ominous for the home team.

India came alive in the third quarter, triggered by a piece of individual magic from Deepika in the 35th minute. She made an excellent leading run to receive the ball high up-field, carried strongly into the circle and looped the ball over the goalkeeper from the baseline. Deepika went on to test the Dutch regularly and her teammates followed her lead. Baljeet Kaur equalised with an exquisite first-time shot, and it was game on with 15 minutes remaining. There were chances for both teams to clinch the win but there was no further score and the match went to a shootout. Fittingly it was Savita who got the job done as India prevailed 2-1 in the shootout.

Goalkeeper Savita was named the player of the match for India and said: “It feels amazing. We know the opponents are the best in the world and we had nothing to lose, and winning in the shootout is always a special feeling for the keeper anyway. Clawing back from 2-0 down was really special though, so massive credit to them all.”

(Men’s) India 2 – 1 England

Hosts India coped with the frantic pace of the second half of their clash with England better to emerge 2-1 winners, reversing the result from a day earlier and delivering Indian fans the perfect finish to their home leg.

England dominated the first quarter without taking any reward, but India came back at them in the second as they started to connect with their passes. Harmanpreet Singh fired India ahead with a huge drag flick in the 26th minute, but Conor Williamson restored parity with a penalty stroke to make it 1-1 at half time.

Harmanpreet again launched India ahead with a sizzling 32nd-minute drag flick, and the hosts started stretching England with a higher tempo. The Indians couldn’t afford to slow the game down with only a one-goal cushion, and England had no option but to attack. The result was high-paced, flowing hockey in plenty of space across the entire pitch. More goals seemed inevitable, and the home fans endured a white-knuckle ride as the defensive units of both teams continuously scrambled. England withdrew their goalkeeper with three minutes remaining and immediately won a penalty corner, but they missed the stop and the chance was lost.

India’s Hardik Singh received the player of the match award and said: “I think we started off well and we have finished on a high too. Every time we had a result that didn’t go our way, we had plans to bounce back and we won every time.”

Current Hero Top Scorers:

Women – Fay van der Elst (NED) (6 goals)

Men – Tom Boon (BEL) (14 goals)

To see the current standings in the FIH Hockey Pro League, click here.

FIH Hockey Pro League – 25 February 2025

Kalinga Hockey Stadium, Bhubaneswar, India (IND)

Women

Result: Match 36 (W)

India 2 – 2 Netherlands (SO: 2 – 1)

Player of the match: Savita (IND)

Umpires: Junko Wagatsuma (JPN), Annelize Rostron (RSA), Tamara Leonard (AUS-video)

Men