Sher-e-Punjab (field hockey team)

Sher-e-Punjab (abbreviated as SP) (Punjabi: ਸ਼ੇਰ-ਏ-ਪੰਜਾਬ) is an Indian professional field hockey team named after Sher-e-Punjab and based in Jalandhar, Punjab that plays in World Series Hockey. The team is currently led by Indian forward Prabhjot Singh and coached by former Indian coach Rajinder Singh. Surjeet Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar serves as the home ground of Sher-e-Punjab.[1]

Sher-e-Punjab

Full name	Sher-e-Punjab
Nickname(s)	Shers
Founded	2012
Home ground	Surjit Hockey Stadium, Jalandhar (Capacity 7,000)
Coach	Rajinder Singh
Website	Official Facebook Page
Home Away

Sher-e-Punjab became the champions of the inaugural edition of WSH by defeating Pune Strykers 5–2 in the final.[2] Deepak Thakur has scored most goals for the team (12 goals).[3]

History

2012 season

Sher-e-Punjab begun their campaign with a 5–2 victory over Chennai Cheetahs at home. After being undefeated for three matches they lost consecutive matches from Delhi Wizards and Chandigarh Comets 1–2 and 1–3 respectively. But winning their next five matches gave them their berth in the semi-finals despite their captain, Prabhjot Singh, being out of play due to a hamstring injury.[4] They were the first team to qualify for the playoffs. They defeated Bhopal Badshahs and Mumbai Marines both home and away. The team led the points table almost throughout the league phase due to their consistent performance. However, just one win in last four matches resulted in a number two finish at the end of league phase trailing Chandigarh Comets by three points.

Sher-e-Punjab faced Karnataka Lions (who finished number three in the league phase) in the semi-final.[5] They conceded an early goal but went on to thrash the hosts 4–1 to enter the final.[6] They faced and defeated Pune Strykers in the final 5–2 and thus became the first ever champions of WSH.[7] Deepak Thakur scored the most goals for the team (12 goals). He finished number four overall.[8]

Team Composition

The team is captained by Prabhjot Singh with Rajinder Singh as coach. [9]

Player	Nationality	Matches	Goals
Goal Keepers
Antoni Kindler	Canada		-
Dinesh Ekka	India	8	-
Sukhjeet Singh	India	8	-
Strikers
Akashdeep Singh	India
Deepak Thakur	India	16	12
Didar Singh	India	5
Gagan Ajit Singh	India	16	5
Gagandeep Singh	India	9	1
Gurjant Singh	India	16
Inderjit Singh	India	16	1
Karamjit Singh	India	16	2
Mandeep Antil	India	16	3
Prabhdeep Singh Sr.	India	15
Prabhjot Singh (Captain)	India	13	10
Mid Fielders
Gurmail Singh	India
Imran Khan	India	8
Jasbir Singh	India	15
Matthew Hotchkis	Australia	16	4
Simranjit Singh	India	6
V.S. Vinaya	India	14	2
Defenders
Bikramjeet Singh	India	5	3
Harpal Singh (Vice Captain)	India	16	1
Harpreet Singh	India	16	8
Maik Gunther	Germany	6
Tariq Aziz	Pakistan	15	2
Prabhdeep Ram	India	1
William Xalco	India	15

Fixtures and Results

2012

Goals For	54 (3.38 per match)
Goals Against	38 (2.38 per match)
Most Goals	Deepak Thakur (12 goals) Overall Position: 4th

No.	Date	Score	Opponent	Venue	Report
1	1 March	5 - 2	Chennai Cheetahs	Jalandhar	Match 2
2	3 March	6 - 1	Karnataka Lions	Jalandhar	Match 6
3	4 March	3 - 3	Pune Strykers	Jalandhar	Match 9
4	7 March	1 - 2	Delhi Wizards	Jalandhar	Match 15
5	8 March	1 - 3	Chandigarh Comets	Chandigarh	Match 17
6	10 March	3 - 2	Bhopal Badshahs	Bhopal	Match 22
7	14 March	3 - 2	Mumbai Marines	Mumbai	Match 27
8	16 March	5 - 2	Chandigarh Comets	Jalandhar	Match 31
9	17 March	4 - 3	Bhopal Badshahs	Jalandhar	Match 33
10	21 March	2 - 1	Mumbai Marines	Jalandhar	Match 39
11	23 March	1 - 2	Karnataka Lions	Bangalore	Match 42
12	25 March	4 - 2	Chennai Cheetahs	Chennai	Match 45
13	27 March	2 - 3	Pune Strykers	Pune	Match 49
14	30 March	5 - 7	Delhi Wizards	Delhi	Match 55
15	1 April	4 - 1	Karnataka Lions	Bangalore	Semi-final 1
16	2 April	5 - 2	Pune Strykers	Mumbai	Final
Position in League Phase: 2nd Champions

Statistics

Season	Matches	Won	Drawn	Lost	Win%
2012	16	10	1	5	62.50%
Home	7	5	1	1	71.43%
Away	9	5	0	4	55.56%
Overall	16	10	1	5	62.50%

Performance Details

Goals For	54 (3.38 per match)
Goals Against	38 (2.38 per match)
Most Goals	Deepak Thakur (12 goals) Current Position: 4th

Performance by Oppositions

Opposition	Matches	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Win%
Bhopal Badshahs	2	2	0	0	7	5	100.00%
Chandigarh Comets	2	1	0	1	6	5	50.00%
Chennai Cheetahs	2	2	0	0	9	4	100.00%
Delhi Wizards	2	0	0	2	6	9	0.00%
Karnataka Lions	3	2	0	1	11	4	66.67%
Mumbai Marines	2	2	0	0	5	3	100.00%
Pune Strykers	3	1	1	1	10	8	33.33%

Hat-tricks

No.	Player	Opposition	Result	Season	Venue	Report
1	Deepak Thakur	Chandigarh Comets	5 – 2	2012	Jalandhar – Surjeet Hockey Stadium	16 March 2012
2	Prabhjot Singh	Delhi Wizards	5 – 7	2012	Delhi – Dhyan Chand National Stadium	30 March 2012

References

1. "Sher-e-Punjab". The Fans of Hockey. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
2. "Sher-E-Punjab crowned WSH champions". ESPN. 3 April 2012. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
3. "Top Scorers". World Series Hockey. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
4. Krishna Kanta Chakraborty (25 March 2012). "Sher-E-Punjab enter World Series Hockey semifinals". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
5. Press Trust of India (31 March 2012). "WSH semifinal: Karnataka to face Sher-e-Punjab on Sunday". NDTV. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
6. "Sher-e-Punjab enter final of World Series Hockey". The Times of India. 1 April 2012. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
7. "Sher-E-Punjab crowned WSH champions". ESPN. 3 April 2012. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
8. "World Series Hockey Top Scorers". World Series Hockey. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
9. "Sher-e-Punjab". World Series Hockey. Retrieved 28 February 2012.

See also

• World Series Hockey
• Sher-e-Jalandhar, similar team in the Premier Hockey League