Kamla to lead Odisha’s U-21 squad

Bhubaneswar: Sports Hostel Odisha U-21 will be in action against the Ghumanhera’s Riser’s Academy in Pool B at the 2nd Khelo India Women’s Hockey League 2023 (U-21). 

The Odisha team will be led by Kamla Singh, while the Vice-Captain will be Puja Sahoo.

Speaking ahead of the match, Coach Kariappa feels the preparations have been good and the team is confident of a good outing in the tournament. 

He said, “The atmosphere in the team is really good. The players are looking forward to play in the tournament. We as a group feel confident ahead of our first match. It is important that we start on a positive as it sets a base for the next games.”

“We are not aware how Ghumanhera Riser’s Academy will come out and play, so we can’t make any strategy against them. We will have to stick to our routine structure and make the best out of it. We can study and analyze our opponents for our second and third game, and then make game plan, prepare the team accordingly,” he added. 

Talking about the team’s prospect, Sports Hostel Odisha Captain Kamla Singh said, “I feel honored to lead the team. We are eyeing a strong start as it will give confidence to the entire team, which they will carry going forward. We have a good group of players who are eager to learn, work harder and that is what makes a team strong.”

Notably, 11 players of the Odisha Naval Tata Hockey High Performance Center (HPC) make up the 18 players’ squad.

The participating teams are divided into two pools. Teams in Pool A Pritam Siwach Sports Foundation, SAI-A, Bhai Behlo Hockey Academy, HIM Academy and Salute Hockey Academy. Meanwhile, Sports Hostel Odisha, SAI-B, Har Hockey Academy and Ghumanhera Riser’s Academy have been slotted in Pool B.

Squad: Namshi Jureka, Engil Harsha Rani Minz, Mariyam Dhanwar, Anjali Barwa, Suman Hemrom, Puja Ramchuria, Prativa Kindo, Puja Sahoo (Vice-Captain), Sonia Topno, Rashmi Kishan, Arti Xalxo, Sunita Xaxa, Laxmi Chik, Munmuni Das, Monica Dipi Toppo, Aliva Jate, Kamla Singh (Captain), Jelin Soreng, David John (Manager), Kariappa BJ (Coach), Nigam (Physio) and Svasti Upadhyay (Nutritionist).