JSW Soorma Hockey Club produced one of their most dominant performances of the Men’s Hero Hockey India League 2025–26, crushing SG Pipers 6–1 in their final group-stage match in Bhubaneswar.
Yet, in a cruel twist of sporting fate, even that emphatic scoreline was not enough to carry them into the Qualifiers. Soorma needed a seven-goal victory to leapfrog Hockey India League GC on goal difference and book a place in Qualifier 2. They came agonisingly close, but ultimately fell one goal short, allowing HIL GC to progress despite not being in action on the night.
The match, played at a frenetic tempo from the opening whistle, saw Australian drag-flick specialist Jeremy Hayward deliver a masterclass in set-piece finishing. Hayward struck four times (2’, 7’, 34’, 45’) with a combination of blistering penalty corners and a calmly taken penalty stroke, while Lucas Martinez (11’) and Nicolas Keenan (47’) also found the net. For the Pipers, Tomas Domene’s (38’) drag-flick provided a brief moment of resistance in what was otherwise a night of sustained Soorma dominance.
Soorma entered the contest knowing exactly what was required. Only an overwhelming victory would keep their playoff hopes alive, and from the first minute, their body language reflected that urgency. They pressed high, attacked in numbers and refused to let the Pipers settle. The breakthrough came almost immediately. A penalty corner in the second minute allowed Hayward to unleash a trademark thunderbolt into the right corner, giving Soorma the perfect start.
Before the Pipers could regroup, Soorma struck again. Another penalty corner followed soon after, and Hayward once again proved unstoppable, beating goalkeeper Tomas Santiago with a near-identical flick to make it 2–0. With their drag-flicker in such devastating rhythm, every Soorma entry into the circle carried the scent of danger.
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The Pipers tried to slow the game down, but Soorma’s relentless pressing kept forcing turnovers. In the 11th minute, Gurjant Singh won possession high up the pitch and quickly fed Lucas Martinez inside the circle. The Argentine made no mistake, guiding the ball into an unguarded net to stretch the lead to 3–0 and keep Soorma on track for their ambitious target.
The second quarter saw a slight shift in momentum, not because Soorma eased off, but because the Pipers adjusted their approach. They dropped deeper, packed their defensive lines and focused on denying space rather than chasing the ball. That strategy brought some measure of stability, and for the first time in the match, Soorma were forced to probe patiently rather than attack in waves. The Pipers also enjoyed a few forays forward, testing goalkeeper Vincent Vanasch, but they could not find a way through the well-organised Soorma backline.
After halftime, Soorma returned with renewed intensity. They began using long aerials to bypass the Pipers’ compact defence, stretching the field and creating pockets of space. The tactic worked. Another penalty corner arrived early in the third quarter, and Hayward was again lethal, rifling the ball into the bottom corner for his third goal of the night.
The Pipers briefly found their voice late in the quarter. A period of sustained possession led to their first penalty corner of the match, and Tomas Domene converted it smartly with a low flick past Mohith HS. For a fleeting moment, it looked like the Pipers might disrupt Soorma’s momentum. But that hope was quickly extinguished. A foul inside the circle gave Soorma a penalty stroke, and Hayward stepped up to complete his four-goal haul, restoring the four-goal cushion at 5–1.
With one quarter left and needing two more goals to reach the magic seven-goal margin, Soorma threw everything forward. Their press became even more aggressive, pinning the Pipers inside their own half. The breakthrough came in the 47th minute when Nicolas Keenan pounced on a rebound after a saved shot and slammed the ball home, making it 6–1 and igniting belief in the stands.
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From that moment on, it was a siege. Soorma poured men into the circle at every opportunity, while the Pipers defended with desperate resolve. Manjeet nearly added to the drama with a sharp reverse shot that forced a save from Mohith, and Domene came close to scoring again from a late penalty corner, only to be denied by a brilliant stop.
At the other end, Soorma won one final penalty corner, but this time Hayward’s drag-flick was heroically charged down by Rohit, symbolising the Pipers’ refusal to give up the one goal that would have changed everything. As the final seconds ticked away, both teams fought for every inch, but the scoreline remained frozen at 6–1.
When the whistle blew, Soorma had the points and the plaudits for a commanding performance, but HIL GC had the reward that mattered most — a place in Qualifier 2, secured by the slimmest of goal-difference margins. For Soorma, it was a night of mixed emotions: pride in a powerful display, and heartbreak at how narrowly their playoff dream slipped away.
