Chandigarh Comets |
| Full name | Chandigarh Comets |
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| Nickname(s) | The Comets |
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| Founded | 2012 |
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| Colors | Blue |
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| Home ground | Sector 42 Stadium, Chandigarh
(Capacity 30,000) |
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| Coach | Harendra Singh |
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Chandigarh Comets (CCO) was an Indian professional field hockey team based in Chandigarh that played in World Series Hockey. Pakistani striker Rehan Butt was the captain of the team and Harendra Singh was the coach. Sector 42 Stadium was the home ground of Chandigarh Comets.[1]
Chandigarh Comets were at the top of the table in the league phase but ended up as the semi-finalists of the inaugural edition of WSH. They lost to Pune Strykers in the semi-final 3–4 in the penalty shoot-out.[2] Gurjinder Singh was leading goal scorer for the team who also top-scored in the tournament along with Syed Imran Warsi with 19 goals apiece.[3]
History
2012 season
Comets played the inaugural match of the season against Bhopal Badshahs at their home ground where they faced a 4–3 defeat.[4] They continued with a 3–5 loss from Chennai Cheetahs. A 5–2 win over Mumbai Marines fetched them their first victory and first points for the season.[5] With an average start to the season they made a remarkable performance in the later stage. Chandigarh won almost all of their next 10 league matches, though they were held by Bhopal Badshahs 4–4, despite of leading by 4 goals to none at one stage.[6] Their only defeat came against Sher-e-Punjab where they lost 5–2. A 4–3 win against Mumbai Marines in their penultimate league stage match got them through to the semi-finals.[7] They ended up as the table toppers after a 6–1 win over Karnataka Lions in their final match.[8]
They faced Pune Strykers in the semi-final at Mahindra Hockey Stadium in Mumbai.[9] Leading the match 4–1 at one stage, they seemed through to the finals before Strykers fought back. A last minute goal by Pune leveled the score 4–4. Misses by the skipper Rehan Butt and Canadian Sukhwinder Singh ended the penalty shoot-out with 3–2 in favour of Pune.[10]
