Women’s HIL 2025-26: SG Pipers suffers heavy loss to Ranchi Royals

SG Pipers seemed to have momentarily lost the plot just ahead of the big final as it was humbled by the already-eliminated Ranchi Royals 2-5 in the highest-scoring encounter of the 2025-26 edition of the Women’s Hockey India League at the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh AstroTurf Stadium in Ranchi.

Neha Goyal may have earlier lamented the lack of a leading dragflicking exponent in the Royals dugout, but on Thursday, it took Lucina von der Heyde merely two minutes to step up to the plate. The Argentine defender did have a bit of help from the opponent’s rusher, Sunelita Toppo, who accidentally nicked the ball to leave the goalkeeper blind-sided.

Madhuri Kindo would have felt a tad betrayed by her defenders when, eight minutes later, Navneet Kaur made a marauding entry into the circle. She not only managed to find Shileima Chanu Khaidem on the left but also managed to tap the ball in after Sharmila Devi relayed it back to the Pipers skipper on the third time of asking.

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The Pipers survived a scare in the second quarter when Hannah Cotter hurled the kitchen sink at the target. It required a diving effort from Solanki Bansari to glove the ball to safety. The relief was short-lived as the Pipers’ defensive line was caught napping once again as Albela Rani Toppo threaded an immaculate pass to home girl Sangita Kumari in front of goal. The Ranchi crowd wasn’t disappointed, as she lived up to their expectations.

Agustina Albertarrio, playing injector during a penalty corner, came the closest to scoring in the third quarter after the ball was played back to her by von der Heyde, but an awkward bounce at the baseline saw her compatriot bungle the first touch. The duo was successful; however, on the encore, as a far-castle injection had von der Heyde somehow squeezing through a small gap between Cristina Cosentino and Lola Riera.

Cotter’s efforts around the D were finally rewarded as a reverse tomahawk from the New Zealand playmaker had Cosentino plucking at the air. An extra field player hardly came in handy for the Pipers, for Navneet’s second goal was cancelled out by Cotter’s brace.

Published on Jan 08, 2026