Hockey India introduced a new format here on Friday with a promotion and raligation system for the Senior Women’s National Championship to be held in Panchkula from March 1 to 12. 28 teams will participate in the competition which will be divided into three divisions called ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘C’.
The new format aims to promote competition that will provide teams to reach the top division (promotion) or lower division on the basis of their performance. Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey said, “The introduction of promotion and raligation system is an important step towards raising the level of hockey performance across the country.”
He said, “In this system, the importance of every match in the championship will be ensured whether it is a match for the title or to avoid relaxation.” We are waiting for an exciting tournament where teams can showcase their skills and aim to reach the top. The top 12 teams will compete in Division A which will be further divided into four pools of three teams and they will play in the league format within their respective pools.
The top two teams from each pool will reach the quarter -finals to be held on March 9. It will be followed by the semi -finals on 10 March and the third place with the final on March 12. The last two places in this division will slip to Division B for the next session. Nine teams will compete in Division B with the goal of reaching Division A.
Five teams here are in Pool A and four teams are in Pool B. Hockey India said, “The top two teams of Division B will reach Division A for the next session while two teams below will go to Division C. No knockout round will be held in Division B. Promotion and relaxation will be decided by the League table. ”
Division C teams will also play league matches, the top two teams will get a place in Division B. During the league phase, teams of the three divisions will score points based on their performance. Each team will be given three points to win, one point for draw and no points for defeat.
The league stage in Division A will end with the knockout stage while Division B and C will end only on the basis of the final table set by the league matches.
Division A ======== Pool A: Hockey Haryana, Odia Hockey Association, Hockey Pool B: Hockey Maharashtra, Manipur Hockey, Hockey Punjab Pool C: Hockey Jharkhand, Hockey Mizoram, Tamil Nadu Hockey Unit Pool D: Hockey Madhya Pradesh, Hockey Bengal, Hockey Bengal, Hockey Hockey Hockey Hockey
Division B ====== Pool A: Telangana Hockey, Hockey Uttarakhand, Assam Hockey, Hockey Rajasthan, Bihar Hockey Association Pool B: Delhi Hockey, Chhattisgarh Hockey, Hockey Chandigarh, Hockey Himachal
Division C ======== Pool A: Kerala Hockey, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Hockey, Hockey Gujarat Pool B: Hockey Andhra Pradesh, Le Puducherry Hockey, Hockey Arunachal, Hockey Jammu and Kashmir.