The Tribhuvan Army Club (TAC) won the National Hockey Tournament in the men’s category by defeating Gandaki Province 2-0 in the final played at the Lalitpur-based Chyasal Football Stadium on Wednesday.

Gandaki’s boys were able to defend well in the first quarter, but Army’s Rajendra Karki found the back of the net in the second quarter.

Karki received a long pass from the left flank and blasted the ball over Gandaki’s goalie in the eighth minute.

Gandaki’s defence was struggling to prevent the Army from capitalising on the attack, which was getting more frequent. And as the 13th minute of the third quarter was coming to an end, Pradip Rajbanshi, who was waiting near the goal post, pushed the ball softly to give Army a two-goal lead.

Karki was adjudged the Player of the Match. Karki and Rajbanshi have been two of the crucial players for Army. They were on the scorelist when Army scored six goals against APF in the semi-final.

Similarly, Karki was also the joint-highest scorer of the tournament. He scored six goals alongside his teammate Kasi Raj Rai, who scored a hat-trick in the semi-final against APF, the departmental side that debuted in hockey from this tournament. Army’s skipper Ranjit was adjudged the Best Defender and Dev Singh Dhami the Best Player.

Meanwhile, Gandaki’s Jason Rai was declared the Best Goalkeeper of the tournament.

The win has asserted Army’s dominance in domestic hockey. Army’s women also won the tournament in their respective category on Monday. In both the finals, Gandaki were on the receiving end of the loss.

Meanwhile, Nepal Police Club defeated APF 3-0 in the game for third place on Wednesday.