LAHORE: Friday was the last night of the league games in the first OGDCL 5-A-Side Floodlight Hockey Tournament at Lahore’s National Stadium here. The six teams played their fifth and last games. Islamabad had already qualified for the final having won all the first four matches. For the second spot in the final, it was between Quetta and Faisalabad. Quetta had the destiny in their own hands. A win meant a place in the final. For Faisalabad, they not only had to beat Islamabad but also needed Quetta to lose points against Lahore. Faisalabad Falcons beat Islamabad Fighters 5-3: Faisalabad began aggressively and their captain Mohammad Dilber put them ahead as early as third minute with a flat reverse hit. Both the teams looked for the goal and had their chances but the two international goal keepers Islamabad’s Imran Butt and Faisalabad’s Mazhar Abbas were equal to the task. It stayed 1-0 at first period. Early in the second period, an Islamabad counter attack saw them at three on one advantage. Arslan Qadir easily made it 1-1. Faisalabad created many chances but were thwarted by the net minder and some attempts went wide. Then end to end game ensued. With two minutes to go in the period, Islamabad earned a 1 vs 1 challenge which was converted by international Ejaz with a strong high push. However, before the hooter, the Faisalabad side was back on equal terms. Once again, it was their captain Dilber whose first time hit beat Imran all ends up, and it was 2-2; a wonderful absorbing contest. Islamabad, already assured of a spot in final the next day, had rested their two most experienced players, Olympians M Rashid and Rizwan Senior. The third period also began at a good pace. In a spell of two minutes, Faisalabad made it 4-2. First, Atiq Arshad found the target with a forceful and well placed hit from some distance. Then their dynamic captain Dilber netted on a rebound to complete his hat trick. With their unblemished record in danger, Islamabad pulled one back via Rizwan Ali who managed to put the ball in a narrow gap between goal keeper and the pole. Very next minute, Abu Bakar, after a good run made it 5-3 with just three minutes left. Faisalabad slowed the tempo and kept possession for long periods and saw off the remaining time. Quetta Warriors beat Lahore Lions 5-4: For Quetta, they needed victory to enter final. For Lahore, any result would make no change in their 4th position in the table. They didn’t include their captain Amad Butt and vice-captain Azfar Yaqoob. Match began with Quetta having most of the early exchanges. In the 9th minute, a stick check on their star player Mohammad Rizwan resulted in a 1 vs 1 challenge. Rizwan himself stepped in to turn it into a goal with a strong high push. But very next minute, M Aamir, after a good run on right, sent in a minus to Bilal Mahmood who easily made it 1-1. Ball was travelling towards both sides at a fast pace. A couple of Quetta attempts went fruitless. In the early minutes of the second period, Lahore surprised Quetta when Faizan Jonty sounded the board with a long range flat push. Lahore wasted a couple of more chances. Warriors fought back and in a wonderful spell of attacking hockey scored three goals in as many minutes. Scorers were Kashif Javed with a forceful hit, Umar Hamdi, who capitalized on a fluent combined move and Faisal Shah who netted a rebound. All of a sudden it was 4-2. The jolted Lahore side managed to regroup early in the third period and were soon back in the game. Rana Sohail robbed a defender deep in Quetta’s territory and passed it to M Aamir who easily slotted in. At 4-3, it was game on. Both the sides attacked each other’s fortress. Usman Malik managed to put Lahore on equal terms with a first time high flick. With just four minutes to go, Quetta’s big chance was slipping away. Again, it was Rizwan who had pulled them out of the tight spot many a time, who scored his team’s fifth goal through an unstoppable reverse slap shot. Lahore searched for the equalizer but Quetta managed to keep the lead intact. And wild celebrations broke out at the final hooter. Karachi Sharks beat Peshawar Panthers 6-3: It was a tie between the two bottom placed sides. Karachi on one point and Peshawar on zero had no chance of qualifying for the third place play off. Only pride was at stake. It turned out to be an interesting contest. Peshawar going ahead with Karachi equalizing; the sequence was repeated thrice during the first two periods. Peshawar were again served well by Adeel Latif , who apart from scoring two goals, also created many moves. So it was 3-3 when the third period began. Though, both the sides had opportunities but Sharks found the target at regular intervals: After a melee in the front of the goal, Zeeshan Bukhari managed to make the ball cross the goal line. Saran bin Qamar’s first attempt was blocked by the Peshawar goal keeper but he put the rebound in with a good reverse flick. Sikander Mustafa scored Karachi’s sixth goal with a first time strike. The two teams would face each other again in the 5th/6th position match. Results: Faisalabad Falcons beat Islamabad Fighters 5-3 Scorers: Faisalabad: Dilber 3, Atiq Arshad, Abu Bakar Islamabad: Arslan Qadir, Ejaz & Rizwan Ali Man of Match: Abu Bakar (Faisalabad) Quetta Warriors beat Lahore Lions 5-4 Scorers: Quetta: M Rizwan Jr 2, Kashif Javed, Umar Hamdi & Faisal Shah Lahore: Bilal Mahmood, Faizan Jonty, Usman Malik & M Aamir Man of Match: M Rizwan Jr (Faisalabad) Karachi Sharks beat Peshawar Panthers 6-3 Scorers: Karachi: Qasim, Qamar Bukhari, Ali Raza, Zeeshan Bukhari, Saran bin Qamar & Sikander Peshawar: Adeel Latif 2, Faisal Rasheed Man of Match: M Asif (Karachi).