India 4-0 Ireland Highlights, FIH Junior Women's Hockey World Cup: Purnima Brace Powers Dominant IND-W Win

Greetings and welcome to everyone joining us this Friday for some more hockey action. India face Ireland in a must-win match of the FIH Junior Women's World Cup today. Stay with us for the build-up and live updates.

Pushback for the match is at 5:30pm IST. The India vs Ireland, FIH Junior Women's Hockey World Cup clash will be live streamed on the JioHotstar app and website in India. It will be telecast on the Star Sports Network TV channels in the country.

Here is India's line-up for their last Pool C encounter:

India are currently second in Pool C with three points, behind leaders Germany who have a perfect six points. The Germans take on Namibia later in the evening and are expected to win, in which case India will have to fight for the two best runner-up slots from the six groups, for a quarter-final berth.

We are almost ready for pushback. The two teams' national anthems are sung and the players are doing the traditional high fives before the first quarter begins.

It's a promising start to the match from India, who garner a penalty corner just 12 seconds in the first quarter. They are unable to convert, but the team's intent is clear from the get go.

India squander their second penalty corner, but score a field goal soon after! Kanika Siwach finds the back of the net in the 12th minute to put her side ahead.

The hooter goes off to signal the end of the first quarter. India have dominated the early exchanges and will look to consolidate their advantage with more goals in the second quarter.

It's been all India again in the second quarter, so far. Remember that with Germany most likely taking the top spot in Pool C, India need all the goals they can get, to prop up their goal difference and stake claim to one of the two best runners-up spots.

India now waste a third straight penalty corner, with the drag-flick connection just not good enough. These misses could come back to bite them later, when they look at the goal margin and what it could have been.

There comes the hooter for the second quarter, and Kanika Siwach's 12th-minute goal is all that separates the teams, going into the interval. India need to be a lot more clinical in the second half, if they are to garner a healthy goal difference.

The third quarter is underway and India are quite animated, with the instructions from the sidelines and players' invocations more audible than before. Perhaps the mid-game pep talk had something to do with it. They know they need all the goals they can net.

India finally have their second goal! And it's from a penalty corner at last. The injection isn't great, once again, but the ball is recycled well and Purnima Yadav does just about enough to prop it into the Ireland net in the 42nd minute.

India will enter the final 15 minutes with a two-goal advantage. They must strive for more goals in the fourth quarter, if they are to have any chance of advancing to the quarter-finals.

Ireland are doing well to stop India from running away on a goal spree. India are ranked eighth in the world, while Ireland are 15th, which puts things in context.

There comes the third. Sakshi Rana skillfully slots the ball past the Ireland custodian in the 57th minute and India now reaping rewards for their early efforts.

Purnima scores seconds after Sakshi! She gets a brace with her neatly constructed goal in the 58th minute and India get two quick, late goals to push their case forward.

The full-time hooter is blown and India finish with a confident 4-0 win over Ireland. They have done all they could in the quest for a strong goal difference and now the Indians must wait to find out whether they will qualify for the quarter-finals.

Though India are level with Germany on points now, the Germans are yet to play Namibia. They are highly likely to win and return to the top of Pool C. India would thus have to wait for all group-stage matches to end, to see if they finish among the best two runners up in the six groups.