City’s Niyaz wins second Murugappa Cup Trophy as captain for Indian Rlys; Aakib leads Indian Navy team to runners-up title
By Paritosh Pramanik
NAGPUR, July 22, 2025
THEY fought against each other, as expected, in the final. But it was once again the elder brother who came out victorious. Syed Niyaz Rahim and Aakib Rahim — cousin brothers of the city — led India’s top hockey departmental teams Indian Railways and Indian Navy respectively and clashed in the final of the prestigious 96th MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup Hockey Tournament at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium which was organised by Madras Cricket Club and Murugappa Group.
However, like in the Shastri Gold Cup Hockey, it was once again elder brother Niyaz, who lifted the trophy.
Aakib had once beaten Niyaz in the Nehru Gold Cup but the latter made it a point that there is no more slip-ups.
In the final Niyaz’s Indian Railways beat Aakib’s Indian Navy 3-1. The two Nagpurians, who rose to national level hockey scene with their sheer hard work and determination, captained their respective sides and were instrumental in taking their teams to the summit clash.
Both won individual awards as well.
The two brothers were electrifying on the field and were rightly awarded for their performances. Niyaz was named fastest player of the tournament while Aakib was declared as the strongest player of the meet.
The final was exciting. Aakib scored the leveller for Indian Navy at the stroke of first quarter (15th) after Shivam Anand had given Indian Railways the lead in the 8th.
Niyaz then almost scored their second in the second minute of third quarter but Aakib made a goal line save to thwart his chance.
“I took a strong hit from inside the circle but Aakib was fast enough to block it resulting a penalty corner. But we took the lead again with Pankaj Rawat scoring from the short corner,” said captain Niyaz.
It was Niyaz who sealed the deal in favour of Indian Railways with a beautiful goal three minutes before the final hooter.
Receiving the ball at the top of the circle, Niyaz moved a couple of steps in and slammed a powerful hit which banged into the board.
“It feels great to win awards in such a prestigious tournament like Murugappa Cup. Hockey runs in our blood and we will keep performing for our teams,” said striker Aakib.
“In the final we made a few mistakes which proved costly,” rued Aakib.
Midfielder Niyaz said his team was lucky to score from the chances they got.
“We grabbed the opportunities we got in the semis as well as in the final. Navy missed some easy sitters while we managed to score from the opportunities we got. But Navy played brilliantly,” Niyaz said.
After the final, both the brothers exchanged pleasantries and talked about their families before moving to their respective destinations.
While Niyaz moved to Hyderabad and will prepare for Hockey India’s Departmental Nationals which he has won several times, Aakib reached Bhubaneswar for another shot at glory, this time in the 2nd JRD Invitation Hockey Tournament 2025 starting from July 24.
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