Santosh Trophy: Meghalaya register solitary goal win

Our Sports Reporter

GUWAHATI: Meghalaya registered a solitary goal victory over Odisha in their Group B final round clash of the Santosh Trophy at the Silapathar Football Stadium on Thursday..

Baby Sunday Marngar netted what turned out to be the match-winner in the 23rd minute as the 2022-23 runners-up Meghalaya took home three points against a fighting Odisha.

Largely confined midfield, play switched into the boxes not very often, leaving the goalkeepers on either side a relatively easy time, almost all through the match. Both had just one close call early when Meghalaya’s Dawanchwa Carlos Challam went through with a pass from Iohborlang Lyngdoh on the left, but his shot grazed the side netting. On the other side, Jitu Muduli also produced a similar effort, picking up a stray clearance.

However, it was Lyngdoh who conjured up the only goal in the 23rd minute. He ran down the right and floated it into the box. Odisha stopper Bisal Tigga got a mild head to it. As it dropped down, Tongper sold a dummy while shaping to shoot, and instead, squared it to Baby Sunday Marngar, unmarked to his left. Morngar sent his rising left-footer crashing into the roof of the net.

In another game of the day Kerala defeated Punjab 3-1 at the same venue. Jatinder Singh Rana put Punjab ahead in the 27th minute. But Kerala rallied brilliantly in the second half to score three goals through Manoj M’s 55th-minute equaliser, and Muhammad Ajsal (58’, 62’) scored two to win it for Kerala.

At Dhakukhana. Services and Railways played out a 1-1 draw. Wangden Tamang put Services in the lead in the 28th minute before Ngangbam Pacha Singh (74’) equalised in the second half with a clever finish.

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