63rd CC Meet : SU down 10-man XI Star to boost semi-final hopes
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, March 08 2022:
Sagolband United (SU) climbed atop Group C with a 2-0 over XI Star SU, Akampat today in a quarter final league match of the ongoing 63rd Sir Churachand Singh KCSI, CBE Memorial Invitation Football tournament at Artificial Turf, Lamlong Thongkhong.
Eyeing the semi-final berth, two sides had a cautious start but SU scored a goal each side of the break to seal the deal and inch towards the last four knock-out stage.
After being held off by the Akampat team, SU, who entered the quarter final league stage after topping Group A in the group league stage, went ahead in the 32nd minute with Lunminthang converting a well calculated move.
|
Despite frenetic efforts, XI-Star SU drew blank as their shots either went wide or got parried away easily and eventually the Sagolband outfit entered into the break with a 1-0 lead.
It was an end to end affair in the second half as both sides strung together a series of runs, with SU looking for more goals to add to their lead while XI Star SU trying to pull level.
To much disappointment, XI Star SU were reduced to 10-man after Oinam Roshan received a second yellow card in the 74th minute.
Five minutes later, SU took full advantage of the numerical superiority and doubled the lead through Jerry Pulamte.
XI-Star SU however slipped to a more defensive position late on to make sure that SU did not exploit further and gain more ground.