68th NSG Football for U-19 girls : Hosts Manipur beat Kerala on penalties to confirm semi-final slot
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, April 19 2025: Manipur defeated Kerala by 5-4 on penalties after 1-1 regulation time draw in the last quarterfinal match to make it to the semi-final of the 68th National School Games Football for U-19 girls being underway in Imphal.

Kerala enjoyed a slender lead almost throughout the game riding on Shilji Shaji's 38th minute strike at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium and when they almost looked to seal the game, Th Sanjita made the most of a last ditch effort deep 5 minutes into the stoppage time to draw level for Manipur.

The match was eventually decided via penalty shoot-out wherein N Olivia, A Luxmi, Tabitha, Sagarika and Lamnganbi made no mistake to slot home from the spot and earned Manipur a place in the semi-finals.

Shilji Shaji, Ananya MK, Priyan Ka and Akhila on the other hand scored for Kerala in the shoot-out.

In other quarterfinal matches, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal emerged victorious to progress into the semi-finals.

Reena Kumar scored a brace (16', 80+1') after Puja (4') scored the opener in Jharkhand's 3-0 rout of Maharashtra this morning at Main Stadium.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu beat Punjab by 3-1 goals courtesy of Asika (7'), Gothavari (23') and Priyadharsini (76').Jashmin Kaur (56') scored the consolation goal for Punjab.

West Bengal meanwhile rallied back from a goal down to draw Haryana 1-1 in the third quarterfinal match before they emerged victorious 5-4 on penalties.

Haryana went into the lead within three minutes through Kajal but Kajal Hemram of West Bengal scored the equaliser in the 52nd minute to extend the game to penalty shoot-out.

In the shootout, Shardita, Sohani, Rakhi, Kajal and Koyel found the target for the winners as only Prince, Bharti, Sonia and Saloni scored it for Haryana.

Jharkhand in U-19 Boys semis

The day also saw Jharkhand securing a semi-final berth in the U-19 competition by defeating Uttar Pradesh by 2-1 goals.

Jharkhand led the first half by a slender 1-0 margin in this neck and neck encounter thanks to Rohit Hembram (14') but Ayush Gupta put Uttar Pradesh back into contention by scoring the equaliser in the 50th minute.

The two sides were heading for a 1-1 draw but Vishal Mahto scored a last gasp goal at the stroke of the 90 minute mark to snatch the 2-1 win and booked his team a semi-final ticket.

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