78th NFC for Santosh Trophy Manipur extend winning run, thump Mizoram 2-1

AGARTALA, Nov 17
Manipur kept their winning run intact when they edged Mizoram 2-1  at the Umakanta Mini Stadium in a Group D match of the ongoing 78th National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy.
Mizoram, who are yet to pick up a point in two matches, had a flicker of hope as they took the lead in the 26th minute through F Lallawmkima. But former champions Manipur came calling in the 45+3 minutes to make it 1-1 via Shunjanthan Ragui, who converted a penalty. They scored again within two minutes of the start of the second session through Naoroibam Romen Singh to garner full points in the second consecutive match.
The other match of group D between hosts Tripura and Sikkim ended in a stalemate as neither team could score. Tripura have four points from two matches. Sikkim, who played the second match, earned their first point.
Tamil Nadu edge past Karnataka to move to top of group
ANANTAPUR, ANDHRA PRADESH: Tamil Nadu moved to the top of Group G in the qualifiers for the 78th National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy with a 2-1 win over Karnataka at the RDT Stadium, on Sunday, November 17, 2024.
With two back-to-back wins, Tamil Nadu now have six points from two matches, while former champions Karnataka are pushed to the second place with three points from two matches.
Tamil Nadu took the lead in the 30th minute when Lijo K headed in a cross from the right. Karnataka restored parity in the 80th minute through Nikhil Raj Murugesh, who slammed in a rebound.
But the winners had the last laugh during the add-on time (90+1) as S Sharon’s grounder from the top of the box found its way into the net rather surprisingly past the goalkeeper Deepak S.
In the other match of the day, in the same group, Andaman and Nicobar took home full points with a solitary goal win over hosts Andhra Pradesh. Githin Raj found the match-winner in the 85th minute. Andaman and Nicobar have three points from two matches. Andhra Pradesh have lost both of their matches so far.
Monday, November 18, 2024 fixtures:
Group C (Kalyani): Bihar vs Jharkhand (9 am); West Bengal vs Uttar Pradesh (2 pm)
Group I (Jaipur): Rajasthan vs Gujarat (9 am); Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu vs Maharashtra (3 pm)
AIFF Media Team