Tripura’s aspirations of reaching the main round of the Santosh Trophy football tournament have come to an end after Manipur defeated the State team 2-0. Following the disappointment of the State girls’ team, the boys have now fallen short as well. DK Pradhan’s squad failed to make the most of their home advantage, losing to a dominant Manipur team, which secured its spot in the main round.
Manipur and Tripura clashed at the Umakanta Stadium on Tuesday afternoon in a decisive qualifier match of the ‘D’ group contest of the Santosh Trophy football tournament. Tripura’s lineup was significantly weakened even before kick-off, with key defenders Asif Ali Molla and captain-forward Parvez Bhuyan sidelined due to card suspensions. This absence proved to be a major disadvantage and set the tone for the match.
Despite these setbacks, Rajib Sadhan Jamatia and his team put up a commendable fight in the first half, managing to contain Manipur’s aggressive play. However, the second half saw Tripura struggle to match the speed and skill of their opponents, eventually conceding two goals.
The team failed to capitalize on their few scoring opportunities, leaving fans disappointed. Had they converted those chances, the match could have taken an exciting turn.
One standout performer for Tripura was goalkeeper Buddha Deb Barma, whose exceptional efforts earned widespread praise. However, after a goalless first half, Manipur’s LT Lauly broke the deadlock in the 73rd minute.
He then sealed the victory with a second goal in injury time. In their desperation to equalize after the first goal, Tripura adopted an all-out attacking strategy, which left their defense vulnerable and led to the second goal.
The match, officiated by Pranay Saha, saw Manipur emerge as worthy qualifiers for the main round, while Tripura secured the second position.
Earlier, in the morning, Mizoram ended the tournament on a winning note against Sikkim. In their final group match, Mizoram virtually demolished Sikkim. With this victory, Mizoram secured the third position in the group. Mizoram thrashed Sikkim 7-0. From the very beginning of the match, Mizoram players dominated the game. They also had an edge in the battle for ball possession. Mizoram outclassed Sikkim in terms of skill, strength, and speed.
The Mizoram team had to wait 19 minutes for their first goal. Mitchell Lalbiak Sangga put Mizoram in the lead through a moment of individual brilliance. Laltuanga Liana scored the second goal for the team in the 26th minute. Three minutes later, H.K. Lalroat Thulunga extended Mizoram’s lead. After taking a 3-0 lead in the first half, Mizoram players continued to play more attacking football in the second half. Flalawmkima increased the lead to 5-0 in the 64th and 94th minutes. Lal Thak Kima scored in the 66th minute, and Lalhmun Puia scored in injury time resulting victory of Mizoram by 7-0 margin. A. Kannan was the referee for the match.
(Tripura, Northeast)
