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Anil Datt
Ludhiana, March 1
Hosts Punjab overpowered Assam 2-0 to begin their campaign on a sound note in the 69th National Football Tournament for Santosh Trophy at the Guru Nanak Stadium here today.
Players braved cold winds as rain continued to pour down throughout the Group A encounter. They struggled hard to maintain the balance on a slippery surface.
The match began on a brisk pace with Punjab players initiating the moves. Sunny, Prabhjot Singh and Paramjit Singh weaved fine moves in the midfield to seize the initiative but their attempts failed to yield the desired result. Assam custodian Daoga Brahma’s positioning in goal was exemplary.
However, Punjab’s repeated forays into the rival’s citadel bore fruit in the 17th minute when Prabhjot stormed into the striking zone and had to the just roll the ball into the goal after catching Brahma wrong-footed. Two minutes later, Prabhjot could have scored another but his powerful shot from close range was blocked by a defender.
After changing ends, Punjab continued to dominate the proceedings as the ball remained in the visitors’ half. Punjab pumped in another goal in the 55th minute when Rajbir Singh headed in a corner from skipper Ravinder Singh.
The visitors had a golden opportunity to reduce the margin in the 62nd minute. Punjab goalkeeper Jagroop Singh was found stranded out of position but Manash Manjit Chetia’s powerful shot missed the target by a whisker. Assam survived a scare in the dying minutes as Punjab unleashed a series of attacks and maintained pressure but the North East Zone group toppers managed to ward off the attacks.
Tomorrow, Maharasthra will take on Services.
Meanwhile, Delhi were held to a goalless draw by Railways in their Group B encounter in Jalandhar.
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