Tripura hold Manipur

SHILLONG, MARCH 19: Two-time champions Manipur were held 1-1 by Tripura in the first Group B match of the 4^th Dr. T. Ao Football Tournament at the JN Sports Complex here on Tuesday.

The match was a ding-dong battle between the two very talented teams. In fact, out of the three matches played so far in the tournament, the Manipur-Tripura game was the most exciting with wonderful skills and team work on display.  The first half of the match ended goalless as both the goalkeepers put up a stellar performance to foil the many raids in their respective territories.

Manipur, however, began to dominate in the second half, and their constant forays into the rival half resulted in a goal when T. Raju’s long throw was headed home by Md.Sohail in the 62^nd minute.

Stung by the goal, Tripura began to press forward. In the 75th minute, a beautiful cross from the left flank was met with a nice volley by Sukanta Jamatia and the ball hit the back of the net.

Manipur could have won the match when in the dying seconds they missed a golden chance to secure three points when one of their players struck the bar when he only had the goalkeeper to beat. (By Our Reporter)