Gangtok Himalayan SC defeats GTA XI to reach pre-quarters

BIJOY GURUNG

GANGTOK,: Gangtok Himalayan SC overcame GTA XI 3-1 on Saturday to enter the pre-quarterfinal round of the 40^th Governor’s Gold Cup being played here at Paljor Stadium.

The local club’s foreign striker, Maxwell scored a brace in the second half after Ongda Lepcha’s powerful strike had given the lead for Gangtok Himalayan SC in the 26^th minute.

Though the scoreline reflects a comfortable victory, Gangtok Himalayan SC benefitted from profligacy shown by their opponents and needs to improve vastly when they face Delhi champions Sudeva FC on November 13.

Coach Kamal Bagdas, asked about this, expressed confidence that Gangtok Himalayan SC will come with a strong preparation and deliver a better performance. “We will be meeting a tougher opponent in the next match and we need to prepare stronger. Today was our first match and there were some problems with team work and coordination. But with some days together, we will have a better team work and come up stronger in the next match,” he said.

Bagdas added that the GTA XI was also a strong team but it was their bad luck as they could not convert their chances while the Gangtok Himalayan SC did not miss the goal scoring opportunities.

It was an even-contested match but Ongda Lepcha gave the lead to Gangtok Himalayan SC midway in the first half.

After the break, GTA XI came out strongly and frequently raided their opponent’s box but lacked the finishing touch. They got punished by conceding the second goal in the 69^th minute. A loose pass in their own half was quickly dispatched by the Gangtok Himalayan midfield to Maxwell who rounded the goalkeeper to score.

Five minutes later, the GTA XI’s efforts finally paid off when their player was fouled in the penalty box. Bishal Lama calmly converted the spot kick that galvanised the GTA XI players for the equalizer.

However, the visiting team suffered a huge setback in the 80^th when Maxwell met a well-directed cross from tireless winger Deepish Mangar to make it 3-1 for Gangtok Himalayan SC.

Maxwell was declared the ‘man of the match’ for his two goals.

Gangtok MLA Delay Namgyal Barfungpa was the chief guest while Bikash Basnet was the guest of honour for today’s match.

On Sunday afternoon, Army (Red) will face State Independence Day football champions Khawzawl Vengthar FC.

Today’s Match

Army (Red) vs Khawzawl Vengthar FC.

Peep! 2 pm