 |
| Kathmandu, Monday February 03, 2003 Magh 20, 2059. |
|
Basanta Thapa powers MMC into
semis
Post Report
POKHARA, Feb 2 : Striker Basanta Thapa struck
twice for Manang Marshyandgi Club (MMC) as they came back from a goal down against City
Young Club of Uttaranchal, India for a 3-1 win here on Sunday to march into the
semi-finals of the Aha Gold Cup International Invitational Football tournament.
The Uttaranchal side, considered as one of the
favourites, despite facing repeated invasions by MMC in the quarterfinal match, managed a
lucky break off a rare defensive lapse to go 1-0 up in the 11th minute.
MMC keeper, who intended to pass the ball to his
defender, failed to push it enough upfield and the Uttaranchal striker Rajesh Chauhan
pounced upon the opportunity to slot it home.
The early lead, however, hardly brought up any
improvement on Uttaranchal’s game while MMC stepped up the pace to build more
pressure on the Indians. MMC, after spurning a couple of chances early on, brought
themselves back to level terms in 23 minutes.
Nepali international Basanta Thapa, meeting with
a perfectly taken corner, buried his shot into the back of the net to go into the half
time at 1-1.
While the half time team talks seemed to have
done wonders on MMC, the Uttaranchal outfit failed to make amends on their disorganised
midfield. And worse, they made errors one too many at the back. Somehow Uttaranchal got
away unpunished for their error-riddled game for the first 21 minutes into the second
half.
That did not last for too long, though. MMC
aided by brilliant display from Kumar Thapa, Deepak Lama, Navin Neupane and Rajesh Khadgi
in the middle and Basanta Thapa and Rajan Rayamajhi striking good combination upfield
continued to breathe down the neck of Uttaranchal defence.
And MMC got the break they were looking for in
the 67th minute through Navin Neupane.
Trailing 2-1 to MMC, the Uttaranchal side
started to show sign of nerves. Over a dozen corner kicks that they conceded in the
session suggested the casual approach of the visitors.
They created a few chances towards the close but
MMC’s formidable defence kept them at bay. As the tension flared up, three players,
two MMC players Kumar Thapa and Navin Neupane and Uttaranchal’s Manoj Joshi were
shown yellow cards for rough play.
A minute from time, Uttaranchal were punished
again for their poor defence. MMC, taking advantage of the visitors’ lacklustre style
of play, added one more goal to their tally. Basanta Thapa, who was criticised for his
poor showing during the third SAFF Championship held recently in Bangladesh, indicated he
is getting back to his grooves netting his second goal to secure a place for his side in
the semi-finals with a convincing 3-1 victory.
On Monday, title contenders Mahendra Police Club
(MPC) and Jhapa-11 will fight for another semi-final spot in the tournament. |
