Shillong, Oct 16: Sawmer SC started their run in the OC Blue Shillong Premier League 2024 with a cracking 3-2 victory against Nangkiew Irat SC at the SSA Stadium at First Ground, Polo, here on Wednesday.
Sawmer pulled out a 3-0 lead by the 56th minute only to see Nangkiew Irat mount a partial comeback, which made the last few minutes of the match extremely exciting.
A shaky defence cost Nangkiew Irat big time as Diego Khyriem (6′) tapped in a simple opportunity but that proved to be the only goal of the first half. There was a shout for handball in the Nangkiew Irat box around half an hour later but the referee saw nothing amiss.
Hilford Lyngkhei (49′) nailed a shot from the right flank before Orestar Sad (56′) made it 3-0 with another sure-footed strike and at this point Sawmer looked to be cruising with their opponents never really testing goalkeeper Pyrshangbanbha Dkhar.
However, the custodian was called upon to put his body on the line when Wallamsuk Nongkhlaw smashed one towards the goal but the ball took a deflection and went out for a corner. That corner was vital as Isak Vanlalpeka (70′) managed to convert it to pull a goal back for Nangkiew Irat.
That breathed a bit of life back into the game and it got more interesting soon after when Wanpynshngain Nongsteng (78′) delivered a ball from the left flank. He may have been looking to cross but the keeper was off his line and the ball went deep and over Pyrshang’s head.
Wallamsuk was denied once again by the keeper in stoppage time and that enabled Sawmer to register full points in their first outing.
Earlier, the opening match of the season was meant to be between newly-promoted Laitkor SC and Nongrim Hills SC but, unfortunately for the eager fans, Nongrim Hills were awarded victory by walkover after Laitkor were unable to field a team as they had yet to complete the player registration process through the All India Football Federation’s Central Registration System in time for kick-off.
With the OC Blue SPL’s increasing stature and recognition nationwide, the Shillong Sports Association (SSA) had decided to implement CRS for player registration in this year’s tournament. Clubs were informed of this several months ahead of the season and given a tutorial to explain the registration process fully.
Nongrim Hills were awarded a 3-0 victory by default.
On Thursday, Nongthymmai SC will face Ryntih FC at 11:50am, followed by a clash between multiple champions Langsning FC and Shillong Lajong FC at 2:45pm.
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