Another side , NCC (NorthEast Region) too shocked an experienced Haldia High School, West Bengal to confirm their place in the last 8. While Mizoram enjoyed their stint pumping three goals to put Delhi out of contention, NCC put two past the West Bengal side in a match that witnessed a lethargic play from the football powerhouse of the country.
“Playing with West Bengal is always hard since they have a strong football culture. Since it was a do or die match for us, we had planned to put in an aggressive strategy. I guess we managed to perform and hope to continue with our form,” said officer in-charge Lt Col KC Kalita of the NCC team.
After going for the breather without disturbing the scorers, NCC struck twice in the second half. Just six minutes into the second half, Manneingir opened the scoring for NCC. The strike infused fresh life in NCC and they sped up the game and dominated possession. However NCC found it hard to strike through the Bengal defence. A 68th minute strike from Mandila sealed the match.
In the second match of the day, Mizoram striker Joseph impressed with his skills in the scoring area returning with a brace to power his team to a 3-0 victory over AFBB, New Delhi. Unlike NCC, Mizoram consistently threatened Delhi and their first blow came in the 11 minute as Joseph converted a rolling cross to perfection to open the account.
The Delhi team was always struggling even as Mizoram gave them no breathing space. By the time Delhi could could initiate a move, Mizoram was ready with a counter. Six minutes after the first goal Joseph slammed a right footer to the left corner from the edge of the box to double the score. Reeling under two goals, the pressure to up their game saw them faltering at crucial junctures and comitting several mistakes. Mizoram who looked over charged in the second half, displayed superb understanding between their midfielders and flankers. Unsurprisingly a third was registered through Lalrempuia.