by
Confident of scoring goals ‘ Man-of-the-match’ Shrikant Veramallu fashioned Maharashtra’s 3-1 victory over Jammu and Kashmir by scoring a spectacular brace.
Riding on substitute Shrikant Vermallu’s brace host Maharashtra pipped Jammu and Kashmir 3-1 to begin their campaign on winning note in 70th Santosh Trophy Football Tournament organised by Nagpur District Football Association under the auspices of Western India Football Association at SECR’s Motibagh ground.
Veramallu struck in 61st and 70th minute in the second half. Earlier in the first half due to slippery ground condition players found it little bit difficult to adjust themselves and play their natural game. Till then Maharashtra had maximum ball possession. Jammu and Kashmir would have tasted an early success had they not missed the open net in the very fifth minute.
After playing a barren first half, Maharashtra substitute Abhishek Ambedkar with Veramallu. This ploy ultimately paid dividend as the forward struck two goals. First in the 61st minute he break the deadlock on the pass of Aaron D’Costa. However three minutes later Jammu and Kashmir levelled the score converting penalty. The decision to award the penalty to J&K by Tamil Nadu referee Vairmuthu was controversial as Maharashtra defender Dion Menezes didn’t handle the ball deliberately. Syed Shoaib capitalised on an opportunity and restored parity. In the 70th minute Veramallu was once again in action thanks to excellent pass by Vijit Shetty from the centre.
In the 84th minute, Maharashtra got penalty when J&K defender Sohail floored Maharashtra’s Aaron D’Costa during scoring moment. Raynier Fernandez perfectly placed the ball into the box and ensured 3-1 victory of Maharashtra.
During the proceedings match referee cautioned three J&K players Asheer Akhter (24th min), Ubaid Haroon (70th min) and Kamaljeet Kumar (89th min).
Talking to media person after the match Mumbai youth said, ” In first half we didn’t play our natural game due to slippery field. However I was confident to score the goal. I tried my best and got the success”. He said as compared to first goal, the second one was important for him. ” The second goal was important because that put the team in the leading position”.
