Bordoloi trophy
Guwahati, Sept. 22: A brace of goals each by Milan Basumatary and Issac Vanlalsawma helped Shillong Lajong FC tame Barak FC, Nagaland, 5-0 at Nehru Stadium here last evening and inch closer to a semi-final berth in the 64th Bharat Ratna Lokapriya Bordoloi Trophy Tournament.
The Shillong youngsters were in command of the proceedings right from the word go, finding the net through Basumatary as early as the first minute. Aibanbhakupar Dohling passed the ball from the right flank and Basumatary, on the prowl at the edge of the box on the left flank, did not waste time in deflecting it into the back of the net.
After conceding the early goal, the Nagaland men launched a few counterattacks and one of them almost yielded a goal in the 10th minute but striker Rhitso, who was inside the box, wasted the pass from Nzauhut. It was also the only real scoring opportunity they could create for themselves in the match.
Basumatary found the net for the second time in the 24th minute when he received a pass from the midfield and dribbled along the left flank before firing a shot from the left side of the box. His shot deflected off Barak keeper Nganga into the net.
The second half was no different from the first session as the Shillong boys went on the rampage from the beginning and the opponents conceded a penalty goal to Issac in the 55th minute.
Issac found the net again when he got a calculated pass from Samuel Lalmuanpuia at the edge of box and made no mistake in sending it home with a tap in the 77th minute.
Lalmuanpuia fired in the fifth goal for Lajong off an Issac pass in the third minute of the three-minutes of added time at the end of the match.
With the win, Lajong, who have one point from their drawn inaugural match against Oil India FC, Duliajan, have virtually booked a knockout berth in the tournament. Lajong will meet 3 Star Club, Kathmandu, in their remaining league match.
On the other hand, the Nagaland outfit, who lost to 3 Star Club 1-6 in their campaign opener, has crashed out of contention for a semi-final berth. They have one remaining match with Oil India FC, Duliajan.