Jorhat, Sept 12: Ismail Khambra scored a brace in Williamson Magor Academy’s 4-0 victory over Sports Authority of India, Golaghat, in a pre-quarterfinal match of the Assam Tea Planters’ Association (ATPA) Shield Football Tournament at Jorhat Stadium here today.
The match was postponed yesterday after a schoolboy was mowed down by a roller in the stadium.
Deputy commissioner Ravi Kota has ordered an inquiry into the incident. Magor will take on Assam Police in the last quarterfinal match to be played on Monday.
Assam Police, along with last year’s runners-up Oil India Limited, Duliajan, Nagaland Police and Central Reserve Police Force, Jalandhar, have booked berths in the quarters.
The first quarterfinal match will be held tomorrow with OIL playing 2nd Assam Special Reserve Force.
Today’s match was a one-sided affair with Magor players dominating the better part of the 90 minutes. Ismail first scored in the 25th minute taking advantage of a goal mouth melee. Waiting in the right corner of the box without being guarded, Ismail just had to put the ball inside the net. He struck for the second time in the dying moments of the first-half with a fine header after receiving a pass from Kubul Rabha from the right flank.
Though the SAI players came all out just after the break, the Golaghat outfit can only blame their strikers who missed several easy chances. SAI striker Robijit Jidum missed a sitter soon after the break.
He just had to push the ball into the net after receiving a pass from the midfield but failed as he slipped and fell.
Montu Sonowal’s long-ranger found the SAI net in the 61st minute to give a 3-0 led to the winners. Noticing that the SAI goalkeeper, Durlav Gogoi, was a few yards ahead of the goal frame, Montu took a rightfooter from 40 yards from the goalpost.
The shot caught Dulal napping. He was just a spectator as the ball flew above him into the goal. Manash Rabha sealed the fate of the match for the Magor Academy by scoring in the 68th minute, taking advantage of a goalmouth melee. Three SAI players were booked by referee Binoy Saikia.
Bridge meet
The three-day fifth Shubhenda Satyajit Sandeep memorial invitation bridge tournament for the northeastern states will begin in Silchar on Friday, reports our Silchar correspondent.
Altogether 29 teams from Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura and Manipur will take part in the meet. The tournament is being organised by the State Bank of India Recreation Club.
Sports trust: Bijoy Krishna Handique set up the Nripendra Narayan Singha Sports Organiser Trust at the Abita Sports Library in the Kushal Konwar Indoor Stadium in Jorhat recently.
The trust has been established with a view to honour sports organisers who promoted and contributed to the development of games and sports in the state.
Tapan Dutta, honourary secretary of the trust, said a cash award of Rs 10,000, along with a citation, would be awarded to organisers selected by the trust.
