Capacity crowd jubilant as hosts win 4-0
SHILLONG: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” The Indian women’s football team saved the best for the big occasion, the final of the 12th South Asian Games, in which they beat Nepal 4-0 to defend the title at the JN Sports Complex here on Monday.
It was also a perfect send off for the iconic Bembem Devi, who has been the torch bearer of women’s football in India for over two decades now.
The win also ensured that India defended their SAG title.
For the Indians’ the star of the day was Kamala Devi who scored a brace while Bala Devi and Ashalata Devi pitched in one each to sum up a historic win for the hosts.
India had not had the ideal of tournaments before the final and given Nepal’s good run in the competition, the Himalayan Kingdom enjoyed a slight advantage going into the final. However, all these statistics were rendered irrelevant the moment Indian eves took to the pitch on Monday.
Nepal looked promising in the early stages and had a cautious looking India on the back foot.
But the visitors soon began to lose momentum as a determined India got the first breakthrough two minutes after the half hour mark. Bala Devi delivered a beautiful flat cross to Kamala Devi who found the back of the nets.
India went into half time with a 1-0 lead with the game still looking evenly poised.
Eight minutes after the break, Sasmita Malik made an aerial pass to Bala Devi but the forward’s header was saved by Nepal’s goal keeper Lila Lamgade.
India finally doubled the lead in the 56th minute when a scorcher from Kamala Devi found the back of the nets. Kamala Devi had collected the ball of a rebound inside the area from a Sasmita Malik corner.
India scored again in the 71st minute, this time through Bala Devi, after another cross from Sasmita. Bala controlled the cross and placed an easy shot past the Nepal custodian to hand the host nation their third goal of the match.
Nepal’s Sabitra Bhandari nearly reduced the deficit with a 78th minute shot but India’s custodian Aditi Chauhan made a brilliant save.
Two minutes later, Ashalata Devi delivered a venomous shot from outside the box off a rebound to find the back of the nets, thereby leaving very little hope for a Nepal comeback.
India controlled the last few minutes, maintaining their calm and eventually finished the final with a memorable 4-0 win in front of a near capacity crowd who were jubilant at the display.
India coach Sajid Yusuf Dhar praised his team’s overall performance, saying that it was a collective effort. “We started off cautiously but soon picked up pace and from there on everything worked out well for us,” he said while thanking the fans for their support.
Playing her last international match, captain Bembem Devi said that her team mates kept their promise of winning her a gold medal. She also said there was no disappointment in being unable to score as her team mates did the job for India.
Capacity crwod jubilates
The JN Stadium on Monday was filled to the brim as thousands gahered in Polo to be a “part of history.”
The queue spilled over to the main road as supporters struggled to get a pass for the tie. According to sources nearly 20,000 people had turned up for the final match.