SHILLONG: A spirited Shillong Lajong FC U-20 team got the better of Group C table leaders Mohun Bagan to register a 3-1win in their final match of the I-League U-20 football tournament on Thursday, but failed to qualify for the next round as Sesa FA claimed the other available spot by beating Churchill Brothers 4-2.
Mohun Bagan took the lead when Polat fired the ball home in the 24th minute to put his team ahead in Jamshedpur.
Lajong then started playing with more purpose and intent and created more inroads into the Bagan defence, showing off their skill and talent by playing good quality football.
Their efforts paid off when Zodingliana drew the Reds level in the 43rd minute with a sublime free-kick.
The teams went into the break level at 1-1.
SLFC started off as the brighter side in the second half, leading to Lalrammuana finding the back of the net in the 51st minute, giving his side the lead for the first time.
The North Eastern side continued to threaten and displayed good attacking football, gaining more ball possession than the Kolkatan outfit.
The Reds then put the game to bed when Lalrammuana scored his second goal, and his team’s third, of the match, searing past the Junior Mariners.
It was a commendable display by the young Lajong colts, who eased past the group leaders.
However, they failed to qualify for the final round of the tournament as they could manage only six points from their four games (they had drawn their previous three) while Mohun Bagan and Sesa earned seven and eight points respectively, making them the top two teams from Group C.
Sesa took the top spot in the group with their convincing win over Churchill in the match following Lajong’s.
In the first match of the day, Mumbai FC beat ONGC 3-1 and, in the last match, Tata Football Academy defeated Dempo 2-0 to qualify for the next round, along with East Bengal.
