Shillong, July 15: A string of first half goals saw Langsning FC defeat Malki SC 4-0 in Shillong Premier League 2021-22 at Third Ground in Polo here on Friday.
The goals were scored by Arnesius Marwein (19’, 24’), Roikhihbha Nongtdu (21’) and Kitboklang Pale (40’).
Before Friday, Langsning had 7 points and Malki 4, fourth and seventh in the points table respectively. Friday’s win moved Langsning up to second place with 10 points.
The action was almost completely confined to the first 45 minutes, with Langsning making their intentions known in only the third minute when Figo Syndai’s flick of the boot saw the ball come off the upright to deny him what would have been the fastest goal of the current SPL season.
Less than 10 minutes later, Syndai had a goal disallowed for offside and his team mate Marwein went on to claim the opener.
A 20-yard free-kick was taken by Langsning captain Pale and the left-footer struck the crossbar. Marwein was alert to the rebound, trapping the ball with his first touch and scoring with his second from right in front of the goalmouth.
Nongtdu then registered the second goal after he and Kynsaibor Lhuid combined to take a short corner. Nongtdu’s shot grazed the crossbar as well but, this time, the ball came down across the goal line. This was the 50th goal of the season.
There was little in the way of a breather as the third goal followed soon after, as Syndai ran up the left flank and crossed the ball in expertly. Marwein stuck his boot out, collided with Malki goalkeeper Rihoklang Khongjoh and the ball came back off Marwein’s body and went into the back of the net.
Surprisingly, there was just one more goal in the match and it came in the 40th minute for Pale. A chip from Lhuid saw a race between the oncoming Khongjoh and Pale. The keeper was out of the box, however, and tried to back-pedal before gathering the ball with his gloves. To Khongjoh’s embarrassment, the ball slipped between his legs and that allowed Pale to get to it and score.
Malki really were at sixes and sevens and had very little to write home about. A Nikel Ryntathiang header just before the third goal that was too high was about the closest they got.
With a huge lead in their pocket, it was unsurprising if Langsning took it a little easy in the second half. They did experiment with a few changes in personnel but in the end there was no change in the scoreline and the game ended 4-0 in their favour.
This match was the last of the fifth round and the sixth will begin on Saturday with fourth-placed Rangdajied United FC (8 points) facing reigning champions and sixth-placed side Shillong Lajong FC (4 points) at 4pm.
