New Year eve produces surprising results in non-relegation league

Player of Brigade Boys Club (right) and NIBL Friends Club vie for the ball during their Pulsar Martyrs Memorial A Division League match at the ANFA grounds in Lalitpur on Monday. Udipt Singh Chhetry / THT

Kathmandu, December 31

New Road Team and Machhindra Football Club played a 5-5 draw, while Brigade Boys Club thrashed NIBL Friends Club 3-0 and Tribhuvan Army Club settled for a goalless stalemate with Grand Master Jawalakhel Youth Club in the Pulsar Martyrs Memorial A Division League today.

Bishal Rai scored a brace and Vassadia Diamande, Khamir Glishan Kandangwa and Anil Gurung netted one each for NRT, who were at one stage 4-1 ahead. Ashok Thapa scored twice and Sushil Lama and Kouassi Ismael Yobue netted one each for Machhindra, who were also gifted with an own goal from NRT’s Deep Karki.

NRT took lead in the fourth minute through Diamande’s goal before Deepak Karki put the ball into his own nets to level the scores five minutes later. NRT restored the lead in the 10th minute when Bishal Rai found the back of the nets before Kandangwa and Anil Gurung scored in the space of two minutes to make it 4-1 inside half an hour.

Ashok Thapa reduced the deficit in the 33rd minute and further narrowed the margin to 4-3 with his second goal of the match two minutes later. Sushil Lama converted from the spot to level the scores in the third minute of the first half injury time. NRT went ahead again in the 64th minute when Bishal Rai scored his second goal of the match before Machhindra’s foreign recruit Yobue made sure the match ended in a draw in the 86th minute.

In another unlikely result of the day, lowly JYC held Army to a 0-0 draw. Also, BBC outplayed NIBL Friends.

Kazeem Busari scored a brace, while Kareem Nsiah netted one for BBC.

Signature Manang Marshyangdi Club have already sealed the league title for the record eighth time with two matches remaining, and the day’s results did not affect the bottom half clubs as the tournament does not have provision of relegation. The NRT-Machhindra match, however, can go to the record books as the highest scoring one. As of now, the league has produced six goals in a single match.

TAC remained at the fourth position with 22 points, while JYC are at the ninth with 12. BBC, Friends, Machhindra and NRT are the bottom four teams from 11th to 14th positions respectively. While BBC and Friends have nine points each, Machhindra are two points behind and NRT at the bottom with six.

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