KOZHIKODE: Kerala secured their spot in the Santosh Trophy main round by thrashing Pondicherry 7-0 in their final Group H match at EMS Corporation Stadium, Kozhikode, on Sunday.
Kerala's progress to the main round was almost assured after their 1-0 win over Railways in the inaugural match and the 10-0 demolition of Lakshadweep in their second game. Kerala is the only team to have registered all three wins in Group H.
On Sunday, the hosts began their scoring in the 11th minute when Gani Nigam successfully converted a penalty, awarded after a foul on Muhammed Roshal. Naseeb Rahman doubled the lead three minutes later, skilfully manoeuvring past Pondicherry's defence. E Sajeesh added a third goal before the interval, giving Kerala a comfortable 3-0 advantage.
Naseeb and Sajeesh completed their brace in the 64th and 67th minutes, respectively. Second-half substitutes Christy Davis (53) and T Shijin (71) also contributed to the scoresheet. In an earlier match, Railways secured a 1-0 win against Lakshadweep, with Pavan Mali scoring in the 57th minute.
Meghalaya qualified for the final round from Group E after a 1-1 draw against hosts Assam at the Deshbhakta Maidan, Mukalmua. Meghalaya made the grade on the strength of topping the group with seven points. Against Assam, after a goalless first half, Meghalaya took the lead in the 56th minute through Damanbhalng Diengdoh, but Dipu Mirdha of Assam converted a spot kick to restore parity in the 88th minute.
In Group A, Jammu and Kashmir expectedly qualified after an easy 5-0 win over Ladakh. Prolific goal scorer Aakif Javaid slammed a hat-trick, with Hayat Bashir and Dimple Bhagat scoring the other goals. In the day's first match, Punjab finally tasted victory with a 7-0 triumph over Himachal Pradesh. Kamaldeep (3), Tanveer Singh, Jaginder Singh, Jang Bahadur Singh, and Gaurab were the scorers.
