The Hindu : Sport / Football : India ensures progress to next round

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Thursday, Feb 15, 2007
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India ensures progress to next round

Principal Correspondent

PHOTO: AFP

DONE IT: After years of poor performance, India managed to make it to the second round

KOLKATA: India put behind years of poor performance by booking a second round berth in the men's football qualifiers for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The home side beat Myanmar 5-2 via tie-breaker here at the Salt Lake Stadium on Wednesday to realise the second round slot in the three-tier Asian stage qualifiers.

The Indians almost queered the script again conceding an injury-time goal that tied the score 1-1 to push the match into extra-time and then the tie-breakers.

An outstanding effort by goalkeeper Subrata Paul, who saved two opposition attempts, clinched the issue for the host in the tie-breakers.

The youthful Indian outfit — average age of 21 — appeared to have picked up the goal-shyness of their predecessors. The home side dominated the action, but floundered badly in the striking zone.

The host forwardline, manned by Manjit Singh and Sushilkumar Singh, drew arrears in the task it was assigned to perform. The inability to score became the sore point in the Indian performance. The host, enjoying the advantage of having drawn the away match 1-1 at Yangon hardly a week ago, did put a spirited show, but failed to make much of the initiative managing only one goal that was scored by Manjit in the 40th minute.

More opportunities

This set off many more opportunities in the second session but the two strikers, Manjit and Sushilkumar, and later substitute Tarif Ahmed failed to find the target despite several chances.

Finally, the visitor fetched the equaliser through captain Moe Win in the 92nd minute. With both the teams tied at the aggregate of scoring and conceding two goals each, the action was stretched to the extra-time, which again failed to break the 1-1 deadlock.

The penalty shootouts found the saviour in Paul, who blocked the first two attempts by Myo Min Tun and Si Thu Win to force open the door for the Indian win. There were no failures on the home side as Sunil Kumar, Debabrata Roy, captain N.S. Manju and Manjit made successful tries. India joins an elite club of Iraq, DPR Korea and the winner of Turkmenistan and Thailand match in the second round.

Iraq will be India's first opponent in the second round and the match will be played on February 28 in Jordan. The second match will be played at Chennai on March 14 against Turkmenistan/ Thailand. The training camp for the second round will be held at Goa from February 20, the AIFF Secretary, Alberto Colaco, said.

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