Kathmandu, Sept 20

Defending champions Nepal went down to hosts Bhutan 1-0 in their opening match of the SAFF U-18 Championship at the Chalimithang Stadium in Thimpu today.

Bhutan, who defeated Maldives 1-0 on Monday, recorded their second consecutive victory riding on solitary goal from Orgyen Wangchuk Tshering, who scored from the spot in the 85th minute. The home side earned the penalty after Nepal’s Asim Bhusal handled the ball inside the danger zone.

The loss was Nepal’s first-ever in all competitions against Bhutan. Nepal will now face Maldives in their second match on Friday.

A total of five teams — hosts Bhutan, Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Maldives — are competing in the tournament. The team with maximum points after the round robin league will win the championship.

Nepal had won the first edition of the championship beating India in penalty shootout at the ANFA Complex grounds two years ago. The first edition was played among U-19 teams in 2015 but the tournament has officially been changed to the U-18 event from this year.