Lalitpur, June 16

Jagadamba Lumbini Football Club registered a huge win over Tribhuvan Army Club, while Laxmi Hyundai Manang Marshyangdi Club (MMC) and Rumpum Jhapa-XI shared points after a 3-3 draw in the Lalit Memorial U-18 Football Tournament here today.

In the match played at the ANFA Complex grounds, Lumbini thrashed TAC 6-0. Lumbini, whose team included numbers of U-16 team that has already represented Nepal in international events, took lead through a goal of Damodar Thapa Chhetri in the 15th minute to go into the break with a 1-0 lead.

Lumbini then slammed five goals in the second half. They doubled the lead in the 56th minute when Janom Man Ligal found the back of the nets, while Tejendra Pun added two goals in three minutes to extend the lead to 4-0. Mandeep Thapa scored the team’s fifth goal in the 74th minute and substitute Sobhit Budhathoki completed the rout with a goal in the 84th minute.

Lumbini coach Bikash Gurung said the team performed well despite not having adequate time to prepare for the tournament. “We just got one session to train together on the astro-turf pitch. We hope these players would be able to continue with the momentum in the rest of the tournament,” Gurung said.

In another match, MMC rallied to snatch a point from Jhapa. Sanam Limbu provided an early lead to Jhapa scoring in the eighth minute before Bikesh Limbu struck twice in the 16th and 22nd minutes to put Jhapa in strong position. Subash Gurung cut the lead with a penalty goal in the 24th minute after a Jhapa defender handled the ball inside the danger box. After the break, MMC made it 3-2 in the 53rd minute when Pasang Sherpa found the back of the nets, while substitute Anil Chaudhary levelled the scores in the 79th minute.

On Friday, Saraswoti Youth Club will take on Morang Football Club, while Ruslan Three Star Club  play against Far-western FC.