Lalitpur, October 11

Laxmi Hyundai Manang Marshyangdi Club (MMC) thrashed Buddha Air Morang FC 7-1, while Sudur Biscuit Far-west FC stunned Nepal APF Club 5-3 in the Red Bull National League matches at the ANFA Complex grounds here today.

MMC climbed to second with 28 points, one behind leaders Ruslan Three Star Club. Far-west, who played their last match of the league, finished sixth with 20 points. Morang, who wrapped up the campaign without a win, are at the bottom of the nine-team standing, while the loss ended the hopes of APF, who have 23 points from 14 matches. With two rounds remaining in the league, three teams -- Three Star, Manang and Tribhuvan Army Club (27) -- are left in the title race.

In the second match of the day, Ravi Paswan scored a hat-trick, while Ashish Lama netted a brace and Sushil KC and Subash Gurung got one each as MMC routed Morang. Buddhiman Rai scored a consolation goal for the Morang. Paswan provided lead to MMC in the 39th minute with a header on a Bikram Rai pass, while Subash Gurung doubled the lead in the 44th when he score from close range following a pass from skipper Anil Gurung.

Morang cut the deficit through a goal from Buddhimani Rai in the 50th minute. Rai received a long pass from Niraj Basnet and easily placed the ball into the nets from close range. Ashish Lama, who replaced Rupesh KC in the half time, restored MMC lead in the 60th minute, while Sushil KC made it 4-1 in the 62nd utilising a pass from Anil Gurung. Paswan scored his second and team’s fifth goal from 20 yards in the 69th minute before completing his hat-trick in the 81st minute following a pass from Nirajan Malla. Lama scored his second goal of the match in the 89th minute when he received the ball from Bikram Rai and slammed home from close.

MMC coach Raju Kaji Shakya was happy with the result. “We needed a win and such a big-margin victory is always satisfactory,” he said. “The match against Nepal Police Club is important as we are two wins away from the title and the game against Three Star is crucial,” he said. Morang coach Kumar Pradhan said they were outplayed by MMC. “Our plan was to stop them in the first half but the players lost the momentum and we conceded goals,” he said.

Earlier, Far-west FC ended their league campaign with a stunning 5-3 victory over APF. Kamal Thapa opened the scoring for Far-west in the 15th minute, while U-19 skipper Bimal Gharti Magar doubled the lead in the 17th minute. Hemanta Thapa Magar extended the lead in the 27th minute as they went to the break with a 3-0 lead.

APF tried to come back into the game through the goal of Ranjan Bista in the 57th minute, while Sudeep Shikrakar made it 3-2 in the 74th minute through a penalty goal. Against the run of play, Janom Man Ligal scored Far-west’s fourth goal in the 85th minute to put the issue beyond dount and Sunil Bal added another in the 90th minute. Bista then made it 5-3 in the injury time but it was took late for the departmental side to return to the match.

Far-west coach Kiran Shrestha was happy to sign off with a victory. “Boys played well from the beginning and we were able to win our last league match. Overall, I am satisfied with the team’s performance in the league,” said Shrestha. APF coach Krishna Thapa  was not satisfied with his team’s performance. “This is the worst match of the APF after I took the charge of the club. Our defenders did not play well and the strikers were also off the mark,” Thapa added.

On Monday, Tribhuvan Army Club (TAC) will take on Jagadamba Lumbini FC at the ANFA complex grounds.