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Home > Sports > Football > Report
Bengal surprise Goa 1-0
December 15, 2002 19:55 IST
Bengal surprised runner-up Goa by a solitary second half goal to head the four-team group ''B'' in the men's football event of the 32nd National Games in Hyderabad today.
In the encounter that came alive in the second half for a brief period, the all-important goal was scored by Pradeep Indu in the 49th minute off a pass from former Indian skipper Dibeyendu Biswas.
Earlier, Andhra Pradesh men downed Orissa to advance into the semi-finals while while Bihar kept their hopes alive with a 3-1 victory over Kerala.
Bengal now lead the table with four points from two matches and would be playing Maharashtra in the last league match on December 17. Goa have three points from two matches and would be playing Services the same day.
Four minutes after resumption, Bengal drew the first blood thanks to fine opportunism showed by Pradeep, who was playing his first match of the games. Amidst a cluster of defender and a host of his own teammates, one of the defender tried to dispossess Dibyendu. But the ball slipped through the crowd and went to Pradeep, who sent in an angular shot giving no chance for Goa goalkeeper Benu Purushothaman.
Despite the reverse, the Goans mounted pressure on the rival area and nearly got an equaliser five minutes later. But striker Sukhdev Arwade's curling right footer from a good 35 yards was blocked by experienced Bengal custodian Prashanta Dora. But for this chance, there was hardly any worthwhile move throughout the game though action switched ends frequently and Bengal held on to the lead.
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