Air India rally to down Punjab Police

Air India rallied brilliantly to thrash Punjab Police 3-1 in a Group 'C' Second Division National Football League match at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kochi on Thursday.

The policemen, who had lost their first match to State Bank of Travancore on the inaugural day of the tournament, got off to a flying start with their hardworking forward Parminder Singh scoring in the very second minute of the game.

Surprised by the reverse, Air India, in a counter attack got the equalizer a minute later through Mohammed Abbas and in the eighth minute Mohammed Rizwan struck to put his team ahead.

The cops increased the pace of the game midway through the session and though they got a couple of chances, could not convert them.

With two minutes left for the breather, Mohammed Rizwan scored his second goal and the team's third.

The second half saw Air India maintaining their hold on the proceedings.

Shillong:  ITI, Banglore, rallied twice to hold Border Security Force, Jalandhar, 2-2 in a Group 'B' encounter of the Second Division National Football League at J N Sports Complex in Shillong on Thursday.

BSF drew first blood in a fast-paced first half through Santosh Kujur in the 16th minute when he converted a throw-in from Deepak Kumar (1-0).

Retaliating with its swift moves and favoured by strong wind, ITI restored parity through an Ashok Kumar header in the 20th minute. Kumar made good use of the opportunity from a Kutmani throw to level the score.

Barely three minutes later, BSF's Samrat Choudhary increased the margin when he intercepted a cross off Santosh Shetty.

Just before the breather, Gopi Nath took full advantage of a lob essayed by Syed Abdul Wahyed and restored parity for the Banglore-based side.