E Bengal win under-19 National League

Fancied East Bengal warded off a spirited challenge from India sub-juniors to script a 3-2 victory and clinch the inaugural Under-19 National football League in Calcutta on Tuesday.

The home team was under pressure in the opening session of the final but shrugged off their lethargy after the lemon break to keep their reputation intact, at the Howrah Municipal Corporation stadium.

Trailing by a Gourmangi Singh goal in the early stages of the contest, East Bengal found the equaliser through Abdul Raus Khan and then changed the complexion of the game in the second session with two strikes in the span of ten minutes as forward Dulal Patra and Anupam Sarkar found the target.

The Indian sub-juniors made a valiant attempt to bounce back after the twin blows and managed to reduce the margin in injury time through Marlanki Sutang, who excelled right through the tournament.

East Bengal could have won by a bigger margin had their forwards not frittered away a few gilt-edged opportunities that came their way.