ITANAGAR: Wangkheimayum Sadananda Singh scored a hattrick as former champions Manipur stormed into the Santosh Trophy semi-final with a resounding 7-1 win over Assam, here on Tuesday.
Sadananda struck thrice in 11th, 16th and 70th minute whereas skipper Phijam Sanathoi Meetei (4th), Ngangbam Pacha Singh (19th-penalty), Maibam Deny Singh (82nd) and Imarson Meitei (88th) were the other scorers for the Manipur. Joydeep Gogoi scored the only goal for Assam in the 64th minute. Meetei opened the scoring with an assist from Sadananda’s pass outside the box to sneak the ball past Assam goalkeeper Abhinash Mech.
This was his 11th goal, making him the leading scorer in the 77th Santosh Trophy current season.
The early goal set the tone for Manipur’s dominance, with Meetei relentless in his attacks. Sadananda scored with a diving header in the 11th minute, capitalising on a precise pass from Ngathem Imarson Meitei from the left flank. Manipur continued to pound their rivals, with Sadananda securing his brace after a well-coordinated set-up from Sanathoi Meetei. Assam’s fortunes were further dented in the 20th minute when Manipur was awarded a penalty after Urjoy Brahma of Assam fouled the Manipur captain, Sanathoi Meetei, inside the box.
Ngangbam Pacha Singh made no mistake from the spot kick, confidently slotting the ball into the top corner of the net to extend Manipur’s lead to 4-0. Assam scored their only goal from substitute Joydeep Gogoi’s brilliant finish.
Sadananda then completed his hat-trick with a header from inside the box before Manipur’s left full-back, Deny Singh, calmly found the back of the net off a pass from Singam Subash Singh. Imarson Meitei then completed the seven-goal rout with two minutes left on the clock.