India rode on a spectacular goal from defender Jerry Lalrinzuala to beat Nepal 1-0 in the summit clash of the the South Asian Football Federation Under-16 Championships at the Army grounds in Kathmandu on Tuesday.
India, represented by the All India Football Federation’s Regional Academy, surged ahead in the 18th minute with Lalrinzuala unleashing a powerful left-footed 35-yard strike to beat the Nepal goalie at the Dasharath Stadium.
The early goal, which stunned the partisan home crowd into silence, turned out to be the match-winner. India returned unbeaten in the biennial tournament.
On a rain-soaked afternoon, India dominated proceedings from the first whistle, with the squad showing exemplary maturity to play according to the heavy ground conditions.
Birthday boy Jerry could not have asked for a better gift. The 14-year old Mizoram lad impressed one and all with his darting overlaps down the left flank and was rewarded for his performance in the 18th minute.
An elated head coach Gautam Ghosh said: “The triumph shows that we are on the tight track. It all began from scratch when we roped in talented boys from all parts of the country.
“But having said that, this was a final and a positive result will always have an inspirational effect on the boys. I’m proud of them the manner they held on in front of a 20,000-plus partisan crowd.
“Message from national coach Wim Koevermans and national team captain Sunil Chhetri had a huge influence on the boys.” he added.