Bengal defeated Punjab 1-0 in the opening match of the Santosh Trophy football tournament here on Saturday. The winner was netted by Shubham Bhowmick in the 61st minute.
Right from the beginning, both sides looked keen to attack. There were chances on either side early on. Punjab even managed to force a couple of corner kicks within the first six minutes. It also won a free-kick in the 12th minute, from just outside the box, but Jashandeep Singh’s kick was pushed away by Bengal goalkeeper Priyant Kumar Singh.
Both sides continued to create several opportunities, but neither could convert any of them as the opening half ended without a goal. Then 14 minutes into the second half, Bengal finally broke the deadlock.
A superb cross from the left flank by Jay Baz was deftly volleyed in by Shubham to score what would be the winning goal.
After the interval, Punjab, the runner-up last year, tried hard for an equaliser, but it never came. Bengal did well to defend its lead.
Shubham was named Man-of-the-Match.
Later, the tournament was inaugurated at a function at Manjeri, the tournament’s other venue, by Kerala Sports Minister V. Abdurahiman, in front of a big crowd.
The result: Bengal 1 (Shubham Bhowmick 61) bt Punjab 0.
Today’s matches: Odisha v Karnataka (Malappuram) 4 p.m.; Services v Manipur (Manjeri) 8 p.m.
