Karki scored the decider in the 64th minute to seal victory for his team in its first match of the new season and set up a quarterfinal showdown with Machhindra Club. [break]
An unmarked Karki wasted no time in putting his side ahead beating Jawalakhel custodian Min Basnet in a one-on-one position inside the area in a pass of defender Palsang Lama, the new signing from Manang Marshyangdi Club. Karki was declared the man-of-the-match.
In the dramatic match, Jawalakhel created nearly a dozen scoring chances and saw a couple of shots hit the woodwork. Sherpa, on the other hand, had only three attempts and Karki featured in all of them.
Not only did Jawalakhel hit the woodwork twice but also missed as many scoring opportunities in one-on-one with goalie Binay Shrestha. "The couple of one-on-one chances we missed turned out to be the biggest setback for our team," Jawalakhel coach Rajaram Karki said after the match.
Karki also attributed lack of scoring to short training period. "We were registering players until Tuesday," Karki said, adding, "We started training with a full-fledged team only a couple of days ago."
Ten influential players who had guided Jawalakhel to fourth position in the National League and third position in the Martyrs Memorial League last season have left the club in the new season.
"As the new players were not set properly and we could not practice enough, it was difficult to play. The departure of old players was a great loss to the club and it may take a whole year to build such a team again. We are likely to face a similar situation in the next season too as we don´t have long-term contracts," Karki said.
Prabin Karki´s 12th minute free-kick for Jawalakhel rebounded off the bar. Similarly, Pradeep Maharjan´s 80th minute free-kick was also denied by the woodwork. Maharjan was one of three new signings included in the Jawalakhel starting line-up.
In the 61st minute, Sherpa goalie Binaya Shrestha, the new signing from New Road Team, denied Raj Paudel in a one-on-one position while Maharjan chipped above the bar in the 74th minute. Paudel squandered another scoring chance in the 42nd minute as he fired above the bar from the area. Karki fired wide from an open position in the area on two occasions. Saral Lopchan´s powerful strike was denied by goalie Shrestha in the 73rd minute.
Dinesh Karki´s two attempts for Himalayan Sherpa -- in the fourth and the 51st minutes -- were prevented by goalie Min Basnet but he succeeded in his third attempt.
"Our target was to keep the ball possession and I had instructed the boys to do so," said Sherpa coach Nawal Gurung, whose side featured mostly young players following the exit of some senior players including captain Sagar Thapa, Nabin Neupane and Jagjeet Shrestha.
"Our focus was on putting up a better show than winning the game and we don´t have national players in the team. I had told the players that I would take full responsibility if we lost the match, but finally we won it," Gurung said, adding, "Giving chance to young players will be better for the team as well as Nepali football."
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