Sunil Subedi opened the scoring two minutes into the second half, and created a chance to help HSC break the deadlock again in the 69th minute after Friends had levelled the scoring in the 63rd minute through Kushal Shrestha.[break]
HSC will now meet Nepal Army Club on Monday in the quarterfinal.
In a drab affair, Subedi directed the ball toward the post from a short distance in a cross of Deepak Rai of HSC, which was studded with well-known players.
Pukar Gahatraj then scored the decider through penalty after Subedi was toppled by Friends skipper and defender Ukesh Shrestha.
Earlier, Shrestha of Friends had made an attractive solo effort from the box to send the ball past the net after dribbling around a couple of opponent defenders and beating goalie Rupak Shrestha.
HSC, established in 2005, were promoted to the first division after finishing runners-up in the Martyrs Memorial B Division League in 2008.
HSC dominated the show in terms of ball possession and created some attractive chances against their illustrious opponents Friends, six of whose players were making their debut in the first division as well as in the Dasharath Stadium on Thursday. The six players were picked from the Friends Academy, which began some two months ago.
HSC coach Upendraman Singh, who has solely taken charge of a first division outfit for the first time, credited the hard working players and management for the victory.
"The team has been undergoing training for the past 22 days only and is also not well set as the players have come from different clubs," Singh said, adding that his target was to make it a better team by the time the league begins.
Friends coach Mrigendra Mishra termed the penalty conceded by the team as bad luck and turning point of the match.
However, he expressed satisfaction over the results and performance of the team despite having inexperienced players.
"My target is to make the team better for the upcoming league and I will come up with an improved team in the matches to come. Most of the players are inexperienced and we had just one week´s training for the tournament."
The quarterfinal round will begin from Friday.
Friday´s match
Bauddha Football Club Vs Nepal Police Club
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