Jawalakhel defeated Ranipokhari Corner Team (RCT) and Three Star defeated Himalayan Sherpa Club with identical score of 1-0. Both the defeated teams are from Kathmandu district.[break]
Coincidentally, goals in both the matches were scored inside the last three minutes of the first half. Prabin Karki scored the match winner for Jawalakhel in the 43rd minute while Yogesh Gurung scored for Three Star in the 44th minute. Another similarity between the winning teams was that goal scorers of both the teams did not feature during their first matches.
With the result, Jawalakhel climbed three spots to fifth with six points after completion of the second round, maintaining its cent percent winning streak. Police with equal points tops the points table on the basis of goals superiority. Similarly, Three Star with four points climbed two places to fourth with its first win. RCT and Jawalakhel having played a draw in their first match are jointly in the seventh place with one point each.
Against the run of play, Karki opened the scoring for Jawalakhel with a superb one touch strike from the edge of the box in the team´s very first attempt on goal. African recruit Gerard Mukonza had set the pass for Karki.
Jawalakhel could have doubled the advantage had Gerard not missed the spotkick awarded six minutes into the second half. Gerard shot off the target after Jawalakhel was awarded the penalty for a foul on Karna Limbu by Krishna Kunwar. Kunwar, who received a second yellow card for his offense, will miss the upcoming match against Sangam Club on Thursday. Bishal Rai (Jersey No 9) will also miss Thursday´s match as he too was booked with a second yellow card.
RCT had dominated the first half of the match and made three attempts on goal but failed to find the back of the net. In the 12th minute, freekick by Olawale O Afeez hit the woodwork, and three minutes later goalie Dinesh Thapa Magar denied Amar Dangol in a one-on-one position. Similarly, Afeez saw his header sail inches above the bar in the 33rd minute.
The second half was fairly balanced and both the teams could only create one move each. Jawalakhel´s Bishal Rai (Jersey No 9) was denied by RCT goalie Dilip Chhetri in a one-on-one position two minutes after the interval. For RCT, Amar Dangol fired high above the bar in an open position in the 53rd minute in a short pass from Afeez.
"The team played well but we were defeated as we couldn´t score," RCT coach Madhu Karki said, adding that his team´s title hope has become slimmer. "Now we will try to secure a better position than that of the Martyrs Memorial League." RCT had finished sixth in the league.
Meanwhile, in the match between Three Star and Himalayan Sherpa, Yogesh Gurung scored the match winner with a spectacular one touch strike from the box in a pass set by Raj Kumar Ghising. Earlier, Vishan Gauchan´s tapping from six yards had sailed above the bar.
In a drab first half, Himalayan Sherpa could not make a single attempt on goal, but came up aggressively in the second half and made about half a dozen attempts. Three Star opted to play a defensive game.
Sherpa missed its last chance to salvage a draw in the stoppage time when Kunjan Gurung´s powerful strike from the box rebounded off the post. Korean player Jeoung Jinho, Pukar Gahatraj and Jagjeet Shrestha´s attempts also failed to find the target in the second half.
Three Star coach Meghraj KC said the victory was the result of his side´s hard work. "The boys played at the same pace from the beginning to the end," KC said.
Sherpa coach Upendraman Singh said they were defeated as they failed to utilize scoring opportunities. He said they conceded the goal due to the midfielder´s mistake, and added that the team needs more coordination.
Mitramilan Club of Dharan will take on New Road Team on Wednesday while Army will play against Police.
Players punished
All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) disciplinary committee on Tuesday has handed a three-match ban on five players -- three from New Road Team (NRT) and two from Manang Marshyangdi Club (MMC) -- for their involvement in a brawl during their National League match played on Monday.
NRT skipper Laxman Ruchal, Asim Jung Karki and Raghu Prajapati as well as MMC players Bijay Gurung and Sujal Shrestha have been banned for three matches in the ongoing league. The players were sent off after they started the brawl in the stoppage time.
The banned MMC players will miss the matches against Himalayan Sherpa, Jawalakhel and Sangam Club, while the NRT players will miss the matches against Mitramilan, Nepal Police and Himalayan Sherpa.
According to a press statement issued by ANFA, the five players were punished on the basis of report submitted by the referee, match commissioner and match assessor which found the players´ action to be against the spirit of the game. Similarly, the committee has also warned MMC player Nirajan Khadka not to repeat such incidents in the future. Khadka was shown a yellow card by referee Sachin Amatya over the incident.
The five-member disciplinary committee was headed by ANFA Vice-president Mahesh Bista.
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