Bhubaneswar: Hosts Odisha pulled off a stunning 4-1 victory over five-time champions Goa in the final round of Santosh Trophy on Sunday.
Odisha established their ascendancy from the early stages of the Group A fixture at Kalinga Stadium. After midfielder Bikash Sahoo opened the scoring in the 11th minute, Chandra Murmu doubled the lead after 28 minutes.
Mohammed Faheez reduced the ma
rgin for eight-time finalists Goa seconds before half-time.
Changing ends with a 2-1 advantage, Rahul Mukhi scored in the 79th minute to further consolidate Odisha’s advantage.
Oram Anand completed Odisha’s emphatic win with a strike deep into injury time.
In other Group A games, Punjab edged past Maharashtra in a seven-goal thriller and Karnataka rode an early goal to beat Kerala 1-0.
Punjab led 1-0 and 2-1, before conceding two to Maharashtra midway through the second session.
However, Punjab showed great composure to not only equalise but snatch the winner a minute into injury time.
After two rounds of games, three teams – Odisha, Punjab and Karnataka – all have 4 points. But thanks to their superior goal difference, Odisha currently occupy top spot in Group A.