The 38th edition of All India Governor’s Gold Cup International Football Tournament was kicked off here at Paljor Stadium on Tuesday. Sikkim Premier Division champion, United Sikkim Football Club outplayed Aryans Football Club of Kolkata by 4-2 in the extra-time of the inaugural match of the tournament.
Amrit Tamang scored the first goal for the United Sikkim FC in the 19th minute but the home team could not able to hold the lead for long when Md Farid scored the equalizer for Aryans FC in the 25th minute. Both teams fought hard to take further lead in the match but could not find the target and the first half ended in 1-1 draw.
In the early minutes of the second half, Samshad Ali extended the lead of Aryans FC to 2-1. The home team players played their hearts out to equalize the score-line but missed the net on many occasions. Karan Rai scored the equalizer for the United Sikkim FC in the last minute of the match.
The full time of the match ended with 2-2 and the match entered into extra-time of 30 minutes to decide the winner. In the third minute of the extra-time, Karan Rai scored his brace to extend the lead to 3-2 and soon his teammate Tshering Zangpo further took the lead of the home team to 4-2. Kolkata team fought hard to bounce back into the match but was unable to draw parity.
Now, with this 4-2 win, United Sikkim FC will take on Army XI (Red) in the quarter-final match on October 27.
George Telegraph, Kolkata will take on Armed Police Force Club, Nepal in the second pre quarter-final match of the tournament on Wednesday.
Twelve teams from different parts of the country and Nepal have been participating in this prestigious tournament, which is being organised by Sikkim Football Association (SFA).