By a Staff Reporter
Nepal shared a spoil against Bangladesh to clinch the title of SAFF U15 Women’s Championship at Bir Shrestha Shaheed Shipahi Mustofa Kamal Stadium in Dhaka.
Sushila Rai scored in the 14th minute to give Nepal an early lead. Sushila placed the ball in with a shot from outside the box. Nepal, who went into the interval with a 1-0 lead conceded a goal later in the 54th minute.
Bangladeshi skipper Ruma Akter headed the ball home to keep her team’s dream alive. After then, Bangladesh dominated throughout the match and was awarded a spot kick in the dying minute of the match which could win them the title.
The 90th-minute spot kick taken by Joynob Bibi Rita was perfectly blocked by Nepali goalkeeper Sujata Tamang to give Nepal the maiden title in Women’s football. Nepali Women’s senior or age group side had not won any title earlier.
Nepal started the campaign by defeating Bhutan by 7-0. Nepal then scored late to record a 1-0 victory over the hosts. In the third outing, Nepal struggled to register a one-goal victory over Bhutan.
In a double round-robin tournament participated by three nations, the table topper was supposed to win the title. Nepal bagged 10 points with 3 wins and a tie. Bangladesh finished second with 7 points and Bhutan remained at the bottom with 0 points.
