At Changlimithang Stadium on Wednesday, India mercilessly trounced Bhutan 5-0 in their fourth SAFF U-17 Women’s Championship encounter.
At halftime, the Young Tigresses had a 3-0 lead.
India had earlier won by a resounding 8-0, and this was their second meeting in four days.
With two more goals and an assist on the fifth goal on Wednesday, Indian forward Anushka Kumari (4′, 16′) maintained her strong play and increased her tournament total to seven goals.
The other goals came from Nira Chanu Longjam (90+5′), Julan Nongmaithem (77′), and Shveta Rani (24′).
With this decisive triumph, India secured their top spot in the table with four victories in as many games and scored 22 goals without giving up any.
With 12 points from four games, India now leads the group. Bangladesh is next with 9 points, while Nepal is third with 3. Bhutan is still without a point.
India quickly established their supremacy. India put constant pressure on Bhutan, who were keen to address their defensive problems after giving up 13 goals in three games, leaving their backline vulnerable.
Early in the fourth minute, the breakthrough was made. Bhutan’s defense was split by a perfectly-threaded pass from the center circle that found Kumari at the box’s edge. She beat her marker with her pace and calmly slotted past Kelzang Wangmo, Bhutan’s goalie, who hesitated to tighten the angle.
Soon after, Pearl Fernandes of India came close to doubling their lead, but a Bhutan defender heroically stopped her effort. Despite several early misses, the Tigresses persisted in their assault, focusing especially on set-piece opportunities.
After Julan Nongmaithem was fouled at the edge of the box in the sixteenth minute, Kumari made amends with a booming free-kick. Wangmo was stuck in place when Kumari stepped up and launched a rocket past her. It was her second goal of the night, demonstrating her accuracy once more.
A goalkeeping blunder in the 24th minute gave India their third goal. Wangmo’s clumsy clearing bounced off Fernandes and landed nicely to Shveta Rani, who took full advantage of Bhutan’s disorganized defense by reacting fast and slotting into an open net.
Prior to the half, the Tigresses had the opportunity to add a fourth. The rebound went to Kumari, whose curled shot nearly missed a second consecutive hat-trick after Nongmaithem’s low drive was palmed away by Wangmo.
After the interval, India continued to dominate, controlling possession and tempo while driving Bhutan more into their own half. The fourth goal was eventually scored in the 77th minute when captain Julan Nongmaithem scored a first-time goal with conviction after Abhista Basnett had provided a deft pass from the edge of the box.
In stoppage time, India attacked once more as Bhutan struggled for respite. Kumari received a misdirected goal kick and slipped in Mira Chanu Longjam. The midfielder turned her marker inside out before shooting home to seal a thrilling win, sending the Indian dugout into raptures.
