AIFF Media Team
KOLHAPUR: The Hero Junior Girls' National Football Championship 2019-20 got off to a rollicking start in Kolhapur, Maharashtra on Saturday (April 20, 2019) with the completion of the first round of fixtures in Group A to D.
GROUP A
The first encounter of the day saw Jharkhand rack up a comprehensive victory over Jammu and Kashmir at the Rajarshi Shahu Stadium, with the scoreline reading 21-0. Forward Sumati Kumari notched up five goals in the game, while Astam Oraon, Anu Radha Kumari and Priya Kumari all picked up a hattrick apiece.
GROUP B
At the Polo Ground meanwhile, defending champions Tamil Nadu began their campaign with a comfortable 5-0 win over Madhya Pradesh. M. Saritha opened the scoring for her side in the 21st minute and added a second just before half-time, with Mariyammal B recording a second-half brace and Priyadharshini S finding the net four minutes from time.
GROUP C
Three-time winners Manipur also kicked off their campaign with three points, registering a 4-0 victory over Uttarakhand. S. Lynda Kom grabbed the first in the 20th minute while T. Kritina Devi, N. Priyangka Devi and H. Shilky Devi all netted in the second half to down a gritty Uttarakhand side.
Joining Manipur at the top of the table will be Goa, who recorded a 3-1 win over Tripura. Striker Karen Estrocio got all three goals for the Goan team while Anjali Debbarma scored a consolation in the 89th minute.
GROUP D
West Bengal picked up three points with a 1-0 win over Arunachal Pradesh while in the other Group D game, Haryana started off their campaign with a 9-0 win over Karnataka, with Rajni Bala scoring four goals and captain Raveena finding the back of the net thrice.
The matches scheduled for Day 2 are as follows:
Odisha vs Chhattisgarh (Group E)
Bihar vs Telangana (Group F)
Himachal Pradesh vs Chandigarh (Group G)
Mizoram vs Punjab (Group H)
Andhra Pradesh vs Kerala (Group H)
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