By Arka Dyuti Palit

AIFF Media Team

SHILLONG: KRYHPSA totally decimated Sethu FC on the field as they registered a 5-0 victory in the ongoing Hero Indian Women’s League 2017-18 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here in Shillong on Tuesday (March 27).

A brace from Player of the Match, Ratanbala and goals from Bala Devi, Dangmei Grace and Asharani Devi clinched victory for the Manipuri side in a totally one sided affair.

KRYHPSA went on the attack from the word go as the combo of Bala Devi and Ratanbala tormented the Sethu backline, mainly from the right flank.  Ashalata saw her attempt land on the top of the net in the 2^nd minute itself, with Bala taking a crack at the goal soon after.

The breakthrough arrived in the 9^th minute when Bindya found Bala in the clear who rounded it past the keeper to give KRYHPSA the early lead. Sethu saw little of the ball until they Nandhini forced a save from Roshni in the 13^th.

That attempt on goal was just an aberration as ‘normalcy’ returned with Ratanbala wrestling past her marker to drive it in for her team’s 2^nd in the 16^th minute. Seven minutes later she scored again when Grace’s flighted corner was glanced towards the far post. 23 minutes into the match and Sethu FC were already down and out.

The rest of the first half was majorly played inside the Sethu half with Bala Devi being forced to leave the field due to injury. KRYHPSA 3-0 Sethu FC was the score as the teams headed into the break.

Sethu showed resilience as they began the second half on a positive note. There were few tussles in the midfield as Asharani and Tanvie Hans fought for the ball. The passage of play was a back and forth affair as Tanvie was once ruled offside while Ratan missed the target by a whisker.

The resilience though came to an end as Grace struck from Hemolata’s ball to flatten all hopes of a Sethu comeback in the 62^nd minute. Forward Indumathi had an unusually quite game as she struggled to find anything going for her team.

Bangladeshi forward Sabina Khatun added some teeth to the Sethu forward line but she was stonewalled each time by the duo of Wangkhem and Romi Devi. With around a quarter of an hour to go, Asharani unleashed a long ranger to hammer the final nail in the Sethu coffin in the 74^th.

The last few minutes saw KRYHPSA trying to add on to their tally but poor finishing didn’t allow any further disturbance to the scoreline.

KRYHPSA will now take on Rising Student’s Club on March 31 while Sethu FC will square off against Gokulam Kerala FC on March 29.