Continuing their red-hot form, I-League outfit Gokulam Kerala FC won the 11th Bodousa Cup Football tournament on Friday. Durand Cup champions defeated Minerva Punjab FC 6-5 in a nerve-wracking final at Tinsukia, Assam.
The winner had to be decided in sudden death after the penalty shoot-out failed to break the deadlock. The match ended 2-2 after the 90 minutes and in the tie-breaker, both the teams converted 3 shots each, forcing the sudden death.
Brazilian forward Sergio Barboza Jr opened the scoring to give Punjab side the lead in the very 3rd minute of the match. But it didn't last long as Kerala forward Zola equalised in the 16th minute.
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Both the teams played an attacking game but failed score until the 82nd minute when Beautyan scored to make it 2-1 for Gokulam. But the Kerala outfit failed to maintain the lead and conceded the equaliser with Girik Khosla finding the back of the goal with his header.
The script followed in the tie-breaker with all the penalty takers converting from the spot. Then, the Kerala side won via sudden death.
Sagolband United FC of Manipur finished third with North Imphal Sporting Association FC (NISA) walking away with the fair play award. Ningthoujam Pritam of Sagolband was adjudged the best player of the tournament.
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Altogether 32 teams participated in the tournament, which
Organized by Bodousa Sports Club, 32 teams competed in the tournament in 10 different venues across Assam.
Last year, Saif Sporting Club of Bangladesh won the Cup defeating Jamshedpur FC in the final.
