Shillong, Aug 8: Sawmer almost pulled off a sensational comeback in their Shillong Premier League match today, but Rangdajied United held them off for an exciting 4-3 victory at the JN Stadium.
Wallamsuk Nongkhlaw put RUFC into the lead in the fifth minute, but Everesterly Rynjah equalised for Sawmer in the 31st minute. Five minutes later Samson Nongrum put Rangdajied back into the lead and things then took a serious turn for the worse for SPL debutants Sawmer as they conceded another two goals early on in the second half. Raikutshisha Buam (51′) and Reson Malngiang (58′) were the scorers and by this point Rangdajied were sitting pretty with a 4-1 lead.
Then came the fightback, with goals for Sawmer by Marshall Nongrum (61′) and Justerwell Tham (76′). That last one really saw Sawmer and Rangdajied push harder for even more goals, but though there were at least a dozen attempts on goal in the final 10 minutes 4-3 was how it finished.
Nongkhlaw got things going in just the fifth minute when he received a cross from the left. His first touch was a little heavy, but he then managed to just about get the toe of his boot under the ball and flick it over goalkeeper Sunshine Kharmuti and into the net.
Rynjah equalised after around 30 minutes of play when a shot by a team mate was blocked, but the No. 11 was in place for the rebound and fired it in.
Parity didn’t last long, however, for Rangdajied earned a free-kick on the right in the 36th minute. The ball into the box was bobbed around for a bit before Samson Nongrum pulled off a bicycle kick that was on target.
Sawmer made good runs down the right flank in the following few minutes but couldn’t find a way through.
They would have taken some confidence from that going into the second half, but Rangdajied quickly stole a run on them, scoring twice in the first 15 minutes of the second session.
First Samson Nongrum went deep on the right flank and crossed the ball in. It was a deep ball but Buam was in place at the far post to head the ball in.
Next up, Sawmer’s defenders and goalie were able to block a couple of shots on goal, but the final rebound fell into the lap of Malngiang, who smashed in a powerful low ball that couldn’t be kept out in the 58th minute.
Three minutes later, though, Sawmer got a goal back when a free-kick on the RUFC penalty arc was taken by Marshall Nongrum and went into the net after taking a deflection off the wall.
The last and final goal was another header, this time by Tham, whose attempt off a cross looked like it was going over the crossbar, but it had enough dip on it to get into the back of the net.
(TSR photo. Rangdajied are in blue, Sawmer in white)
