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The Santosh Trophy Group Stage came to an end on Wednesday. Karnataka, Punjab, and Goa had their chances to join Mizoram, as the second team and qualify for the Semi-Finals.
Goa thrashed Punjab 4-1 but, Karnataka defeated Mizoram 1-0 to put Goa and Punjab, both out of contention. Karnataka and Mizoram go through from Group B.
Sportskeeda has a look at both the matches on the Final Day of the Group Stage:
Match 1: Goa 4-1 Punjab
Goa defeated Punjab 4-1 in a must-win game in Howrah Stadium, Howrah on Wednesday. Goa bounced back after suffering defeats to Karnataka and Mizoram, with a big win over Odisha. The West Indian side had to defeat Punjab today to stay in contention and, they did it in style.
Goa started the game on a positive note and were exploiting the Punjab defense with quick moves down the flanks. They were awarded a penalty in the 23rd minute and, Mackroy Peixoto slot it home to give Goa the lead.
Experienced campaigner Victorino Fernandes made it 2-0 for Goa in the 27th minute, 4 minutes later.
In the second half, Goa dominated the proceedings as well. Nestor Dias made it 3-0 in the 59th minute as he head the ball from an out-swinging corner.
Shubert Pereira made it 4-0 in the 67th minute, as Punjab looked well out of contention. The North Indian side looked to score one consolation goal in the final-third period of the game.
Punjab did score one late in the second half in injury time through Gurtej Singh.
Match 2: Mizoram 0-1 Karnataka
Karnataka edged past Mizoram with a slender 1-0 win in a must-win encounter in the Mohun Bagan Ground, Kolkata on Wednesday. Mizoram having already qualified rested key players and, went in with a relatively weaker side.
It was a sloppy first half affair, as Karnataka piled intense pressure on the Mizo defense looking for an opening which would put them in the driving seat for qualification.
With an array of chances missed up front, both the teams went into the break level pegging.
Karnataka dominated the second half, with crisp wing play. Rajesh finally broke the deadlock with a goal in the 74th minute and Karnataka held on in the last fifteen minutes to qualify for the Semi-Finals.
With Karnataka winning, all calculations are put to bed as they, along with Mizoram, qualify for the Semi-finals from Group B. They are set to face Bengal and Kerala from the other group in the Semi-Finals.
