Laitkor SC were three goals down in under 30 minutes but still mounted a sensational comeback to squeeze out a point in a 3-3 draw against Nangkiew Irat SC in the Shillong Premier League 2024 at the SSA Stadium at First Ground, Polo, here today.
It was a tale of two halves as Damehun Syih (7’) and Jefferson Pakyntein (17’, 27’) scored for Nangkiew Irat in the first, while Risuk Malngiang (55’) and Fridison Wanniang (69’, 75’) did so for Laitkor in the second.
This was Nangkiew Irat’s last game of the season and they remain in fourth position, now with 26 points. Laitkor, who have one game to go, stay in sixth with 24 points. They are tied with Langsning FC and have the better goal difference but Langsning have head-to-head advantage.
Jefferson was involved in the first goal, providing the corner kick that Damehun powerfully headed into the back of the net. Gobindash Singh crossed a ball from the left flank for the second goal, which was headed in by Jefferson, and it was he who scored the third from the edge of the box 10 minutes later with a perfectly placed kick.
Laitkor had their moments in the first half but could not find a way past the Nangkiew Irat defence, which performed well to keep the Laitkor players at a distance.
In the second half, however, Laitkor captain Risuk took a chance from outside the box and nailed the shot, sending the ball flying into the net.
That lifted the spirits of the Laitkor bench and their fans in the stands, most of whom were positioned behind the Nangkiew Irat goal.
Then, Banshanlang Nongdhar carelessly gave the ball away to Laitkor and it was passed to Fridison, who took a left-footer low past Nangkiew Irat goalkeeper Rihoklang Khongjoh.
The equaliser was thanks to a poor display of defending by Nangkiew Irat as they failed to clear the ball during a Laitkor attack and Fridison made them pay by scoring, this time with his right boot, which put the fans and players and officials in the dugout on their feet in celebration.
Momentum was all with Laitkor by this point, with the few times Nangkiew Irat had the ball in the opposition half spoiled by small errors. However, Laitkor’s players were also tiring and they did not really come close to finding the winning goal.
Laitkor will be back in action on Monday when they take on leaders Mawlai SC at 3pm. Mawlai had won the reverse fixture 1-0 on 4 January and victory again would be enough for them to wrap up a third consecutive SPL title.
