Sri Lanka beats Maldives to reach semi-final

Mohamed Mufas, the match winner for Sri Lanka, boots winning goal against Maldives

Sri Lanka managed to storm in to the semi-final after defeating Maldives by 1 goal to nil in the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) under-17 Soccer Championship at the Race Course Stadium in Colombo yesterday.

Needing a draw to qualify for the knockout stage of the competition, the Lankan boys put up a much-rejuvenated performance to stay alive in the fray by scoring a goal in the 10th minute of the match. 

Both sides took to the field with much expectation where team Maldives had to post a win if they were to qualify due to goal aggregate. Their dreams were shattered when Mohamed Mufas of the local team put up a spirited performance to score off a rebound which deflected off a Maldivian goalie Abdullah Razeef Mohamed where the score-line remained unchanged by the short whistle.

After the turn around, the winners changed gears and executed enormous pressure on the rival camp. There were several close calls which Lankans kicks missed the goal mouth by a whisker, ultimately the score-line remained unchanged 1-0 and Sri Lanka will now meet Nepal in the first semi-final next Monday.

In the earlier game, Nepal hoodwinked the top-rated India by 3 goals to one to qualify for the semis against Bangladesh on the same day.