Shillong, July 23, 2025: Meghalaya’s hopes of advancing in the Junior Boys National Football Championship 2025 (Tier 1) for the Dr BC Roy Trophy suffered another blow today, as they went down 4-2 to defending champions West Bengal in a dramatic Group B clash in Amritsar.

The match began on a promising note for Meghalaya, who took a surprising two-goal lead thanks to a brace by striker Chanjib Chetry. He found the net in the 13th and 38th minutes, raising early hopes of an upset.

However, Bengal quickly responded. Rajdeep Paul pulled one back in the 44th minute, giving Bengal momentum going into the break. The second half saw Meghalaya struggle to contain Bengal’s attacking flair. Paul completed his hat-trick with goals in the 78th and 90+4 minutes, while Sagen Hansda added another in the 77th minute, completing Bengal’s comeback victory.

Coach Seibor Sana made two changes to the Meghalaya starting eleven from their opening game against Kerala, introducing Alvin Kharbani in goal and Skhemlang Marthong in midfield. Despite the tactical adjustments and an early lead, Meghalaya were ultimately unable to hold off Bengal’s offensive resurgence.

This loss follows a 5-1 defeat to Kerala in their opening fixture, leaving Meghalaya bottom of the Group B standings with zero points. They now face a must-win encounter against Tamil Nadu on Friday to avoid relegation to Tier 2. Tamil Nadu held Kerala to a goalless draw earlier in the day and sits third with one point.

Group B Standings after Matchday 2:

West Bengal – 6 points

Kerala – 4 points

Tamil Nadu – 1 point

Meghalaya – 0 points