Shillong, Mar 6: Nongrim Hills SC were behind in the game for more than half an hour but came back strongly to beat Ryntih FC 6-2 in their last OC Blue Shillong Premier League 2024 match at the SSA Stadium at First Ground, Polo, here today.
Caldolan Kharmawphlang (15′) gave Nongrim Hills the lead only for Ryntih to pump in two goals via Wanshanlang Dkhar (21′) and Basuklang Bina (28′). However, once again Ryntih was not able to keep the fight going into the second half and a string of goals by Onyxson Buhroy (66′), Oresterwell Langshiang (71′, 78′), Mebanshan Suiting (74′), and Banshemphang Kurbah (85′) gave Nongrim Hills the win.
This was the last match for both sides. The win lifted Nongrim Hills one spot to seventh, dropping Sawmer SC to eighth. Ryntih, already confirmed as last no matter what happened today, could not end the season on a high and bowed out with their 16th defeat of the OC Blue SPL 2024.
A beautifully timed run from Caldolan led to the first goal, with Ryntih’s players pausing as they thought another Nongrim Hills player was offside. Caldolan had nothing more to do than to beat Ryntih’s stand-in goalkeeper Derick Khongsit, which he did easily enough.
Ryntih, however, was to come right back into the contest and take the lead before the 30-minute mark. Neat passing on the left flank led to Wanshanlang taking the ball into the box and he fired it into the net, clipping the crossbar on the way in. Basuklang then netted on the run after receiving a pass from Wanshanlang. In 17 previous matches Ryntih had only managed to score one first-half goal and today they managed two in a single game.
That was to prove the high water mark for Ryntih. As the match wore on, their players struggled physically; once again the team did not have any substitutes to call upon.
A foul in the box should have led to the equalizer for Nongrim Hills but Bankitboklang Nongrum’s penalty kick hit the woodwork. However, the club only had to wait a few minutes before leveling, with defender Onyxson scoring with his less-favored right boot.
Derick was then tested and made a couple of saves without being able to gather the ball cleanly and Oresterwell took advantage of the third chance and converted the rebound. He then turned provider, cutting the ball back for Mebanshan to finish for Nongrim Hills’ fourth goal. Later, Oresterwell and Banshemphang netted goals five and six when Ryntih was down to 10 players after Maxy Warjri had to come off with an injury.
Tomorrow, Laitkor SC will play Nangkiew Irat SC at the earlier kick-off time of 1:45 pm. Laitkor had won the reverse fixture 2-0 on 23 October.
