Dangmei grace

National Football Championship: Defending champions Kerala’s quest for retaining the Rajmata Jijabai Trophy at the Senior Women’s National Football Championship came to an end against record 21-time champions, Manipur, here on Monday.

The highly awaited game between the two title favourites took place at the AIFF National Centre of Excellence in Kolkata on Monday. It proved to be a solid outing for Manipur who came into the game on the back of a surprising defeat against Haryana, which saw them finish second in their group.

It was the pace of Dangmei Grace that helped the team break the deadlock in the 35th minute. Right back, Kritina Devi hoofed the ball up the field and Grace used her pace to get to the ball and curl in a cross which was met by a towering header from Sibani Devi to give Manipur the lead.