Orissa to face Manipur in final tomorrow

Chandigarh, Jul 27 (UNI) Holders Manipur hold psychological advantage over runners-up Orissa in the final of the third Junior Girls Under-17 National Football Championship being conducted by the Chandigarh Football Association under the patronage of All India Football Federation, to be played tomorrow here.

As both teams have maintained their slate clean on their way to final, tomorrow's contest should keep the spectators spellbound.

No team has conceded even a single goal throughout the tournament which began on July 10. Manipur netted maximum number of goals--72 while Orissa's tally is 44.

With captain lanky striker Bem-Bem Devi regaining her form in the semi-final against Tripura by scoring two out of four goals, the Manipur forward line would have more punch in their attack.

Lending her support will be leading Manipur scorer Y Kamala Devi, M Mandakini Devi, N Montesori Chanu and Chanchan Chanu. Manipur goalkeeper, however, will have her first real test tomorrow. So far she was having 'off days.

In their quest to wrest trophy from Manipur and avenging their defeat in the last edition, the Orissa players have also given impressive display so far. Their one-touch play has won many a hearts.

Jhele Munda, Rashmita Podh, Santoseni Oram, Srimote Samal and Rashmita Podh are capable of upsetting the applecart of Manipur.

Speedy Rashmita is the most dangerous left winger.

In cluster A qualifying round matches, Manipur routed Jammu and Kashmir by 17-0 and 20-0 respectively. In group I qualifying league, Manipur beat TN 7-0, bt Punjab by 15-0 and Haryana by 9-0. In semi-final, Manipur bt Tripura 4-0. Orissa topped Cluster B with 7-0 win over Bihar and 13-0 over Uttaranchal. In group II quarter-final league, Orissa bt UP 8-0, Tripura by 4-0 and West Bengal 6-0. In semi-final, Orissa ended Haryana's challenge by 6-0.

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