Indian Navy bounce back with clinical victory over NEROCA FC in Durand Cup

Indian Navy FC secured their first win of the 135th IndianOil Durand Cup with a 2-0 victory over NEROCA FC in Imphal. Roshan Panna and Muhammed Inayath scored as the Sailors produced a disciplined display to move second in Group D

Hyderabad: Indian Navy FT bounced back from its opening defeat with a clinical performance to secure a 2-0 victory over North Eastern Re-Organising Cultural Association Football Club (NEROCA FC) in a Group D fixture of the 135th IndianOil Durand Cup at the Khuman Lampak Main Stadium in Imphal on Wednesday.

Roshan Panna opened the scoring in the first half before E. Muhammed Inayath sealed the result after the interval, as the Sailors produced a disciplined and clinical performance to register their first win of this year’s competition.

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The victory took Indian Navy to three points from two matches, lifting them to second place in the Group D standings. NEROCA FC, meanwhile, remained at the bottom of the table with one point from their opening two fixtures.

Indian Navy broke the deadlock midway through the first half through Roshan Panna. Vijay Marandi produced a superb chipped pass over the NEROCA defence to pick out the young forward, who capitalised on a moment of hesitation from goalkeeper Penand Singh. Roshan took a composed touch to round the advancing custodian before calmly slotting the ball into an empty net to hand the Navy side the lead. Vijay also had a long-range effort saved by the goalkeeper after five minutes.

Indian Navy created the first meaningful opportunity of the second half through another well-crafted attacking move. Zahir Khan threaded a precise pass into the path of Vijay Marandi after a slick passage of play through midfield, but the forward failed to hit the target, dragging his left-footed effort wide of the post.

The Navy men doubled their advantage just after the hour mark through a moment of individual brilliance from Muhammed Inayath. The midfielder showcased excellent control to glide past two defenders before reaching the byline and attempting a right-footed cross. However, the delivery looped over the backtracking NEROCA goalkeeper and nestled into the far bottom corner of the net to give the Sailors a two-goal cushion