Kelzang Wangchuk | Samdrupjongkhar

Team Thromde of Samdrupjongkhar defeated team SMCL with six goals to four in the final of the departmental football tournament held in Samdrupjongkhar yesterday.

Although both the teams were equally strong, Team SMCL gave pressure consistently to its opponent for the first few minutes. However, Team Thromde scored its first goal after getting a penalty kick for a handball.

Team SMCL’s jersey number 10, Ajit Bhojel, attempted to score a goal several times but could not. The team got more pressure after the Thromde team scored its second goal.

Since the SMCL’s jersey number 10 repeatedly tried to score, the opponent team members defended him by controlling and making it difficult to score.

The first half of the game ended with two goals for Team Thromde and one goal for Team SMCL.

Since team SMCL scored their second goal in the last minute of the second half, the game resulted in a penalty kick, where Thromde scored four goals and the SMCL, two.

Meanwhile, the winning team took home a cash prize of Nu 80,000 and Team SMCL took Nu 40,000 with trophies and individual trophies. The best player and the highest scorer were also awarded Nu 3,000 each.

Twenty-four teams from Samdrupjongkhar participated in the tournament. Each team paid an entry fee of Nu 20,000.

Officials said that the ground fee of Nu 2,000 per match and lack of sponsors and budget are the main challenges. “It would help promote the games if the Samdrupjongkhar Sports Association (SJSA) could sponsor or reduce the fee during such tournaments,” an official said.

An organiser, Norbu Zangpo, said since the tournament was organised to promote sports, bring sports enthusiasts together, and keep people engaged in sports; it is not a profit-oriented tournament.

Edited by Tashi Dema