Sri Lanka were routed 6-0 by hosts Nepal, as the former were knocked out of the on-going Women’s South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship, with the latter ending top of Group ‘B’ by virtue of their victory in Kathmandu on Thursday (24).
The morale-denting loss means Sri Lanka have crashed out of the championship, finishing third in their group with two losses and a solitary victory, while the hosts and Bhutan advanced to the semi-finals.
The Lankans went into the game needing a win to advance in the event, but Nepal, who had already booked their spot in the last four, required to gain another three points to top their group.
Nepal opened the scoring in the seventh minute when Sabita Rana fired a brilliant cross from the winger.
Later Nepal continued to assert their control and further underscored their billing as odds-on favourites for the title by doubling their lead in the 11th minute, with a long-range shot from Sabitra Bhandari that flew into the top right corner, leaving the Lankan goalkeeper clutching at straws.
A minute later, Rekha Poudel was on target, casually converting an over-the-top ball to make it 3-0 within the first 15 minutes.
In the face of the onslaught from the Nepalese women, the Lankans writhed to make any headway in the first half as they wilted under enormous pressure.
In the 35th minute, Nepal increased their tally via a shot from Bhandari, which deflected off a Lankan defender, send-off the goalie stranded as the teams headed into the changing rooms, with Nepal enjoying a comfortable 4-0 lead.
After the turnaround, the game followed a comparable pattern as the opening half, with Nepal controlling proceedings without any challenge mounted against them.
The home side scored again in the 50th minute, courtesy of a quick corner that set up Amisha Karki for a well-placed header into the top right corner.
Throughout the latter stages of the match, the home team made a few tactical substitutions in order to rest some of their key players, netting their sixth and final goal in stoppage time through Rashmi Kumari, thus sealing a dominant win 6-0.
Nepal had a decisive 10 corners in the game, while Sri Lanka had none, further exemplifying the clear gulf in class between the two nations.
Sri Lanka was all at sea against their hosts, being forced to play catch-up football throughout.
For them, only Nawanjana Perera stood out amidst the carnage, making several crucial saves, which would have otherwise resulted in a much bigger margin of defeat.
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