Indian Women's League: Kolhapur City beat SAI-STC Cuttack 2-0

FC Kolhapur City finished off their Indian Women's League campaign with a 2-0 victory over SAI-STC Cuttack at the Guru Nanak Stadium on Thursday.

It was a mixture of both experience and youth, as Kamala Devi and Renu scored two goals for Kolhapur. SAI defender Jyoti Kumari was awarded the Player of the Match for her exploits in the defence.

Kolhapur were the dominant of the two sides from the very beginning, as they enjoyed long bouts of possession in the middle of the park. The Maharashtra side got a lead early on in the game when their captain Kamala dribbled past two defenders and fired it in from outside the box in the seventh minute.

They went on to double their lead in a little over 10 minutes before the half-time whistle was blown, when Renu put one in from long range. The India U-19 international footballer received the ball on the right, dribbled past a defender and sent in a cross that sailed over SAI keeper Subha Patra into the goal.

The proceedings continued to be dominated by Kolhapur in the second half, as they looked up to their strong backbone Jabamani Tudu in defence, Kunti Kumari Lakra holding the middle, and Nigerian Crystal Eke leading the line. Captain Kamala tried to create chances from within the hole, while Renu made dangerous runs on the right.

With less than 10 minutes left on the clock, Renu had a chance to score a brace when she controlled a cross from the left and unleashed a fierce shot that thudded the crossbar. From the ensuing melee, Kamala got in a shot on the volley, which again hit the crossbar. The referee had already blown the whistle for a foul on an SAI defender.

With this win, Kolhapur have climbed over SAI to the third place on the table with seven points, but it was not enough for them to make it to the semi-finals.