Patna: Sporting FC booked their place in the final of the Rekha Rai Memorial Patna District Junior Division Football League, where they will take on Patna Academy on 2 February.
In a gripping semi-final at Sanjay Gandhi Stadium, Sporting FC edged past Study and Sports FC 5-4 in a penalty shootout. The match ended goalless in regulation time. In the 76th minute of extra time, Devendra Kishku put Sporting FC ahead, but Kshitij Prakash equalised for Study and Sports FC just before the final whistle, taking the game to penalties.
In the shootout, Sporting FC converted four of their spot-kicks through Ganesh Hembram, Ashish Marandi, Rajesh Marandi, and Mohan Kishku. Sonu Ranjan and Mohammad Sharafrazuddin failed to score. For Study and Sports FC, Kshitij Prakash, Gautam Kumar Singh, and Ankit Kumar were successful, while Ravi Kumar, Ashish Ranjan, and Sumit Kumar missed their attempts.
Mohammad Saqlain (Sporting FC) and Sumit Kumar (Study and Sports FC) were shown yellow cards. Ashish Marandi of Sporting FC was named Player of the Match and received the award from advocate Pranjal Singh. The match was officiated by referees Amarjeet Kumar, Shubham Kumar Sharma, Sunil Kumar, and Harendra Prasad Yadav.