Sethu FC players celebrating one of their goals in the Indian Women's League. (Photo courtesy: AIFF Media)
Defending champions Sethu FC made a flying start to their IWL campaign by a resounding score-line of 5-0 against Kolhapur City FC at the Bangalore Football Stadium on Friday, January 24.
Amsavalli opened the scoring in the 18th minute before Sandhiya notched up a second half hat-trick, with K. Sumithra also opening her account to round off a thoroughly dominating victory.
The initial exchanges between the two teams were cagey, but Sethu dominated possession, while Kolhapur’s Plan A involved catching their opponents on the break.
The deadlock was broken in the eighteenth minute by Amsavalli, after she broke down the right flank, leaving her marker at bay before cutting in to the left and placing it clinically to put Sethu in front.
The match headed into half-time with just the solitary goal in the book, leaving Kolhapur with a chance to weave a comeback.
That changed after the hour mark, when Sandhya scored the second in the 61st minute, after she found herself 1v1 with the keeper, before gently placing it beyond keeper Shreya Hooda’s reach, to her far post.
Just three minutes later, defender K. Sumithra rounded off the keeper to score the third before Sandhya scored her second and Sethu’s fourth in the 66th minute.
The cherry on the icing on the top was added in the second minute of stoppage time. Sandhya broke through again, not for the first time today, to complete her hat trick, the first of this IWL season as the defending champions get their season underway with a statement victory.
(AIFF Media)