Midfielder Joshua Thayil scored a last-minute match-winner as host Ernakulam defeated last year’s runner-up Thrissur 1-0 and entered the final of the 48th Kerala State junior inter-district football championships at the Maharaja’s Stadium here on Tuesday.
Ernakulam will meet defending champion Malappuram in the final on Wednesday evening. Malappuram edged past Kasargod 7-6, via sudden death, in the other semifinal. The two teams were level 1-1 at the end of the regulation period.
The results (semifinals):
Ernakulam 1 (Joshua J. Thayil 70) bt Thrissur 0.
Malappuram 7 (Ajsal Rabeeh 60th min; C.N. Hisham, Akfal Ajas, Sinan Jalees, Ajsal Rabeeh, Boss Thongbam Meitei in tiebreaker) bt Kasargod 6 (Rihan Abdul Azeez 9; M.V. Arjun, Muhammed Fasil, Rihan Azeez, Ummer Afaf, A.K. Muhammed in tiebreaker).
Thrissur v Palakkad final
THODUPUZHA: Down by a goal for a major part of its match, Thrissur bounced back with two goals in a 14-minute spell and entered the final of the Kerala State sub-junior football championship at Vengaloor on Tuesday.
Thrissur will meet Palakkad, which defeated Kannur 2-1, in Wednesday’s final.
The results (semifinals): Palakkad 2 (Mohammed Sinan 1, S. Abhinav 17) bt Kannur 1 (Goutham Krishna 28);
Thrissur 2 (Ziyan Rasheed 47, B. Jithu 60+1) bt Kozhikode 1 (Muhammed Safvan 8).
