Bhutia sits out, Sikkim knocked out

If star power were to dictate the course of a match, Sikkim would have won hands down against defending champions Manipur. Fortunately, the game is played on the field and, with Bhaichung Bhutia on the bench, Manipur didn8217;t have to bother about his presence. The defending champions simply outclassed their northeastern opponents to register a 5-1 and join Kerala, who beat Delhi 2-1, in the semifinals of the Santosh Trophy here today.

Taking lead in the second minute through man-of-the-match T Narendra Singh, Manipur attacked at will and were never tested by Sikkim, who hardly appeared like playing to any plan. Narendra 8212; he scored four of the five goals 8212; was the right man at the right place and at the right time, latching on to accurate passes from James Singh on the right and Bijen Singh on the left.

The only goal for Sikkim came in the 41st minute when Pempa Bhutia managed to slam the ball in after it rebounded off the crossbar following a Kamal Bagdas header.

Leading 3-1 at break, Manipur continued their onslaught in the second half and even a pep talk by Bhaichung made no difference to the 8216;8216;young, inexperienced team,8221; as coach Sherap Lepcha put it after the match. 8220;Manipur is a strong team, and my boys were nervous,8221; he added.