Nepal thrashes Bhutan 6-1 in SAFF U-20 Women’s Championship opener

Nepal had a great start in the SAFF U-20 Women’s Championship after beating Bhutan 6-1 on Friday in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Purnima Rai scored four goals, including a hat-trick, and Senu Pariyar added two more to give Nepal a strong win in their first match of the tournament.

The match was played at the Bashundhara Kings Arena, where Nepal dominated early, scoring three goals in the first half and adding three more in the second half. Bhutan managed to score one goal in the second half.

Senu gave Nepal the lead in the 9th minute with a brilliant goal from outside the penalty box after receiving a pass from Barsha Oli.

Purnima made it 2-0 in the 18th minute, scoring from a one-touch shot inside the six-yard box from Barsha’s cross.

Just before halftime, Senu scored again in the 45th minute after dodging a defender and finishing off a pass from Barsha, making it 3-0.

Bhutan showed signs of a comeback with a goal from Kelden Wangmo in the 53rd minute. However, Nepal responded quickly.

Purnima scored again in the same minute to give Nepal a 4-1 lead. She completed her hat-trick in the 83rd minute and scored her fourth goal in the 88th, sealing Nepal’s 6-1 win.

Nepal missed a few more chances to score, including close attempts by Sukriya Miya and Barsha Oli, or the goal difference could have been even bigger.

With this win, Nepal collected 3 points. In another match earlier today, hosts Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka 9-1 and also earned 3 points.

Both Nepal and Bangladesh have 3 points, but Bangladesh leads the table due to better goal difference. The two teams will face each other on Sunday.

There are four teams in the tournament, and matches are being played in a double round-robin format. The team with the highest points at the end will be crowned champion.