Halicharan Narzary’s Four-Goal Masterclass Not Enough as Bodoland FC Miss Durand Cup Knockouts

Bodoland FC produced one of the most dominant individual and team performances of the 135th IndianOil Durand Cup, but their emphatic 6-0 victory over Karbi Anglong Morning Star FC ultimately failed to deliver the reward they wanted.

At the centre of the performance was former India international and Bodoland captain Halicharan Narzary, who scored four goals and provided two assists at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Thursday.

Despite the commanding win, Bodoland finished their Group F campaign with six points the same tally as East Bengal FC and Jamshedpur FC. However, the latter two sides had superior goal differences, leaving Bodoland outside the quarter-final places. For Narzary, it was a spectacular afternoon. For Bodoland, it was a frustrating conclusion to a campaign in which they had done almost everything possible in their final match.

Karbi Anglong Morning Star made the quicker start, creating an opportunity inside the opening 20 seconds when Joseph Olaleye raced into the penalty area. His effort, however, was straight at Bodoland goalkeeper Birkhang Daimary. Bodoland soon began taking control, and their pressure resulted in the opening goal.

Siddharth Khichi was brought down inside the penalty area after a move initiated by Narzary's sweeping pass to Robinson Rendon. Rendon then played a perfectly weighted ball into Khichi's path before the forward was brought down by the advancing goalkeeper. Narzary stepped up from the penalty spot and calmly converted to give Bodoland the lead.

The former India international was already beginning to influence the match from the left side, and he nearly turned provider moments later. Narzary delivered a pinpoint cross for Rendon, whose first-time volley forced an excellent reflex save from A. Muhammed Murshid.

Karbi Anglong were handed an opportunity to equalise when Shubham Sarangi brought down Olaleye inside the box. Junior Onguene Nkengue took responsibility from the spot, but Birkhang Daimary produced an important save to keep the penalty out. The goalkeeper reacted quickly to deny the rebound from Paogoumang Singson as well.

Those saves proved crucial.

Bodoland doubled their advantage just before the hydration break, and once again Narzary was at the heart of the move. Rendon released the captain with a well-timed pass, allowing Narzary to break through the defensive line. He cut inside to evade a challenge before curling a low effort into the bottom corner.

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It was his second goal of the match. Karbi Anglong continued creating opportunities, but Daimary remained composed. He denied Taison Singh, stopped Olaleye in a one-on-one situation and later kept out a long-range effort from Manglienboi Neihsial.

Bodoland therefore went into half-time with a 2-0 lead. Bodoland carried their momentum into the second half. Just six minutes after the restart, Kaushik Daimari added a third.

The youngster received the ball between two defenders, used a quick turn to escape their challenges and then fired a left-footed shot from the edge of the box beyond the advancing goalkeeper. At 3-0, Bodoland were firmly in control. Narzary continued pulling the strings from the left, while Kaushik provided width on the opposite flank.

The combination created further opportunities, including one for Kiatalua Emous, whose effort was saved by the advancing goalkeeper.

But Narzary was not finished.

Hat-trick, assist and another goal

Six minutes from full time, Narzary completed his hat-trick. Kaushik Daimari delivered a perfectly weighted cross towards the back post, where the Bodoland captain controlled the ball before calmly lifting his finish over the goalkeeper. It was a composed finish and his third goal of the afternoon.

Five minutes later, Narzary turned provider. His low cross from the right found substitute Gwgwmsar Gayary, who calmly finished with his left foot from close range to make it 5-0. There was still time for one more. In the fourth minute of stoppage time, Narzary once again broke through the Karbi Anglong defensive line and finished calmly to complete his four-goal haul.

It was the perfect conclusion to an extraordinary individual performance. Narzary had scored four times and provided two assists, meaning he had a direct hand in all six Bodoland goals.

The irony was that even such a dominant performance could not take Bodoland FC into the quarter-finals. Their six points left them level with East Bengal FC and Jamshedpur FC, but the two other sides held superior goal differences and secured the places available for the best second-placed teams. Bodoland therefore ended their Durand Cup campaign despite producing a six-goal victory in their final match.

For Karbi Anglong Morning Star, meanwhile, the result brought another difficult campaign to an end. They finished without a point for the second consecutive season.

Bodoland will be left to reflect on what might have been. Their final match showcased their attacking quality, Narzary delivered one of the tournament's outstanding individual displays, and goalkeeper Daimary made several crucial saves.

But football is often decided by margins, and this time the margin was goal difference.

Halicharan Narzary may have scored four, assisted two and helped Bodoland win 6-0, but even that was not enough to keep their Durand Cup dream alive.