Siliguri: Prayag United edged past ONGC 2-1 in the concluding quarter-final league match from group A to enter the semi-finals of the 117th IFA Shield tournament at the Kanchenjunga Stadium here on Monday. After Prayag went ahead through Costa Rican World Cupper Carlos Hernandez's goal in the 35th minute, ONGC drew level through Jatin Singh three minutes before the breather, while Md Rafique netted the match winner for Prayag in the second half.
East Bengal have already moved into the last four stage collecting nine points after winning all the three league matches. Prayag finished runners up in the group with six points and were followed by ONGC who got three points from three outings while Pailan Arrows, the fourth team in the group, failed to earn a single point. The match saw fierce competition between Prayag and ONGC as both started with three points from two matches. Both of them beat bottom side Pailan Arrows and were defeated by East Bengal.
Though Prayag dominated the show right from the kick-off, they had to wait till midfielder Hernandez found the target. The lead was, however, shortlived as ONGC restored parity from a free kick seven minutes later, through Singh. The second half saw Prayag starting with a renewed vigour. The tactics paid dividend as Mohammed Rafique scored the winner in the 52nd minute after capitalising on a nice pass by James Singh. The two semi-finals will be played on March 15 and 17.
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