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Santosh Trophy

Top three performers from Santosh Trophy 2024

Published at :January 1, 2025 at 12:17 PM
Modified at :January 1, 2025 at 12:18 PM
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(Courtesy : AIFF media)

Parashar Kalita


West Bengal won the Santosh Trophy for a record-breaking 33rd time.

After seven years, the West Bengal Football Team was crowned champion of the 78th Santosh Trophy. The state team defeated Kerala by a 1-0 scoreline at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad on Tuesday, December 31, 2024.

West Bengal and Kerala both progressed to the final with solid defending. Both teams managed seven clean sheets in total before the final. West Bengal beat defending champion Services by 4-2, while Kerala defeated the powerhouse of Indian football, Manipur, by a 5-1 scoreline.

In the final, both teams started carefully. It was hard for Bengal defenders to hold off Kerala’s fast-paced attacks, and two defenders, Bikram Pradhan and Juwel Mazumdar, were shown yellow cards in the first 35 minutes of the game.

Despite this, in the second half, Bengal’s defense held its ground and nullified all attacks from Kerala. When it seemed that the final of the Santosh Trophy was heading into extra time, Israful Dewan’s perfect cross found Manotos Maji in the centre. Manotos passed three defenders and found tournament top scorer Robi Hansda, who netted the goal for Bengal, helping them win the trophy for a record 33rd time.

In this article, we will discuss the top three performers of this tournament.

3. Sourav Samanta (West Bengal)

The custodian of the West Bengal football team managed six clean sheets throughout the tournament, including the final. Sourav made the crucial mistake of handling a backpass by hand in the ending moment of the match, but it did not cost his team.

However, credit for this performance also goes to defenders such as Juwel Mazumdar, Bikram Pradhan, Ayon Mondal, Rabilal Mandi, and others. With a solid backline, Sourav succeeded in maintaining his goalpost.

2. Naseeb Rahman (Kerala)

The 22-year-old forward, Naseeb Rahman, scored a total of eight goals in the tournament. In the quarterfinal, he scored the sole goal against Jammu and Kashmir in the 73rd minute, leading his team to the semifinal. In the semifinal, he was solid, opening the scoreline for the Kerala team.

However, in the final, despite getting chances, he could not convert them into goals. With eight goals, he was the top scorer for the Kerala team.

1. Robi Hansda (West Bengal)

Robi Hansda was the star boy of the 78th edition of the Santosh Trophy. After seven years of waiting, his late goal helped the West Bengal side lift the trophy. He scored 12 goals in the tournament. With this, Robi Hansda also broke the record for the highest score in a tournament for the Bengal team, set by Indian football legend Mohammed Habib, who scored 11 goals when Bengal won the Santosh Trophy in 1969.

He started the tournament by scoring two goals against the Jharkhand team in the group stage. From the quarterfinal to the final, he scored in three consecutive matches. He was named Man of the Match in both the semifinal and final.

For his outstanding performance, he was awarded the Peter Thangaraj Player of the Championship and the Tulsidas Balaram Player of the Final Match.

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