Kerala's Titanium defeated Punjab Police 2-1 in a group 'B' match of the 2nd division National Football League at the J R D Tata Sports Complex in Jamshedpur on Wednesday.
Dominating the proceedings from the beginning, the Kerala outfit surged ahead in the 38th minute when striker D Ebinrose netted the ball.
Several other good moves by the team in the first half were, however, foiled by the Punjab Police defenders. But accurate short-passes by the team's forwards helped put pressure on the rival camp.
In the second half, forward K Samir successfully converted a pass from the right flank into a goal in the 53rd minute increasing Titanium's margin 2-0.
Punjab Police forwards, led by Harish Sharma and Vijay Pal, also made several good moves after trailing 0-2.
In the dying minutes, Vijay Pal headed home a measured pass from the left wing by Harish Sharma to reduce the lead.
Punjab Police lost a golden opportunity to equalise when a 30-yard direct shot by Gurpreet Singh was stopped by the goalkeeper in the second half.
Punjab Police's K Renjith (39th minute) and Sumit Bali (80th minute) were cautioned for unsporting behaviour.
In another group 'B' match, the first leg champion from West zone, Hayward Sporting Club, Goa, drew 1-1 with the North-East runners up Manipur police.
Manipur Police had led in the first half through a 23rd minute goal by striker N Desh Kumar Singh despite the overall supremacy of Hayward Sporting Club.
The equaliser for Hayward came in the 85th minute when Manipur Police defender Nabin Rai roughly tackled Dudu and the referee awarded them a penalty. Dudu from Nigeria did not miss the chance and converted it into a goal.
