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Santosh Trophy final: Kerala beat West Bengal in penalty shoot-out

Bengal was just four minutes away from winning its 32nd title in the tournament

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Kerala lifted its seventh Santhosh Trophy beating West Bengal in a penalty shootout - 5-4 (1-1).

In front of 25,000 fans, the home team triumphed over the 32-time champions at the Manjeri Payyanad Stadium on Monday.

It was a case of history repeating itself — Kerala's last triumph also came after a shootout against Bengal four years ago at Kolkata.

Tonight, though, Bengal was just four minutes away from winning its 32nd title in the tournament. It was leading by the 97th-minute goal scored by Dilip Orawn, but Muhammed Safnad equalised for Kerala.

In the shootout, Bengal had to pay dearly for missing out on its second attempt, from Sajal Bag. All the other kicks went in. When the last of those kicks, taken by Kerala's M. Faslurahman, kissed the right top corner, the stadium erupted.

It was the eastern team's 46th final overall, and they had entered this contest as favourites, owing to their outstanding record in the tournament since its start in 1941.

Kerala defeated West Bengal in the first round, and Bino George's men once again fancied their chances against the most successful team in the tournament's history.

Meanwhile, West Bengal will look to settle the score by winning this fixture. They will also be looking to avenge their 2018 Santosh Trophy final defeat, which they lost in penalties after the game ended in a stalemate at the end of regulation time.

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