Santosh Trophy: Kerala crash out after draw with Punjab

Bhubaneswar: Holders Kerala crashed out of the Santosh Trophy after managing only a 1-1 draw with Punjab in their final Group A match here on Sunday.

Kerala, who needed a win to progress to the semifinals, went ahead through Visakh Mohanan in the 24th minute.

However, Rohith Shaikh drew level for Punjab in the 34th.

Karnataka played out a 2-2 draw with hosts Odisha to join Punjab in the semifinals from the group.

Action from the Kerala-Punjab match. Photo: Twitter@IndianFootball

Punjab topped the group with 11 points from five matches. Karnataka finished second with nine points followed by Kerala (eight). Both Punjab and Karnataka remained unbeaten in the final round.

Maharashtra beat Goa 2-0 to finish their campaign on a high. They ended in fourth place with six points, while Odisha (five) came fifth. Goa remained at the bottom having lost all five of their games.

Kerala, who began with a 3-2 win over Goa, suffered a 0-1 loss to Karnataka. They drew 4-4 with Maharashtra before edging Odisha 1-0.

The semifinals and final will be played in Riyadh.

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