Did Kerala lose Santosh Trophy title because of refereeing error in the semifinal?

Kerala conceded a late goal to West Bengal to lose the Santosh Trophy final on New Year's Eve. Bengal striker Robi Hansda nudged off Adil Amal in front of the goalkeeper to poke the winner in added time. Hansda was more committed to reaching the bouncing ball, while the young Kerala defender could not match the tenacity.

It is unfair to blame 22-year-old Kerala defender Adil for the slip-up at a crucial moment in the match. It was a long and exhaustive game, and he was up against the current Santosh Trophy's leading marksman. But the fact is Adil should never have played the final in the first place. He had started the match as a replacement for experienced centre-back Manoj M, who had been sent off in the semifinals against Manipur.

In the added time of the semifinal, Manoj was given a second yellow card for time wasting. It was a controversial sending-off, to say the least. Kerala won the match 5-1, but at that point, the score was 4-1 when referee Jarvish Maewan thought Manoj was taking too long to take a freekick that was set deep in the Kerala half.

The Kerala team was stunned. Captain Sanju went to reason with the referee, while Head Coach Biby Thomas was furious on the touchline as he tried to talk sense to the fourth official. "That was a silly decision. How was that time-wasting? Manipur were three goals behind and less than four minutes of the five added-on remained. How were a few seconds delay going to deny Manipur in any way," fumed a Kerala Football Association official.

Manoj would have played in the final had the referee who officiated the semifinal applied commonsense and not given him the red card for a mild offence that was hardly an infraction, considering the circumstances.

Whether Manoj would have stopped Hansda from poking home that late winner had he played in place of Adil is debatable. But the chances are high considering Manoj was one of the best defenders in the Santosh Trophy campaign, alongside his captain Sanju G.

Manoj had played a huge part in Calicut FC clinching the maiden Super League Kerala title recently. He was the 'KFA player of the year' in 2022.

Kerala could not appeal Manoj's controversial sending-off because there was no such provision in the Santosh Trophy. The scope for appealing a dubious refereeing decision exists only in the ISL. In hindsight, maybe the referee from the semifinal unwittingly contributed to Kerala's defeat in the final.