Amid unpleasant weather conditions, the Haopu Kipgen Memorial 9th Sadar Hills District Super Division Football League, 2022 was kicked off at Brig M Thomas ground Kangpokpi Monday afternoon.
Earlier, the district super division football league was organised in memory of (L) K Hangshing till its eighth edition under the sponsorship of the deceased’s family. However, from the ninth edition, it is being organised in memory of (L) Haopu Kipgen under the sponsorship of the deceased’s family.
The opening ceremony of the league organised by Sadar Hills District Sports Association (SHDSA) was attended by Chongpu Kipgen, president of SHDSA, Evangelist Paoboi, various social workers, and CSOs leaders.
The opening match between Kangpokpi Youth Union (KYU) and Twilang Area Sporting Association (TASA) kicked off after a dedication prayer by Evangelist Paoboi and inspection of players by dignitaries led by SHDSA president Chongpu Kipgen.
In the inaugural match, TASA had an easy 3-0 win over KYU to open its winning account in its campaign in the league with Khamlenthang's brace in the 25th and 57th minutes and Seiminlun's 52nd-minute goal.
In the second match, the Kuki Football Academy (KFA) also opened its winning account by defeating Saikotjang Youth Club 2-0.
The first half of the heated game under a heavy shower ended in a goalless draw. However, KFA made a brilliant second-half comeback to find the opener through Lenboilun's 55th-minute strike before Kaikhokam doubled the lead in the 59th minute to seal the game 2-0.
The next matches of the four-team football league will be played on October 5 and October 10.
