Jamshedpur, January 8: Jamshedpur FC capped off a dominant group-stage campaign with a 7–2 victory over Football 4 Change to finish as table-toppers in the Reliance Foundation Youth League Regional Qualifiers (Rest of India 2 ) on Thursday.
The win took Jamshedpur FC to 12 points from five matches, ensuring top spot in the standings ahead of Bidhannagar Municipal Sports Academy, who finished second with 11 points. Both teams have now qualified for the zonal round, where the best sides from each region will compete for further progression.
Jamshedpur once again asserted control from the opening whistle. Head coach Kaizad Ambapardiwalla handed a start to Alvin in place of Heeranganba Seram, and the youngster made an immediate impact. In the fourth minute, Alvin opened the scoring, calmly finishing off a cross from Sachin Singh.
Rayan C doubled the lead in the ninth minute, before Lawmsangzuala (Mama) made it 3–0 in the 17th minute as Jamshedpur continued to dominate possession and territory. Rayan struck again in the 38th minute to complete his brace and give Jamshedpur a commanding 4–0 lead at the break.
Football 4 Change showed resilience early in the second half, capitalising on a brief drop in intensity from Jamshedpur to score twice and put the Young Men of Steel under pressure. However, Jamshedpur regained composure and reasserted control in the closing stages.
Alvin was again involved in the build-up as Jamshedpur restored their cushion in the 80th minute, creating the chance for Sachin Singh to find the net. Substitute Heeranganba Seram then added the sixth goal, before Lawmsangzuala sealed the emphatic win with a stoppage-time strike in the 90+2 minute.
The result underlined Jamshedpur FC’s historic and highly impressive qualification campaign, achieved with a completely under-18 squad. Across five matches, the team scored a remarkable 38 goals while conceding just three, finishing as clear group leaders.
Individually, Rayan led the scoring charts for Jamshedpur with 10 goals, followed closely by Seram with nine and Lawmsangzuala with seven goals. Now the team's focus will shift to AIFF Elite League matches as they play FAO Academy, Bhubaneswar on January 10th.
