Narainpur (Chattisgarh), April 16 West Bengal became the first team to book their spot in the Swami Vivekananda U-20 Men's NFC quarter-finals as they beat Uttarakhand 3-0 at the Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama Ground on Tuesday.
Ahead of the last matchday in Group E, Uttarakhand and Tamil Nadu were the other two sides vying for a last-eight berth. However, the latter could only earn a last-gasp draw against already-eliminated Punjab to bow out of the first-ever U-20 Men's NFC.
West Bengal took an early lead in the must-win clash after Santanu Naskar scored in the third minute. Rahul Naskar and Shibam Munda added a second and a third in the 60th and 69th minute, respectively. The former is West Bengal's top scorer in the tournament so far with three goals. While the winners finished atop Group E with seven points, Uttarakhand ended their campaign in third place with a solitary win over Punjab on the opening day to their name.
West Bengal will face the winner of Group C in the first quarter-final on April 19.
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