Kolkata, Nov 14 (PTI) Sethu Madurai began their Indian Women’s League (IWL) 2026-27 campaign with a 2-1 victory over their southern rivals Kickstart FC Karnataka here on Saturday.
Ghanaian Juanita Aguadze scored twice for Sethu (18th, 67th), but was also responsible for Kickstart’s only goal of the game, an own goal in the 24th minute.
Kickstart FC controlled possession to begin with, making inroads with some neat interplay in midfield. Despite having the better share of opportunities, they couldn’t break the deadlock.
Sethu captain Malavika looked particularly impressive on the counter-attack, creating chances down the right wing at the other end.
The forward set up the opening goal of the game, picking out Juanita, who fired her effort into the top corner to give Sethu the lead in the 18th minute.
Kickstart responded within six minutes, drawing level from a corner courtesy of an own goal from Juanita.
The game settled into an evenly matched contest after the goals, with possession shared almost equally and both sides probing in midfield. Each team created half-chances, but there was nothing to separate them heading into the break.
Sethu began the second half positively. Juanita had a couple of opportunities to double her tally for the day, but was kept at bay by Aiswarya Arumugam at the Kickstart goal.
The Ghanaian’s hard work eventually paid off as her marauding run down the left wing resulted in Musken Subba being brought down in the box. Juanita made no mistake from the spot as she doubled her tally to put Sethu back in the lead in the 67th minute.
Nira Chanu’s long-range attempt was the closest Kickstart came to finding the equaliser.
Sethu stayed composed through the closing minutes and held on for a 2-1 win, taking all three points on the opening day of their campaign.
(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)