Nepal are out of the SAFF U19 Championship underway in Arunachal Pradesh of India. Bangladesh knocked them out with a 2-1 win in the first semi-final match played at the Golden Jubilee Stadium in Yupia on Friday.

Bangladesh and Nepal were both on the attack throughout the first half. Both created several chances. But they could not be converted, and the first 45 minutes ended goalless.

However, despite the failure to find the back of the net, both teams did not stop their approach at the beginning of the second half. In the 74th minute, Bangladesh got the chance to cheer when defender Ashikur Rahman headed a ball passed from the corner spot across the goal line.

Nazmul Huda Faysal, skipper of Bangladesh, was the one who assisted the ball for Rahman. Around seven minutes later, it was Fasyal, now the scorer, who made it 2-0.

Trailing by two goals, Nepal now intensified the attack. The wet artificial turf of the stadium in Yupia required more power in low passes, so Nepali players were continuously attempting long passes against Bangladesh’s taller players—all in vain.

Meanwhile, it was a build-up with short passes from the central region that helped Nepal get back in the fight. Sujan Dangol was the scorer with three minutes of regulation time left on the clock.

Nepal’s chances increased for a comeback when seven minutes were added to the clock.

There were hundreds of Yupia locals at the stadium cheering for Nepal since the first whistle. The cheers were heard only when Nepal created chances or while foiling those of the opponents.

Bangladesh did their utmost to waste as many seconds as possible in the end while denying Nepal the equaliser.

Bangladesh will face the winner of the other semi-final, between India and the Maldives, in the final on May 18.