Ato Chopi’s late equaliser saw Nagaland hold host Assam to a 3-3 draw in a topsy-turvy contest in the final round of Santosh Trophy 2025-26 at the Dhakuakhana Stadium on Friday.
It was the first point for either side in the final round of this season’s tournament, with Assam coming into the contest after a 0-1 loss to Tamil Nadu while Nagaland was thrashed 0-4 by defending champion West Bengal in its previous fixture.
Nagaland, which qualified for the final round of the Santosh Trophy for the first time this season, broke the deadlock when Laiwang Bohham found the net in the 27th minute.
However, Didwm Hazowary, the captain of Bodoland FC, rose to the occasion for Assam, finding the equaliser within 12 minutes.
After the restart, the Nagas came all guns blazing. And within nine minutes, they were ahead.
S Ayenmongba, who had turned heads at the Dr T Ao Inter-District Football Championship 2025, got his name on the scoresheet this time around.
But defensive lapses after scoring came back to bite Nagaland again as Akrang Narzary restored parity just after the hour mark.
Assam tried to ride on the late momentum and found a third goal off Timothi Narzary in the 76th minute. But Chopi’s goal, eight minutes from time, pegged the host back to level terms in a six-goal affair.
Nagaland plays Tamil Nadu on January 25 at this same venue, while Assam locks horns with Uttarakhand in Silapathar later on the same day.
Later in the day, reigning champions West Bengal snatched all three points in the last minute, beating Uttarakhand 1-0 to remain at the top of the table, while Tamil Nadu lost 0-1 to Rajasthan. (With inputs from Sportstar)