Nagaland fought back late to hold hosts Chhattisgarh to a 1-1 draw in a Group B match of the Swami Vivekananda Under-20 Men’s National Football Championship 2026 on Monday.
Chhattisgarh took the lead in the 62nd minute after Indrajit Roy converted a penalty. Nagaland responded deep into stoppage time when Vinato Achumi scored in the 90+6 minute to secure a crucial point.
The result leaves Nagaland with one point from two matches. Manipur lead Group B with six points from two matches, followed by Chhattisgarh with four points from as many games, while Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (DNHDD) remain without a point. Nagaland will next face DNHDD on May 6 at the Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama Ground in Narainpur, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 AM.
In other matches, Manipur defeated DNHDD 7-0 on May 4, while Chhattisgarh had earlier beaten the same side 5-0. Manipur had also registered a 5-1 win over Nagaland on May 2.
Manipur and Chhattisgarh are now in contention for the quarter-final spot, with their final group match set to decide qualification. A draw will be enough to take Manipur through to the quarter-finals as the top team, while the hosts need a victory to progress to the last eight.
