Bhubaneswar, Feb 17 (PTI) Three teams stood a chance to qualify from Group A after Kerala and Punjab won their respective matches in the Santosh Trophy national football championship here on Friday.

Karnataka and Maharashtra played out a scrappy draw in a six-goal thriller.

Kerala beat Odisha 1-0 with Nijo Gilbert scoring from the spot in the 16th minute.

In another match, Punjab defeated Goa 3-1.

Punjab found the net through Nickson Castanha (own goal) in the 20th minute while Rohit Sheikh scored in the 74th and 80th minutes.

Goa scored through Clencio Pinto in the 88th minute.

A leaky defence had been the bane of the defending champions Kerala in this edition, and they had conceded as many as they had scored (7), going into the crucial game against the hosts.

Source: PTI News