A solitary goal from the Maldives dealt a blow to Nepal's hope to reach the semifinal of the AFC Challenge Cup in their second match played at Dashrath Stadium Saturday evening.

A goal from Maldivian striker Rashid in the 55th minute proved to be the end of the show for Nepal. Nepal made a number of attacking moves in the latter part of second half, but were held back by strong defence of the Maldives.

Dashrath stadium was packed with Nepali football lovers who got the taste of disappointment for the second time after Thursday's opening blow to their team.

Before today's match, Nepal and the Maldives were in a similar position in the Challenge Cup tally. Nepal had lost to Palestine 2-0 in the first match on Thursday while the Maldives had lost to 3-1 defeat with Turkmenistan in the match played at APF stadium, Halchowk.

Last time the two South Asian teams had faced each other was in SAFF Championship held in New Delhi two months ago, playing 1-1 draw. nepalnews.com