Bello’s Header Seals The Hero I-League Trophy After 13 Years

BENGALURU: Incessant rains in the Garden City failed to dampen the spirit of thousands of supporters who turned up to the stadium hours before kick-off. The BFC chants were evenly replied by the Mariners who travelled across the country to witness history. Crowd attendance reached the all-time high of 22,000.

Host Bengaluru FC started the game attacking from right to left.

Bagan forced a corner right at the first minute of the game. For Bengaluru, A Bengaluru player was tripped in front of the box by defender Kingshuk, a freekick was awarded, which went vain.

Match pressure on a high occasion like this slept into the nerves of both teams, many playing in such a big occasion.
After fast-paced first 15 minutes which was quite difficult to play on heavy ground conditions, Bagan started to play a holding game.

Boya, playing exceptionally well with the Bagan attacking front kept Bengaluru defense alert. However, Bagan failed to capitalize the set pieces in the first half.

In 39th minute, Boya’s pass to Sony, and a long run and powerful header almost got the goal for Bagan. The ball hit the post where goalkeeper Ralte was out of position.

Joy of the goal was reverted for the host team when Bengaluru got a corner in the next minute. A powerful header by John Johnson from Lyngdoh’s corner gave the hosts the much needed lead. What an occasion Johnson chose to score the first goal of this season!

Bagan got an opportunity to equalize in the added time of the first half when they went all out. A feeble shot from Balwant enabled Johnson to comeup with a brilliant goal-line save.

Heavy rain in the first 15 minutes of second half, made extremely difficult for Bagan come back to the game, though they had more share of attacks.

Constant attack yielded the much needed equalizer – Sony’s corner gave the Bello equalizer goal through a header, eventually McDowell Mohun Bagan lifted the coveted Hero I-League trophy after 13 long years.

Shillong Lajong Thrashed Listless East Bengal Thanks To Glen’s Hattrick

SHILLONG: Shillong Lajong staved off relegation with a fantastic 5-1 triumph over East Bengal at the JN Stadium here on Saturday, thanks to a hat-trick from Hero of the Match Cornell Glen.

With this victory the Reds confirmed their place in the next season of the Hero I-League and did not have to bother with keeping an eye out for the other results of the day.

Besides Glen, Seiminlen Doungel and Zodingliana contributed to Lajong’s goal fest, while Cavin Lobo scored what proved to be a little meaningless in the grand scheme of things.

Zodingliana looked like the best of the home team’s players early on and was involved in thick of the action throughout his stint on the field before being substituted with just a few minutes left on the clock. Besides his second hat-trick of the season, Glen assisted with the first goal, setting up Zoding with a perfect forward pass that the Mizoram player slotted past East Bengal goalkeeper Luis Xavier Barreto.

The hosts must have been wary of Ranti Martins and Dudu Omagbemi going into the game, but the Nigerians were kept at bay and the visitors had to rely on a fine combination by Robert Lalthlanumna and Lobo for the equaliser in the 32nd minute, negating Zoding’s 20th minute strike.

Lalthlanumna cut the ball back nicely for Lobo, who spun around and fired the ball into the back of the net from outside the box.

That silenced the fans, who turned out in good numbers to support Lajong, but they were reenergised just a couple of minutes into the second half when Glen retook the lead for SLFC, thanks to a rebound off an EB player that fell into his lap, providing him the perfect chance to hammer the ball home.

His other two entries on the scoresheet were in the 75th and 80th minutes, getting ahead of the defenders to score with his right boot in the former and heading the ball to make it 5-1 in the latter.

Before this, Seiminlen Doungel proved to be the super substitution of the game after scoring a brilliant goal just two minutes after coming on the field for Uilliams Souza Silva. The No 10, who had a terrible time in the last game against Pune FC, redeemed himself with a sprint up the left flank and firing the ball on the run from a very tight angle.

It was a thoroughly emotional game for the players and the victory was one that every fan must have been praying for. The Red & Gold brigade would have had a shot at third place in the final standings had they won the game, but they were completely blitzed in the second half, unable to put up much of a fight.

From the scoreline one might almost imagine the visitors to have been the lower-ranked team, but that just goes to prove the Hero I-League’s unpredictable and fascinating nature, with Lajong triumphant today.

Record Time I-League Champion Dempo Failed The Relegation Test

GOA: Salgaocar Football Club scored an astonishing late 2-0 victory over Dempo Sports Club to relegate the five-time champions in a spellbinding concluding game of Hero I-League at Tilak Maidan, Vasco, on Saturday.

Dempo, needing a win to save themselves, were dominating all through and tested Salgaocar. They went close on several occasions and Salgaocar made them pay with two goals in added time through Gilbert Oliveira and Darryl Duffy in the sixth and eighth minute respectively of added time.

Dempo started with the right intent and had the first look in the third minute itself but a long ranger from Rowilson Rodrigues was parried away by goalkeeper Karanjit Singh. Tolgay Ozbey found the rebound but the Salgaocar defence crowded out the Australian striker.

Dempo knew they had to win the game to be sure of saving relegation and the former champions were hitting the right buttons with relentless attack. Jewel Raja was put through but his cross was poor. In the eighth minute, there was another chance when the ball was pushed towards the Salgaocar goal but Peter Carvalho’s header was cleared by the defenders.

Salgaocar took some time to get into the groove and it was not until the 14th minute that they had their first chance. Darryl Duffy split the rival defence with a through ball that Umesh Harijan tried to finish off but Dempo goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani proved equal to the task.

Dempo were not to be left behind and Tolgay was proving to be a thorn in the rival flesh. First he found Alwyn, who ended up with a feeble attempt, and a few minutes later, his own shot was brilliantly saved by the goalkeeper.

Even though Dempo were dominating play, Salgaocar had another chance, again for Harijan but the youngster playing only his second I-League match missed the shot completely.

Towards the closing stages of the first half, and with Dempo now desperate to win, Karanjit almost gifted Dempo the goal, until Zambian defender Francis Kasonde rushed to his team’s rescue.

The agony for Dempo continued in the 41st minute when Tolgay dribbled past a clutch of defenders, and took a shot at goal which hit the post and went out of play.

The second half started just the way the first had ended. In the 57th minute, Tolgay found himself with only the goalkeeper to beat but his shot hit the goalkeeper’s leg and went past the goalpost.

Regular goalkeeper Karanjit Singh had to be replaced for Salgaocar after suffering an injury and his place was duly taken by Subrata Paul. The India captain was called into action and was on hand to effect big saves towards the closing stages of the match. First he put away Uttam Rai’s shot but he was at his best when he denied Francis Fernandes with just eight minutes left on the clock.

There was drama when eight minutes of added time were shown. Dempo attacked relentlessly and Salgaocar defended stoutly, and out of nowhere Salgaocar scored, twice. First Gilbert Oliveira scored with a solo run to break Dempo’s resolve and Duffy made it 2-0 with a lofted attempt.

The win helped Salgaocar survive but Dempo went down.

Mumbai FC Appeared Too Strong For Newbie Bharat FC

MUMBAI: Mumbai FC ended their Hero I-League campaign on a high with a 2-1 win over Kalyani Bharat FC at the Cooperage football ground on Saturday.

The result helped Mumbai achieve their best-ever finish in the I-League as they are placed sixth on the table with 24 points.

Playing in extremely humid and muggy conditions, the hosts needed three points to be assured of safety as they were one of the five teams involved in the battle to avoid relegation. And they did just that, thanks to goals from Ashutosh Mehta and Taisuke Matsugae.

With 18 points from 20 matches, Bharat FC finished at the bottom of the table. However, they were spared from relegation as they are one of the new franchise teams The league rules give them a cushion for the first three years.
Both teams started with a lot of purpose. Bharat FC got a great opportunity to take the lead in the fourth minute. But Dharmaraj Ravanan’s header off a Steven Dias corner sailed harmlessly over the bar. That was the only time the visitors came close to scoring in the first half. Mumbai took control of the proceedings soon after that attempt and their Japanese import Matsugae came close to scoring a goal. He pounced on a loose ball inside Bharat FC box and tried to unleash a shot. But his effort was smothered by an onrushing Shaninlal Meloly.

The hosts broke the deadlock in the 10th minute. Mehta leapt over the defenders in a crowded box and scored a brilliant header from a corner to give Mumbai the lead. But both teams lost steam and were tired owing to the extremely humid climate.

Mumbai FC protected their lead going into the half time but Bharat looked rejuvenated in the second half after their coach Stuart Watkiss introduced Omar Jarun in place of Subhash Singh. Omar’s towering presence unsettled the Mumbai defence. Both teams cancelled each other out for most part of the second half but Jarun made the most of a half-chance that came his way.

In the 69th minute, substitute Surajit Bose split the Mumbai defence with a through ball. It released Jarun, who was one on one with Mumbai goalkeeper Kunal Sawant. With the ball running away from him, Jarun made the most of his height and stretched his legs to lob it over an onrushing Sawant. Abhishek Yadav, who had come in as a substotute mimutes earlier, tried to clear it off the line but headed it in his own net instead.

Bharat could have won the match but Romulao Boco’s brilliant shot from edge of the box hit the cross bar. Boco, who held the midfield together for the visitors, was named Hero of the Match.

Just when it seemed the match was heading for a draw, Matsugae scored a brilliant header from a Mohammad Rafi cross in the stoppage time to clinch the win for Mumbai.

RA	Team	Pts
1	McDowell's Mohun Bagan	39
2	Bengaluru FC	37
3	Royal Wahingdoh FC	30
4	Kingfisher East Bengal	29
5	Pune FC	29
6	Mumbai FC	24
7	Salgaocar FC	24
8	Sporting Clube de Goa	23
9	Shillong Lajong FC	23
10	Dempo Sports Club	19
11	Kalyani Bharat FC	18