HERO I-LEAGUE GAMEWEEK 13: ROUND-UP

NEW DELHI: Gameweek 13 of the Hero I-League saw the return leg of the highly anticipated game in Indian Football – the Kolkata Derby. Leaders McDowell’s Mohun Bagan went into the fixture as the favourites, and following the end of the match, they retained their status.

Kingfisher East Bengal tried their best throughout the game, creating a lot of chances, but they couldn’t get the equaliser following 90 mins of play. Balwant Singh gave the hosts the lead in the second half, and the score remained 1-0 till the end. However, Debjit Majumder stole the spotlight as he saved uncountable goal-scoring opportunities from Eelco Schattorie’s side.

Debjit’s heroics was cheered by the 58,000-strong crowd present at the Yuva Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Saturday, as well as fans from the opposing team. He was also rightly adjudged as the Hero of the Match.

The three points on the day gave Bagan a total tally of 21 points in the Hero I-League.

Shillong dark horses and Hero I-League debutantes Royal Wahingdoh climbed to the third position in the league, following a 2-0 victory over Pune FC, who were touted to be the favourites going into the match.

The goals came from Jackichand Singh on either halves of the game. The lightning fast winger has been in an unbelievable form, ever since returning from the International duties, where he got his senior team debut for the Indian Football Team.

He now has scored thrice in a span of two games, and judging by his form, one can only say that there are more goals to come.

In the other games of the round, the Clubs from Goa did relatively well as none of the three outfits recorded a loss. While Salgaocar FC won by a 3-1 scoreline against Mumbai FC, Sporting Clube de Goa and Dempo SC recorded draws in their respective matches.

Rocus Lamare, Bikash Jairu, and Jaison Vales scored in the game for Salgaocar to give them a much-needed win. The only consolation for Mumbai FC came through Milagres Gonsalves, however that was in the dying moments of the game.

Sporting Clube de Goa recorded a 1-1 draw against Shillong Lajong FC at the Nehru Stadium in Fatorda in the Gameweek. Anthony Wolfe scored an early goal for the home side in the first half, with an assist coming off Odafa Okolie. The goal was however cancelled out by in-form Lajong forward Cornell Glen just before the half time.

The game between Dempo SC and newbies Bharat FC got locked in a goalless stalemate, and it ended with a 0-0 result.

Top 3 Teams (in order of Ranking):

McDowell’s Mohun Bagan – 21 points
Bengaluru FC – 17 points (better head-to-head record against RWFC)
Royal Wahingdoh FC – 17 points

Top Goalscorer:

Ranti Martins (KEB) – 12 goals from 9 games

ROYAL WAHINGDOH BREEZE PAST EAST BENGAL

SHILLONG: Godwin Franco’s first ever goal in Royal Wahingdoh FC colours saw his team beat Kingfisher East Bengal 1-0 in their rescheduled round nine match of the Hero I-League here on Tuesday.

A fantastic 30th minute strike put the hosts in front, while a later goal by Jackichand Singh was disallowed for offside. Although East Bengal left their hearts on the field, their efforts to score did not pay off.

The win lifts Wahingdoh, if only briefly, to the second spot in the standings, with 20 points, though Bengaluru FC have a chance to retake the position when they meet Sporting Clube de Goa later on.

Strong pressure was applied by the visiting side in the second half, but even Ranti Martins, who seems to never go a game without a goal, was unable to put the ball in the net for the Kolkata outfit.

The real action started in the fourth minute when two Wahingdoh players were brought down in quick succession. While the referee played advantage for the first, he blew his whistle for the second when the Royals’ skipper Densill Theobald was fouled just outside the box. Lalmangaihsanga’s free kick, however, just skirted over the crossbar.

Four minutes later it was the time for RWFC goalkeeper Prem Kumar Singh to pull off an excellent save after East Bengal were awarded a dangerous free kick on the right.

The Red and Golds suffered a blow later on when keeper Subhashish Roy Chowdhury collided with Kim Song Yong and had to be stretchered off and replaced by Abhijit Mondal. A ball forward found Kim racing ahead of the KEB defenders after planning his run well and Chowdhury came out of the box to try and put off the Korean, who chipped the ball over but wide of the mark.

The only goal of the game came exactly on 30 minutes when Wahingdoh earned a corner. Jackichand Singh spotted a free and unmarked Franco outside the penalty box and the midfielder rocketed a right-footer that beat Mondal to his left.

MATCH PREVIEW: BENGALURU FC VS SPORTING GOA

BENGALURU: Currently stationed at the second spot after the midway of the Hero I-League, the team from the Garden City, Bengaluru FC meet bottom-rung team Sporting Clube de Goa in a rescheduled Hero I-League fixture at the Kanteerava Stadium on Tuesday.

The JSW Group owned Bengaluru FC have been unbeaten against Sporting in I-League. Playing the away encounter last month, they thrashed Sporting 3-1 and in the last season, Bengaluru played a 0-0 draw at home, and in the away game they signed-off the league in style by winning 2-1.

Bengaluru might just want to go for a big win and keep the focus on retaining the title.

However, all is not well at the Sporting house – they have only managed five draws and are yet to see a win in the Hero I-League. They are eagerly looking for a win and that might be coming tomorrow, reckons Trinidad and Tobago International and World Cupper Anthony Wolfe.

“We are not scared, anybody can win on a given day. We have to score early and keep frustrating our opponents.” said Wolfe.

Sporting are gathering momentum lately, as they’ve held their opponents in the previous two matches. Odafa Okolie’s addition on loan has also added shine on their attack.

RA	Team	Pts
1	McDowell's Mohun Bagan	21
2	Royal Wahingdoh FC	20
3	Bengaluru FC	17
4	Pune FC	16
5	Salgaocar FC	14
6	Kingfisher East Bengal	13
7	Mumbai FC	12
8	Kalyani Bharat FC	10
9	Dempo Sports Club	9
10	Shillong Lajong FC	7
11	Sporting Clube de Goa	5