The Hindu : Sport / Football : Salgaocar upsets JCT Mills

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Monday, Nov 05, 2007
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Salgaocar upsets JCT Mills

Principal Correspondent

NEW DELHI: Salgaocar Sports Club endured some tense moments, but the two first-half goals were enough for the Goan team to upset the 2007 National Football League (NFL) runner-up, JCT Mills, 2-1 and make it to the semifinals of the 120th Osian’s Durand Cup football tournament at the Ambedkar Stadium here on Sunday.

Salgaocar will relish such a start to the season after having regained its spot in the NFL. Though on paper both the teams were evenly balanced, the 2003 champion Salgaocar attacked early on taking JCT unawares. The two goals came within 30 minutes — through Anil Kumar and Shylo Malswamtlunga.

Two teams each from Goa and Mumbai will battle it out in the semifinals. Salgaocar will meet Mahindra United in the second semifinal on Monday after the Churchill Brothers-Air India match.

Unimpressive

Mahindra played an insipid game while Sporting Clube de Goa was also equally unimpressive. The teams had mid-field exchanges, but there were hardly any attempts at the goal as the match meandered to a dull spectacle.

After the regulation time and extra-time failed to break the deadlock, Mahindra United came up trumps in the tie-break, winning it 5-3.

N.P. Pradeep opened the scoring for Mahindra before Manjit Singh, Harpreet Singh, Mohammed Rafi and Yusuf Yakubu slotted in to keep the Mumbai team in front. For Sporting Clube de Goa, Boniface Ambani struck the opener, but N. Singh missed the second penalty and there itself the Goan team lost the plot. Micky Fernandes and Bibiano Fernandes also scored, but that really did not matter.

The boredom of the first match was lifted by the exuberance of Salgaocar. Just into the seventh minute and Nigerian striker Felix Chimaokwo cut through the JCT defence and set up Anil Kumar in the centre. The fellow striker made no mistake helping Salgaocar open an early lead.

JCT relied heavily on Sunil Chhetri, the highest Indian goal scorer in the 2007 NFL. Chhetri was busy with the National team, which drew its home leg of the World Cup qualifier against Lebanon in Goa.

Chhetri’s presence itself was crucial, but his attempts were foiled as the striker was heavily marked by Salgaocar defenders. JCT’s first real chance came in the 28th minute when Baljit Sahni raced up and ended in earning a corner.

Marcos Pereira’s two corner shots were copybook as first Salgaocar defender Nicolas Colaco made a goal-line save, and then JCT’s Shivaraj Singh struck the post from the goal mouth after he chanced on a loose ball off a melee.

Two minutes later, Salgaocar counterattacked leaving the JCT defence in a state of shock. JCT left the rushing Malswamtlunga unguarded and he put Salgaocar 2-0 up.

JCT showed emergency in finding its first goal and Chhetri went to work again with determination. He created two chances, but Salgaocar had its goal well covered. At the stroke of halftime though, Chhetri headed in a cross from the Brazilian striker, Eduardo Da Silva Escobar. A 2-1 score-line looked somewhat bearable with 45 still remaining.

But despite attacking Salgaocar’s post on a number of occasions, JCT ended being shut out from the Durand Cup.

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