Pune FC held onto Arata Izumi's first half strike to score a solitary goal win over Dempo in the 19th round of the I-League here on Sunday.
Pune FC, which lost to sporting Clube de Goa in its last round, played a defensive game and launched a quick counter move in which it found the net in the 20th minute through Izumi's header off a cross from Baldeep Singh.
Pune's Amrinder Singh also put up a good display under the bar bringing off good saves especially in the dying minutes to give his team full points and take it to sixth place with 31 points from 19 matches.
While Dempo which was looking to extend its lead at the top suffered its first defeat after being unbeaten in the last five matches and now remains with 40 points from 19 matches. — PTI
