CHIRAG UNITED
v
AIR INDIA
Yuba Bharati Krirangan, Kolkata
Dec 11th, 1:45 PM IST
CHIRAG UNITED 0-0 AIR INDIA [Full Time]–
1′: Match kicks off. Chirag United was unable to conquer the Airmen last season. The match in Kolkata ended 3-3 while Air India won 3-1 in Mumbai. The clash in Kolkata was a particularly thrilling one. Air India raced to a 3-1 lead by half time. Subrata rang in changes n 2nd half as Chirag came back to tie the match.
13′: Most of the play is limited to the midfield so far.
30′: Chirag are dominating possession through Lalkamal and Denson but they are unable to break the deadlock.
40′: The managers of both teams were infamous for their disciplinary problems as players. Subrata Bhattacharya clashed numerous times times with officials and coaches. Yusuf Ansari was slapped with one of the lengthiest bans in Indian football history after a no holds barred fight with Salgaocar’s Uday Konar in 1997 NFL. Its still 0-0.
HT Chirag United 0-0 Air India: It’s goal less as the teams go into lemon break. The best chance of first half fell to Elizah Junior but he was caught offside.
60′: At the hour mark both teams are still searching for an all elusive goal.
70′: Lalkamal, Junior amd Joshimar are pushing hard for a goal. Air India defence is dealing with Chirag’s attackers efficiently.
FT Chirag United 0-0 Air India: Air India frustrated Chirag United with their gutsy defensive display. Air India’s Dhanachandra Singh is TheHardTackle’s Man of The Match.
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DEMPO SC
v
JCT FC
Fatorda Stadium, Margaon
Dec 11th, 15:45 PM IST
DEMPO SC 2-0 JCT [Full Time]
10′: JCT failed to get any points against Dempo last season. Both matches ended 2-1, in favour of the Goans. Will JCT be able to tame the defending champions today ? It’s 0-0 after 10 minutes at the Fatorda Stadium.
20′: Early signs of Dempo domination. However no goal scoring opportunities yet.
25′: We are into the half hour mark. Still it’s goalless at the Fatorda Stadium, Margaon. Dempo is creating a host of chances and dominating the proceedings at the moment. I can see a goal coming here.
26′: Beto scores from the spot. One of the JCT defenders fouls Ranty inside the box. Referee does not hesitate to award a penalty. Beto calmly slotted home the spot-kick. Dempo leading by 1-0.
35′: GOOAALLLL !!! Dempo scores again.
35′: Dempo 2-0 JCT :: JCT conceded another penalty and Ranty Martins steps up to take it. But he hits the spot-kick straight against the right post. Luckily it rebounds back and falls for him and this time he makes no mistakes.
HT: Dempo SC 2-0 JCT FC :: It’s half time here at Margaon and Dempo is leading by two goals.
55′: Dempo leading by two goals and started off the second half brightly. Margaon crowd can expect to witness few more goals here.
60′: No more goals yet. The score-board reads Dempo SC 2-0 JCT.
70′: Dempo dominating the match but unable to convert the dominance into another goal. Beto has performed admirably well in his comeback match after his alleged rift with coach Armando Colaco.
80′: 10 minutes to go for the final whistle. Dempo continues their ruthless dominance.
FT: DEMPO SC 2-0 JCT FC :: Dempo registers their first win of the campaign. After the third round, they have 4 points with the help of a win, draw and defeat each. JCT’s struggle continues and they remain on only one point after three matches. Roberto Mendes da Silva – “Beto” – is TheHardTackle’s man of the match. Thanks for joining us.
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ONGC FC
v
SALGAOCAR
Cooperage Ground, Mumbai
Dec 12th, 3:30 PM IST
–
ONGC FC 0-1 SALGAOCAR [Full Time]
10′: No goals so far at the Cooperage.
20′: The match is evenly poised here. ONGC, despite being the underdogs, having more ball possession in the first 20 minutes.
35′: Nice attack by Salgaocar, but Sueoka’s pass towards Anthony Barbosa is a bit too long and ONGC ‘keeper Rajat collects the ball.
HT: It’s half time at Mumbai and the score-line remains goalless.
50′: ONGC deserves credit for keeping the star-studded Salgaocar attack at bay. Still goal-less.
60′: Good build-up play by Sueoka and Yakubu. But ONGC ‘keeper Raja Ghosh Dastidar makes a nice save.
70′: 20 minutes remaining for Salgaocar to get a goal but ONGC players are showing great determination.
78′: GOOOAAALLLL !!! Salgaocar scores at-last ! Yakubu is the scorer from a penalty kick.
85′: 5 minutes remaining. Scoreline reads ONGC 0-1 SALGAOCAR.
FT: Salgaocar registers their third successive win here. Yusif Yakubu is TheHardTackle’s man of the match.
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CHURCHILL BROTHERS
v
MOHUN BAGAN
Fatorda Stadium, Margaon
Dec 12th, 3:45 PM IST
–
CHURCHILL 2-0 MOHUN BAGAN [Full Time]
1′: The top of the table encounter begins at Margaon.
4′: Mohun Bagan’s misery continues as Churchill’s Odafa Okolie scores the opener in the 4th minute.
10′: That could have been the equalizer for Bagan. But Churchill ‘keeper Lalit Thapa makes a great stop to deny Muritala Ali.
15′: Odafa scores again, but the offside flag is raised by the linesman. Chidi got hold of a Barreto pass but he takes one touch too many and Robert Lalthalma clears the danger.
18′: Bagan attacking from both the wings. Snehasish and Gouranga both are playing well.
20′: Barreto is playing little deep today – the role of a creator.
24′: Odafa is one on one with Shilton here, but his shot is off target.
28′: Bagan misses double chance. First Chidi’s right footer is blocked well by Lalit and in the very next minute Chidi fires wide from a Barreto pass when he should have put the ball in the back of the net. This may prove to be a costly miss!
32′: Mohun Bagan is enjoying a dominating spell here, but unable to find the equalizer.
36′: Barreto’s header went out inches over from a Snehasish corner kick.
38′: Chidi was pushed from behind by Churchill’s Robert. But Mohun Bagan’s appeal for penalty falls in deaf ear. It might just reignite the biased referring issue against Kolkata teams in matches played at Goa.
42′: 3 minutes to go before the half time whistle. Churchill still leading by a goal.
45′: Corner for Bagan. Wasted by Snehashish. Poor delivery that was. 1 minute of added time.
HT’: CHURCHILL 1-0 MOHUN BAGAN.
50′: Second half gets underway. Mohun Bagan is on the attack straightaway.
52′: Churchill’s Bineesh Balan tries a spectacular bi-cycle kick, but misses the target.
53′: Corner for Bagan. Gouranga steps up instead of Snehashish this time. But even Gouranga’s delivery is disappointing, easily cleared away by the Churchill defense.
56′: Manish Mathani has largely been off-color today. Jayanta Sen is warming up on the sidelines. May be the first change for Stanley Rozario, who is under great pressure to deliver results.
60′: Lalit Thapa punches to clear a Gouranga shot from a Snehashish corner. Churchill is leading by a goal.
64′: Foul on Odafa inside the Mohun Bagan box by Harpreet. Referee awards a penalty in favor of Churchill Brothers.
65′: Odafa scores from the spot. Churchill 2-0 Mohun Bagan.
77′: An attacking substitution by Bagan coach. Asim Biswas is on for Biswajit Saha – that means a defender is sacrificed in favor of a forward.
82′: Odafa’s goal disallowed again for an offside. Jayanta Sen introduced in place of Manish Mathani.
89′: Chidi hits the post again !!! Sheer bad luck for Bagan.
FT: It’s all over for Bagan. Churchill deserves the victory. The lean patch refuses to go away from the Green & Maroon tent. Odafa Okolie scored a brilliant brace and he is TheHardTackle’s man of the match.
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EAST BENGAL
v
AIFF XI
Yuba Bharati Krirangan, Kolkata
Dec 12th, 1:45 PM IST
EAST BENGAL 4-0 AIFF XI [Full Time]
EAST BENGAL: Sandeep, Okpara, Naoba, Soumik, Gurwinder, Sanju, Mehtab, Sushant, Penn, Robin, Tolgey
AIFF XI: Jagrup, Inderpreet, Abhishek, Raju, Subodh, Lal Rozama, Milan, Jibon, Jewel, Jeje, Jagtar, Kumar
1′: And here we go. The match in on.
8‘: Robin and Tolgay combines but Jagrup was alert and averts the danger.
10′: Corner for AIFF. Cleared easily.
14′: Tolgay hits the post !!! Penn passes the ball to Tolgay from the right side of the AIFF box. Tolgay unleashes a right-footer which rebounds off the far post. Unlucky !
18′: Subodh Kumar tests Sandip Nandy with a long rager which the East Bengal keeper gathers easily.
21′: Again Penn combines well with Tolgay to create another opportunity. But Tolgay’s volley goes wide.
24′: Nice attempt by Robin. Jagrup saves it for a corner.
30′: Still no goals in the match, East Bengal is attacking but AIFF is defending resolutely.
36′: AIFF won a free kick right outside the box, but the resulting effort by Subodh Kumar sailed over the cross bar and failed to trouble the keeper.
38′: Yellow card for Gurwinder Singh of East Bengal.
41′: East Bengal players link up well in the box, but the ball is gallantly cleared by the defence. The AIFF keeper punches the ball away from the corner.
44′: Tolgay was in a dangerous position but the opposition captain clears it.
46′: This has been a disciplined performance by the AIFF boys thus far.
HT: It’s still goal-less. East Bengal has been the better team offensively, but AIFF has put their bodies on the line to ensure they end the first half without conceding any goals.
47′: Second half has started, and so have East Bengal where they had left off in the first half.
50′: GOAAAAAL! Robin Singh finishes off a measured pass from Sanju from the right to give East Bengal a deserving lead. East Bengal 1-0 AIFF.
56′: The AIFF players are not able to show the same intensity with which they had defended in the first half. As a result East Bengal attackers, most notably Tolgay and Robin, are getting too much space to make one attack after another. It’s surprising how the score has remained at 1-0.
59′: Only a superb one-handed acrobatic save from AIFF keeper could deny Robin his second of the day. What a save!
62′: Tolgay, who is extremely fleet-footed for a man of his strong built, beautifully controls a long ball, dodges two defenders, and fires a right footed shot, but the shot is blocked.
65′: Finally the ball moves to the other end of the pitch and AIFF get a corner, which is well handled by the defenders.
67′: Jagrup again comes to his teams rescue and denies Tolgay with a good save.
69′: GOAAAAAAL! Penn makes it 2-0 for East Bengal. The game is as good as over, as it will be very difficult for AIFF to come back from two goals down.
74′: GOAAAAAAL! What a goal by Robin Singh. After collecting a pass from Tolgay, Robin beats two defenders and fires a rocket from the right in the far corner. The keeper had no chance. East Bengal 3-0 AIFF.
79′: GOAAAAAAL! East Bengal are just toying with the opposition now. It was two on one with the goal keeper and Tolgay makes no mistake. East Bengal 4-0 AIFF.
81′: It’s safe to say that without an inspired show by Jagrup, this well could have turned into a cricket score by now. Again he denies Tolgay. He stands like a immovable rock between a defeat and a humiliation for his team.
90′: It’s 4-0 in favor of East Bengal. Can they score another in the injury time? Robin Singh deserves a hattrick for today’s brilliant display.
FT: Here goes the final whistle. East Bengal registers another empathetic 4-0 victory – their third win in three matches so far to clinch the pole position in the I-League standing. Robin Singh is TheHardTackle’s man of the match.
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VIVA KERALA
v
PUNE FC
Municipal Corporation Stadium, Calicut
Dec 12th, 3:30 PM IST
–
VIVA KERALA 1-1 PUNE FC [Full Time]
10′: Pune FC dominating the proceeding here at Kannur, but Viva is defending well at the moment.
20′: It’s still goalless at Kannur.
30′: Viva kerala keeping the Pune FC attackers at bay. But the question is for how long? The way Pune is creating attack after attacks, it would be impossible for Viva defense to restrict them.
HT: Viva is able to hold Pune FC till the half time. The half-time score-line reads Viva Kerala 0-0 Pune FC.
55′: No scores yet in the match. Pune FC continuing their dominance in terms of ball possession.
70′: Viva has kept 10 men behind for the entire 70 mins. They will be content with a single point here. Pune FC toiling hard to get the opener.
75′: Viva scores against the run of play. Jimshad U, their academy product is the scorer.
85′: Viva is leading by a goal with just 5 minutes to go. Can Pune FC get the equalizer? They deserve it, Pune has been the better team this afternoon.
FT: Pune FC scores in the 94th minute with just a few seconds remaining. It’s a draw at Kannur, both teams share a point each.
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MUMBAI FC
v
HAL SC
Shahanu Stadium, Kohlapur
Dec 13th, 3:30 PM IST
–
MUMBAI FC 1-0 HAL SC [Full Time]
1′: Match kicks off. This is the first time that Mumbai FC is palying HAL in I-League. Both teams have a 100% record in I-League so far.
10′: No goals yet. Both the teams are taking a cautious approach. Mumbai FC can clinch the top spot in the standings if they beat HAL by 3 goals margin. While HAL will go top of the table if they can register a 4-0 win in this match. Currently East Bengal is leading the league table with 9 points with +6 goal difference.
20′: The score-line still remains 0-0.
30′: HAL FC is enjoying the lion’s share of possession at this moment. But no goals has been scored so far.
HT: It’s a goal-less first half at Shahanu Stadium, Kohlapur. Both the teams got a few opportunities, but unable to break the dead-lock so far.
55′: It’s still goal-less. No decent chnace for either of the teams in second half so far.
70′: GOOOAAALLL !! Mumbai FC breaks the dead-lock here. It’s Mumbai FC 1-0 HAL SC with just over 15 minutes left. Ebi Sukore is the scorer for the Mumbai based team.
80′: 10 minutes to go for the final whistle. Can HAL SC keep their unbeaten run intact by scoring a goal in the dying minutes? Well, there have been quite a few goals scored in the last 5 minutes of the match in this I-League edition.
FT: Final Score : Mumbai FC 1-0 HAL SC :: The Mumbai based outfit registers their third consecutive win and moves up to the 3rd spot in the standings. HAL remains one position adrift with 6 points from 3 matches.