Five Federation Cup classics in the I-League era

India’s version of the FA Cup starts in another seven days and Sportskeeda starts the build-up by listing five classic Federation Cup clashes in the I-League era (since 2007). The list is in no particular order but with East Bengal reaching the final five times, winning four of them, in that period it’s no surprise to see the red-and-gold brigade feature heavily in this piece.

East Bengal 4-3 Kalighat MS (2012 group stage)

Photo Credit: AIFF Media

Going into this final quarter-final group stage match, East Bengal’s semi-final hopes were not in their hands as even a win against Kalighat MS wouldn’t be enough if Sporting Clube got a bigger victory against ONGC, who also had a chance of going through if East Bengal failed to win. Both matches kicked off simultaneously in Siliguri and Trevor Morgan’s decision to rest first choice centre backs Uga Okpara and Gurwinder Singh backfired as Kalight MS raced into a two goal lead inside the first 15 minutes thanks to strikes from James Giblee and Tanmoy Kundu. East Bengal hit back with a quickfire double from young Manandeep Singh but Christopher regained Kalighat’s lead by once again exposing the shortcomings in East Bengal’s backline.

Just when it looked like the Kolkata giants would go into the halftime break trailing, Edeh Chidi was brought down inside the box by Kalighat keeper Souvik Mondal and the referee pointed to the spot. The Nigerian converted the penalty to bring East Bengal level but there wasn’t good news from the other game as ONGC were leading 1-0 at the break and at that stage were going through. So a draw wasn’t going to be enough for Morgan’s side and it didn’t take them long to go in front in the second half and once again the goal came from a Chidi penalty. East Bengal squandered chances to increase their advantage and be absolutely sure of progression. But it didn’t prove to be costly as ONGC defeated Sporting Clube 2-1 to send the red-and-gold brigade through to the semis for the sixth straight edition.

Churchill Brothers 2-2 Mohun Bagan (2011 group stage)

This turned out to be Steve Darby’s last competitive game as Mohun Bagan coach

Mohun Bagan were already eliminated from the tournament following surprise defeats against Royal Wahingdoh and Shillong Lajong. It was the worst possible start to the tenure of English coach Steve Darby but he still put out his best eleven in this game to both salvage some pride and perhaps stop Churchill Brothers from progressing. It was a must win for the Goan side as they had beaten Shillong Lajong but lost to Royal Wahingdoh. Although the match was played in Pune, the Kolkata side enjoyed a lot of support but they went behind midway through the first half when Henri Antchouet converted a penalty. With an attack comprising Odafa Okolie, Jose Barreto and Sunil Chhetri, Mohun Bagan were looking dangerous going forward but not taking their chances. However Barreto finally restored parity as he headed home Jewel Raja’s corner.

That goal gave the Mariners momentum and they took the lead for the first time in the tournament thanks to a volley from Sunil. Churchill Brothers needed two goals without reply in the second half to stand any chance of reaching the semis and the first of those arrived just 11 minutes after the restart as Gabon striker Antchouet bagged his second. The Red Machines went forward in numbers to find the all-important winner and that created gaps for Mohun Bagan to exploit on the counter attacks. It became an open contest but the finishing of both sides was poor while each keeper also produced important saves. In the end it finished all square as Churchill Brothers bowed out of the tournament while it turned out to be Darby’s last competitive game as Mohun Bagan coach.

East Bengal 3-2 Dempo (aet) (2012 final)

Trevor Morgan got the perfect birthday present

East Bengal had toiled their way into a fourth successive final as besides the come-from-behind wins against ONGC and Kalighat MS in the group stage, the red-and-gold brigade also needed extra time to get past Churchill Brothers in the semi-finals. I-League holders Dempo had a more routine passage to the final including a solid 2-0 victory over Salgaocar in the semis. The Goan club had won five league titles under Armando Colaco but only one Federation Cup crown. Thus the former India coach was determined to win it this time and they crucially took the lead just after the halftime break through former India skipper Climax Lawrence. It was for the fourth time in the tournament that East Bengal had conceded first and just like the previous three occasions they responded through an unlikely goal scorer, Arnab Mondal.

Neither side was keen on having extra time and searched for the winner in the 90 minutes but it never arrived as chances were missed at both ends. Lalrindika Ralte had netted an extra time winner in the semi and once again the Mizoram youngster made an impact in the additional 30 as his shot was saved by Dempo keeper Subhashish Roywchowdhury but Manandeep scored from the rebound. Edeh Chidi made it 3-1 in second half extra time after a quick counter attack but a Dempo side filled with winners and internationals was never going to give up and veteran defender Mahesh Gawli pulled one back two minutes later to set up a nervy finish. In the end East Bengal held on as coach Trevor Morgan lifted his second Federation Cup title on his 56th birthday.

Mohammedan Sporting 2-4 Mahindra United (2008 group stage)

Mohammedan Sporting’s late goals ended Mahindra United’s hopes

Going into this final group game, Mahindra United needed to match Churchill Brothers’ result against HAL. But with Chruchill certain to beat the group’s weakest team HAL by a big margin, Mahindra needed to triumph handsomely and that wasn’t going to be easy considering that Mohammemdan also had a small chance of progressing to the semis. With both matches kicking off at the same time it was going to be a tense finish but Mahindra started well as they took the lead from a Steven Dias freekick after just 18 minutes. They doubled their advantage through Edeh Chidi and could have easily been three or four up at the interval. In other game Churchill lead 3-0 at the break which meant that the Mumbai club were still going through on goal difference but they needed to score a few more in the second period to be certain.

Mahindra wasted a few chances from open play but successful penalty conversions from Chidi and Mohammed Rafi put them 4-0 up midway through the second half. But the news from the other game wasn’t encouraging as Churchill were leading 5-0 and threatening to add to their tally. Mahindra had to keep attacking and predictably they conceded on the counter attack as Mohammed Shahid pulled one back. With news coming from the Churchill game that Odafa Okolie has scored twice more to make it 7-0, Mahindra required a couple of goals in stoppage time to at least match the Goan club’s statistics and ensure a drawing of lots to decide the group winner. But they couldn’t score any further while Vimal Pariyar added insult to injury by making it 4-2. Mahindra were eliminated despite being unbeaten.

East Bengal 3-2 Mohun Bagan (2007 semi-final)

Subrata Pal made some vital saves for East Bengal in this memorable derby

Both the giants had been given scares on their road to the semi-finals of this edition which took place in Ludhiana. While Mohun Bagan needed extra time to beat ONGC in the round of 16, East Bengal saw off the challenge of hosts JCT in a five-goal thriller. A mouthwatering semi was in prospect and the arch-rivals lived up to the hype with India captain Bhaichung Bhutia starting the excitement by putting Mohun Bagan in front after just 12 minutes. East Bengal keeper Subrata Pal was at fault for Mohun Bagan’s opener but his counterpart at the other end Sangram Mukherjee was soon caught off guard by Surkumar Singh’s strike as the red-and-gold brigade equalised. It was end-to-end action after that but it was East Bengal who went in front through Dipendu Biswas. The striker’s snapshot took a deflection off Peter Odafe and beat a helpless Sangram.

East Bengal led at the break but with their defence not looking assured a third goal was mandatory and it arrived just two minutes after the interval as Ashim Biswas went past a couple of Mohun Bagan defenders and found the back of the net. The Mariners had a mountain to climb at 3-1 and even when they created chances Subrata kept denying them. There was no stopping Jose Barreto though as the Brazilian pulled one back to set up an exciting final 20 minutes. But Subrata was in inspiring form as he produced a couple of world class saves to ensure East Bengal’s passage into the final which they went on to win. It was their only trophy under the coaching of Mohun Bagan legend Subroto Bhattacharya.