Calcutta Football League 2019: Mohun Bagan and East Bengal register wins after Derby stalemate

Mohun Bagan and East Bengal registered victories in their respective fixtures of the Calcutta Football League on Thursday afternoon. The ‘red and gold’ brigade won 2-1 against Southern Samity at their club ground while Mohun Bagan downed Bhawanipore FC 2-0 at the Kalyani Stadium.

The match at the East Bengal ground was delayed by half an hour due to a downpour before the scheduled kick-off. Alejandro made a few changes to the starting line up from the ‘Kolkata Derby.’ Among the foreigners, he fielded Jaime Santos Colado and centre-back Borja Gomez Perez, leaving out Kassim Aidara in the midfield.

East Bengal had a shaky start to the game, with former player Mahmoud Al Amna hurling attacks in the first 10 minutes. It took 32 minutes for them to score the first goal. Lalrindika Dicka’s in-swinging corner kick was headed in by Bidyasagar Singh into the net after Jaime Colado got the first touch.

Spanish playmaker Colado got on the scoresheet in the 62nd minute. Once again Dicka delivered the ball from a corner-kick while Colado headed it home. Southern Samity gave a late scare to the 39-time champions by scoring a goal in the 81st minute, but East Bengal held on to the lead and secured a well-deserved win.

After a dynamic display in the ‘Kolkata Derby’, Mohun Bagan went all out for a win against an upbeat Bhawanipore FC. Bagan’s coach Kibu Vicuna rested ‘Derby’ hero Joseba Beitia and started with Salva Chamorro upfront. Winger Alexander Romario Jesuraj drew first blood for the ‘green and maroon’ brigade’ in the 29th minute of the match. Nongdamba Naorem scored his second goal of the season in the 56th minute to seal the deal for Mohun Bagan.

Mohun Bagan will be playing their next match against George Telegraph this coming Sunday, while East Bengal will face-off Peerless the following day.