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Churchill Brothers got the better of NEROCA to stay in the hunt for I-League title on Saturday, 19th January. They defeated the Imphal-based side by 2-1 at the Tilak Maidan in Vasco, what was a memorable comeback from the Goan side.
The match was crucial for both teams. Both teams wanted to emulate each other to challenge table toppers Chennai City. In the end, it was Willis Plaza who scored two goals within six minutes to bring all the points from the match.
Churchill, who have the same number of points with Real Kashmir, climbed on the second position of the table due to a better goal difference. They now have 25 points from 13 matches. NEROCA are on fifth position with 21 points from as many matches.
Though Churchill dominated the match, it was NEROCA who got the lead against the run of play, thanks to a deflection of Varney Kallon from Malem Meitei’s free-kick. It was thought they would win the match, until Plaza produced some magical moments in the end.
Let us look the three reasons behind Churchill’s win:
#3 Churchill’s attacking mentality ultimately paid off
From the very first minute, Churchill Brothers took the control of the game. They were just not willing to let the ball go off their feet. They kept the maximum possession and NEROCA found it hard to steal the ball.
Churchill coach Peter Gigiu opted for an attacking strategy and the likes of Dawda Ceesay, Anthony Wolff and Willis Plaza were just obliging the coach’s instructions. Churchill had the upper hand for most of the time.
Ceesay, Plaza and Wolff all of them nearly scored. But Lalit Thapa’s brilliant pair of hands made their job tougher. The NERCOA defence was also resolute and not giving any chance to their opponents. Ceesay tried to test Thapa with some eye-catching shots.
Churchill tried to use the wing, ran down the middle, tried to shot from distance but nothing was going inside the net. Wolff did not have a good day in office. He missed a couple of sitters and were seen struggling with the possession. But Churchill didn’t lose their patience though.
Coach Gigiu was constantly telling his players from the touchline to go up and use the gap as much as possible. Churchill’s resilience finally paid off in the final five minutes and the two goals not only changed the result of the game but also Churchill fresh air to breathe as they kept hunting leaders Chennai City.
#2 NEROCA lost the plot in the final minutes
NEROCA are a team who love to play an attacking brand of football. Coach Manuel Retamero Fraile is not the kind of coach who will tell his boys to defend from the first minute of the match.
However, it was not the same NEROCA that we have seen in the earlier matches. They rely on counter-attacks as speed is their main weapon. But that did not reflect in the match against Churchill. NEROCA found it hard to get their feet in the match.
Katsumi Yusa, who initiates maximum counter attacks for his team, was tightly marked by Khalid Aucho. The Japanese had neither time nor space to make a run. This made life tough for striker Felix Chidi, who is constantly fed by the Japanese. NEROCA had to use other options but it was not so effective.
But their defence was resolute. All credit goes to Varney Kallon and Eduardo Ferreira for making timely interceptions and using their brain to keep Churchill away from scoring.
But it’s really hard to win a match by defending all the time. Due to their fatigue and a bit casual approach, NEROCA defenders lost it in the final five minutes and it was enough for Churchill to make their opportunity count.
Credit goes to Lalit Thapa for making some fine saves otherwise Churchill would’ve got the lead much earlier.
#1 Brilliant Plaza does his job once again
You can’t stop Willis Plaza. Each time you doubt about his quality, the Trinidad and Tobago international would force to sit you up and take notice. His likes to give answers on the field and that’s what he did against NEROCA to win crucial three points for his side.
Apart from a shot in the 13th minute, which just missed the target, Plaza didn’t do anything noteworthy till the 85th minute. He was largely missing from the action and whenever he got the ball he was dispossessed too soon by his former teammate Eduardo.
But a true player makes his mark whenever he gets the faintest opportunity. Plaza was standing unmarked when Ceesay lofted the ball over a defender to him. Plaza took a touch, got the wide angle and shot it on the left side. He never misses chances like this.
The second one was a piece of beauty. From a corner, he moved up near the first post, rose up against his marker and headed the ball with all of the power into the net. It was a brilliant scene and Plaza was rightly rewarded with the man of the match award.
