Dragons AFC v Can-a-bees FC
Score: Dragons AFC (3) – (0) Can-a-bees FC
Scorers
Dragons AFC (Stephen D 39’; Daniel Fatoye 50’; Peter Jr 55’)
Dragons made it three wins in a row after defeating Can-a-bees in a convincing manner. The teams were matched evenly in the first half and neither could find a way through. The match was scrappy to begin with and although Dragons did have more possession of the ball, they could not create anything meaningful.
Can-a-bees were set up well defensively and Ravi at centre-back had a good half while Abhi playing in a holding midfield role contributed in connecting defence with attack. For Dragons, Binyamin Khan was excellent in midfield while No 88 proved to be useful on the flank.
The second half was a different story with Dragons scoring three goals to turn the game around. The game was marred by fouls with a total of 21 being committed by both teams. The opening goal came in the 38th minute when Stephen tapped a loose ball from a free-kick. A handball in the box saw a red card being awarded to Can-a-bees and that changed the tie entirely. The following penalty was converted by Daniel to hand his side a comfortable lead.
The man disadvantage eventually proved too much for Can-a-bees and they ended up conceding a third when Nesleen played through Peter Jr. who made no mistake of slotting home the goal. Dragons now move up the table and have a good chance of fighting for a promotion spot. Can-a-bees are sitting dangerously in the red zone and need to revamp their strategy to change things around.
Man of the Match: Peter Jr (Dragons AFC)
Simba Sports FC v Tornadoes FC
Score: Simba Sports FC (4) – (0) Tornadoes FC
Scorers
Simba Sports FC (Emmanuel Foli 16’, Brunce Mabengo 22’, Zuvundru Victor 48’, 60’)
Simba roared past Tornadoes to maintain their perfect record and extend their lead at the top of the table. Two Goals scored on either side of the half were enough to take them past strong opponents who were having a bad day. Credit though must be given to Simba though who have not put a wrong step so far.
Emmanuel Foli opened the scoring in the 16th minute and was assisted by the ‘Brain’ Bruce Mabengo who is by far the best playmaker in the division. Foli himself has been in top form for the past couple of weeks and once again found a way past the tornadoes defence who were quite compact in the first quarter of the game.
Mabengo then scored the second goal six minutes later to extend his side’s lead. Mabengo is one of the leading candidates for the MVP award and in a side filled with stars, he shines the brightest. Tornadoes were not on their best game and found it hard to get any attacking moves with their main man M Khaleel barely even touching the ball throughout the match.
The second half was much of the same and a late brace by top goal scorer of the division Zuvundru Victor ensured his side came away with all three points. This win, coupled with BCFC’s loss to Kammanhattan later in the day extended Simba’s lead to three points at the top. Tornadoes need to regroup quickly if they are to have any chance of a shot at promotion this season.
Man of the Match: Bruce Mabengo/Zuvundru Victor (Simba Sports FC)
Royal Eagles FC v The Aces
Score: Royal Eagles FC (0) – (4) The Aces
Scorers
The Aces (Sai Mahesh 14’, 41’; Hemanth A 24’, 54’)
The Aces continued their fine form defeating Royal Eagles in a convincing manner to move up the table. Royal Eagles had a chance to get back to winning ways and they failed miserably in probably their worst performance of the season so far. Braces from captain Hemanth and Sai Mahesh were enough to seal the win for a side that constantly seems to be improving.
Sai Mahesh opened the scoring in the 14th minute to hand Aces a lead against the run of play. Royal Eagles started the game well but that was the only patch of the game that they strung together successful plays. Once Hemanth scored the second for Aces, his team were in full control.
Royal Eagles briefly got back into the game in the beginning of the second half but their revival was short-lived and once Sai Mahesh picked up his second and his side’s third the game was done. Hemanth capped off his fine all-round performance with his own second six minutes from the end to help his side achieve a convincing win.
Royal Eagles are now down all the way to ninth and their initial two wins seems a distant memory. They need to revamp their attack while a strong midfielder would come handy. With the transfer window open, we expect them to add in these key areas. Aces currently sit in seventh and worries about the red zone are slowly vanishing. One more win and they could see themselves finish in the top half of the table.
Man of the Match: Hemanth A (The Aces)
Bangalore City FC B v Kammanhattan All Stars
Score: Bangalore City FC B (0) – (1) Kammanhattan All Stars
Scorers
Kammanhattan All Stars (Ezekiel O 49’)
Kammanhattan stunned Bangalore City FC B to pick up all three points and put themselves into contention for the title. BCFC went into the game as favourites and were trailing Simba by three points at the top given that their title rivals played earlier so a win was necessary and they failed to deliver. Papi Keita was nowhere to be seen and BCFC’s attack seemed to be blunt without him.
Kammanhattan carried out their game plan to perfection and only attacked on the counter but both defences were up to the task and the game went into halftime 0-0. Ibrahim Al-Saadi and Ahmed were excellent in defence for Kammanhattan while Ibrahim Kanote had another fine performance for BCFC.
Emad had a good game for Kammanhattan and was key in linking up play between defence and attack. He assisted Ezekiel’s goal in the 49th minute, which eventually turned out to be the winner. His hold up play and his dribbling skills will help Kammanhattan in the final stages of the league.
After Ezekiel scored, BCFC went in search of the equaliser and were unlucky not to get it. They had multiple chances in the dying minutes of the game and their forwards failed to capitalise on the chances.
BCFC now need to win all their games and improve their goal difference, hoping to beat Simba on the final day. Kammanhattan now have an outside chance of having a go at the title and will be hoping Simba drop points somewhere along the way.
Man of the Match: Ibrahim Al Saadi (Bangalore City FC B)
