Garden Boys FC V Mercurial FC
Score: Garden Boys FC (0) – (1) Mercurial FC
Scorers
Mercurial FC (Jashan Shetty 50’)
Mercurial picked up a crucial victory against Garden Boys to give themselves a lifeline in their bid to survive relegation for a second season running. With this loss, Garden Boys now find themselves pulled into the relegation fight after a fairly decent start to the season, which saw them win 3 of their first 6 games.
Both teams started the game on an attacking note but squandered all their chances on goal. Mercurial had more possession of the ball throughout the game and they were finally rewarded in the 50th minute when Jashan Shetty found the back of the net to hand his side a lead late in the game. Garden Boys were already on the back foot and could not muster enough to fight back in the final 10 minutes of the game.
The Mercurial defence was solid throughout the game and once again Bennet Doss put in a man of the match performance in a CDM role. He was integral in them holding off C2 FC to a draw last week and was once again at helm of things and his positioning was impeccable.
Garden Boys need to find their early season form to get out of the fix they are in and it needs to be done quickly with only 2 games left for the season.
Man of the Match: Bennet Praveen Doss (Mercurial FC)
FC Kudlu V FC Sparta
Score: FC Kudlu (0) – (1) FC Sparta
Scorers
FC Sparta (Benjamin George 38’)
Sparta found the resilience they had been missing all season long to pull off a victory over Kudlu and give themselves a chance at survival. Sparta were one of the most improved teams last season but haven’t been able to replicate that form on the big pitch.
Kudlu, on the other hand, continue their roller coaster season and were seemingly in the fight for promotion a couple of weeks ago but now they find themselves in a similar position to last season fighting to stay alive in Division 2.
Kudlu started the better team in the opening minutes of the game but once Sparta got into the mix of things, it always seemed like Sparta were the more likely to score. The first half saw both teams create chances but there was finesse missing in the final third and the teams went into halftime goalless.
The second half started off on a scrappy note and Kudlu paid the price for a defensive mess up that saw the ball being played into Benjamin George’s path at the top of the box and the striker made no mistake in slotting home the opener in the 38th minute.
The rest of the game saw both sides creating chances but once again there was no real threat in the final third. The way the only goal of the game was scored was justifiable given the wasted opportunities by both teams.
Sparta haven’t moved up the table and are still in 11th but the gap between them and the other teams in the relegation battle is minute and they are in with a chance. A win or even a draw for Kudlu would have ensured some safety for them but now they need to win one of their next two games to guarantee safety.
Man of the Match: Benjamin George (FC Sparta)
C2 FC v Diablos FC
Score: C2 FC (2) – (1) Diablos FC
Scorers
C2 FC (Franck 34’, Ricardo Lawrence 58’)
Diablos FC (Ashwin Dua 45’)
C2 FC found a late winner against Diablos to secure all three points and stay in the top three. Diablos put up a good fight and would feel they deserved at least a point from the game but in the end this loss sees them out of contention for a promotion spot for another season.
C2 started the game as the better team with Franck in top form wriggling his way through defenders from the right flank. Diablos defence, however, stood firm with the combination of Tony and TC enough to keep the C2 attack at bay. Both teams had chances in the first half but with neither able to finish the game went into halftime a goalless draw.
C2 changed things up at halftime and started the second half with a bang when Franck ran past two defenders to slot home the opener. Until that point of time the Diablos keeper Avinash was in good form making numerous saves. However, Diablos struck back when mid-season signing Ashwin Dua capitalised on a goalkeeper mistake to slot home the equaliser in the 45th minute.
The game seemed like it was heading for a draw after that goal by Diablos but C2 FC found just enough in their team to strike back and Ricardo Lawrence scored the winner in the 58th minute giving Diablos very little time to fight back and that was the end of the story.
C2 have their destiny in their own hands, win all the games and they will be promoted but drop any points and Rebels will likely overtake them.
Man of the Match: Franck C (C2 FC)
Titans FC V Emdee Al-Fateh
Scores: Titans FC (3) – (3) Emdee Al-Fateh
Scorers
Titans FC (Akshay Shettar 2’, 38’, Ashwin Ramakrishnan 56’)
Emdee Al-Fateh (Tariq Sheriff 15’, Zaib Sherief 35’, Stalin Daniel 51’)
An entertaining six-goal thriller ended in a 3-3 draw between Titans FC and Emdee Al-Fateh. Titans needed a win to catch their rivals who have a three-point lead over them and this draw would feel like a loss. Al-Fateh are now a win away from lifting the Division 2 title for a second consecutive time although the job is not done yet.
The Titans attack has been the best in the division for quite some time now and it was no surprise they drew first blood when in-form forward Akshay Shettar scored the opener in the 2nd minute. But Al-Fateh are not a team to back down and they were back on level terms when Taqir Sheriff found the back of the net in the 15th minute.
The versatile player has been outstanding this season for Al-Fateh and once again rose to the challenge. The second half started with Zaib Sherief capitalising on a mistake from the Titan’s goalkeeper to tap home an open goal and give his side the lead but Titans immediately struck back when Akshay Shettar picked up his second for the day.
Al-Fateh once again retook the lead in the 51st minute when Stalin Daniel cut in from the left flank to catch the keeper off guard with a quick fire shot but not to be outdone Titans found a way back when a perfectly placed cross from Yash Hemdev was met by an impeccable header by Ashwin Ramakrishnan to bring his side back to level terms.
Al-Fateh were content with a point and sat back for the final few minutes of the game and even though Titans had a chance or two to regain the lead they failed to do so and the match ended as a draw, probably the fairest result.
Man of the Match: Ishan Samanta (Titans FC)
FC Brunton V Rebels FC
Scores: FC Brunton (1) – (2) Rebels FC
Scorers
FC Brunton (Mohit Ahuja 37’)
Rebels FC (Deepak Kumar 50’, Aseem Navas 56’)
Rebels completed a comeback victory in the final quarter of the game to keep their hopes of promotion alive. Earlier in the game, Mohit Ahuja gave Brunton the lead in the 37th minute and they seemed headed for a solid victory but their opposition had other plans in mind.
The first half ended a goalless draw with both teams not utilising their chances on goal. They went toe to toe in the first half and were evenly matched in terms of possession and chances.
Brunton finally found the breakthrough when in-form striker Mohit Ahuja opened the scoring in the 37th minute. The Brunton defence has been much improved as compared to the early parts of the season and they seemed set for another shut out but a lapse in concentration saw them concede the equaliser in the 50th minute when Deepak Kumar slotted home a goal for Rebels.
Aseem Navas scored the eventual winner in the 56th minute to complete Rebels’ unlikely comeback and hand them all three points, which will be crucial going into the final two matches of the season.
Brunton are not out of the relegation woods yet and need a win to secure their status in Division 2 for next season. Rebels will need to continue their winning form from this game and hope C2 FC stumbles in their final two games so they can clinch promotion.
Man of the Match: Aseem Navas (Rebels FC)
BFE United V Athlos United
Scores: BFE United (0) – (7) Athlos United
Scorers
Athlos United (Imdad KP 15’, 32’, Sabarish Kannan 17’, 24’, Ashish Dhiman 20’, Midhun Nair 48’ (P), Mohnish Madnani 59’)
A one-sided affair between Athlos United and BFE United ended in Athlos scoring 7 goals past their opponents with no reply. Imdad KP and Sabarish Kannan helped themselves to braces while Midhun Nair scored a rare goal from the penalty spot. The goals came by in regular intervals for Athlos with BFE unable to cope with their opponents.
Imdad KP opened the scoring in the 15th minute to give his side the lead before Sabarish Kannan doubled the margin 2 minutes later. Ashish Dhiman got in on the action too, scoring in the 20th minute while Sabarish added another goal to make it 4-0 before the halftime whistle blew.
The second half was much of the same with Athlos attacking on all fronts. Imdad picked up his second for the night right after the restart while Midhun and Mohnish got in on the action too.
Mohnish Madnani has been Athlos’s standout performer all season long with the centre back contributing on both ends of the pitch. Although Athlos have a very slim chance of making it into the top three they need to continue picking up wins while hoping the two teams above them drop points.
BFE are still without a win and relegation has been confirmed for them but they need to take their first season in TAL as a learning experience and should try out some new strategies keeping next season in mind.
Man of the Match: Mohnish Madnani (Athlos United)
