TAL Season 3 (Division 2): Gameweek 9 Review

amateur league

Al-Fateh trampled Netbusters to get back to winning ways whilst all the teams in the title chase also picked up wins as Athlos beat Kudlu, Diablos beat Sparta and Bengal picked up all three points against Lawless, to keep things extremely interesting going into the final two game weeks. Meanwhile, Joras put 7 past a toothless Grasshoppers side.

March to title resumes after minor speed bump

Al-Fateh scored six past a hapless Netbusters side that seem to be demoralized by their current state of affairs. The usual suspects were on the scoresheet as Nihal picked up a brace, while Zaib Sherief and Tariq Sheriff picked up a goal apiece.

Goalkeeper Adil Ahmed scored the final goal after he came on for a cameo performance as an outfield player. Netbsuters still haven’t picked up a win and have two games to take something positive away from a disappointing season. Al-Fateh have a two-point lead over second-placed Bengal, but with tough games against Diablos and Athlos coming up, they will need to bring their ‘A’ game if they are to win the title.

Score: Al-Fateh (6) – (0) Netbsuters FC

Athlos pick up derby spoils and jump into top three!

It was a good day for Athlos United as they finally moved into one of the three promotion spots (although the third promotion spot will be decided after a playoff game with a Division 1 team) as well as earning derby spoils against local rivals FC Kudlu.

Defender Ankit Pande found himself in a rare situation in the attacking half and made most of it scoring the solitary goal of the game and earning his side all three points. Kudlu put in a spirited performance and would feel they deserved a point given the number of chances they had in dangerous positions. If they build on this performance, they are bound to get at least one win the final two games.

Score: Athlos United (1) – (0) FC Kudlu

Devils back in the mix

Diablos FC comfortably picked up all three points against an up and coming FC Sparta Bengaluru side that had beaten league leaders Al-Fateh in their previous outing. Diablos desperately needed a win after going off track over the past few weeks and dropping points in this game would have probably meant another season in Division 2, but a strong attacking performance carried them over the line.

They currently sit right outside the top four but with tight margins at play, a win over Al-Fateh next week could change the ball game. Sparta have been consistent over the season but will probably end up missing out on promotion, but given that this is only their first season together, big things are expected from this side. With their final two games against Lawless and Brunton, they look favourites to take 6 points from 6 and maybe just sneak into the top three.

Score: Diablos FC (2) – (0) FCB Sparta

Titans outwit Brunton

Titans FC picked up a win against FC Brunton to stay in the hunt for one of the promotion spots. A scrappy game turned in the favour of Titans when a long throw in from Rohann Mathew caught the Brunton defence off guard and Roshan Ahmed latched onto the ball to poke home the opening goal of the game.

The game always looked like a moment of magic might decide the outcome but Titans settled the score when Yeshwanth Mekala scored a second in the dying minutes of the game. Brunton have tapered off in form after a strong start but wins in their final two could mean a decent mid table finish.

Score: Titans FC (2) – (0) FC Brunton

Decline of Grasshoppers

Grasshoppers FC put up no resistance as Joras dismantled them scoring 7 goals while also keeping a clean sheet. Varun Vijayraghavan, Sivaram Natarajan and Sreeharsha Kornu all picked up braces while Achyutha D and Amoghavarsha B put in excellent shifts.

New goalkeeper Muffazal Merchant has made it two clean sheets in two and looks to be a good addition to team. Grasshoppers currently sit in ninth, four points off eighth-placed Joras. Their drastic fall from the top has directly been a result of failure to convert the chances they have created into goals. They will look to pick up some points to end the season on a positive note but need a change in attacking strategy to score goals.

Score: Grasshoppers FC (0) – (7) Joras

Standings (After Gameweek 9)

Pos.

Name

GP

W

D

L

GF

GA

GD

PTS

1

Al-Fateh

9

7

1

1

44

7

37

22

2

FC Bengal

9

6

2

1

22

9

13

20

3

Athlos United

9

5

3

1

11

6

5

18

4

Diablos FC

9

5

2

2

18

8

10

17

5

Titans FC

9

5

2

2

11

6

5

17

6

FCB Sparta

9

4

2

3

15

12

3

14

7

FC Brunton

9

4

0

5

11

23

-12

12

8

Joras

9

3

2

4

16

23

-7

11

9

Grasshoppers FC

9

2

1

6

8

20

-12

7

10

FC Kudlu

9

1

2

6

8

19

-11

5

11

FC Lawless

9

1

2

6

9

25

-16

5

12

Netbusters FC

9

0

3

6

6

21

-15

3

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Edited by Staff Editor