I-League: East Bengal hold Churchill Brothers

Churchill Brothers let East Bengal off the hook and had to settle for a 1-1 draw in an I-League clash at the Nehru stadium, in Fatorda, Goa, on Friday.

Churchill had plenty of chances to grab the three points they were hunting from the match, but apart from Henri Autchouet's early goal, the hosts had nothing to show.

In the end, even that did not count for much as Tolgay Ozbey ensured East Bengal snatched a point with the equalizer in the 53rd minute.

Coach Manuel Gomes opted to start with three strikers, including one on the right of midfield, giving Churchill a lot of attacking intent. It surely took East Bengal by surprise as the visitors were still coming to grips with the torrent of attacks early in the game.

One such move, led to a corner in the seventh minute, which Steven Dias took beautifully and Henri finished with a smart header at the first post.

Hardly had those cheers died down, than Churchill created another glorious moment but this time Lenny Rodrigues's booming long-ranger rattled the upright and ricocheted into play.

For the remainder of the first half, the ball was mostly confined to the midfield as East Bengal seemed out of sorts and Churchill content with the solitary goal lead.

In the second session, East Bengal pulled up their socks, and within eight minutes found themselves clawing their way back into the game. Incidentally, it was their first attempt on goal but the visitors didn't mind as Tolgay headed Harmanjyot Khabra's flick from close range.

The goal did not upset Churchill and they continued to dominate, but a goal remained elusive despite several chances.

Henri Autchouet was declared the Man-of-the-Match.

Mohun Bagan strike in second half to down Pailan

McDowells Mohun Bagan struck twice in the second half to blank Pailan Arrows 2-0 at the Salt Lake stadium in Kolkata.

It was the charismatic Jose Berreto who opened the scoring for Bagan in 64th minute.

India International Jewel Raja consolidated the lead in the 77th minute.

The first-half was a story of missed chances as both teams failed to make use of their opportunities. The Arrows were in fact, unlucky not to be awarded a penalty when Rahim Nabi pushed Bijendra Rai inside the box.

Bagan, on the other hand, seemed clueless. They seemed to be dazed by their young opponents and kept losing possession in the midfield. And when they entered the rival box, they lost control.

Changing sides, it was, however, a different story as Bagan went all out.

Eventually, Jose Berreto headed home in the 64th minute off a precise corner from Hudson Lima to give the much desired lead to the home side.

Spurred, they staged numerous attacks, and in the 77th minute Jewel Raja tapped the ball home off a perfectly placed pass from Rahim Nabi.

With this win, Mohun Bagan have 30 points from 17 matches while Pailan Arrows have seven from 15 outings.

Jose Barreto was adjudged the Man of the Match.