Churchill Brothers paid dearly for a missed penalty in the first half as Mumbai FC struck twice in the second half to score their first win in the third round of the Airtel I-League here on Saturday.
Churchill Brothers paid dearly for a missed penalty in the first half as Mumbai FC struck twice in the second half to score their first win in the third round of the Airtel I-League here on Saturday. After a barren first half, Mumbai, who did well to defend their citadel in the second half, scored through Essien Orok (46th) and Climax Lawrence (87th). The win took Mumbai FC to five points from three matches, while Churchill Brothers, who suffered their second defeat, have one point. The Goan side made a couple of changes from their last match with keeper Lalit Tapa playing his first match in place of the injured Arindam Bhattacharya and Anthony Periera, on loan from Mohun Bagan after he refused to play them because of pay cut. Afghan striker Sandjar Ahmadi made his debut for Mumbai FC. Both teams fought evenly in the first half with neither team able to break the deadlock. Churchill Brothers, who enjoyed a better ball possession, pressed hard but efforts from Antchouet and Balwant Singh went wide. However, their effort bore fruit as they earned a penalty five minutes before the interval when Nicholas Rodrigues brought down Bineesh Balan inside the box. Henri Antchouet, who took the kick, directed a feeble shot at the goal which rival keeper Kunal Sawant dived to his left and cleared. Mumbai FC, who also came with few counter moves with Rodrigues’ attempt from a free-kick punched over by keeper Lalit Tapa. In the other match of the day, Sporting Clube de Goa pipped Shilong Lajong 1-0. On Sunday, Salgaocar will look to keep the momentum going when they meet Mohammedan Sporting in a Round Two match. Elsewhere, Bengaluru FC will lock horns with Prayag United.
