Local favourite Lajong goes down to Sporting 2-1

Shillong, Oct 28: Sporting Clube De Goa came from behind to pocket three full points at JN Sports complex Sunday after it defeated Shillong Lajong FC before a
capacity, soccer crazy crowed in the round three match of the I-League.

It was in the added minute of the first half Lajong moved the score card after  Gbeneme Friday headed home the volley ball set by Ebi Theopillus Sukore.  Changing over the side it was the visitors who took control and were able to  equalize the game in the 53rd minute of the game through the header of Ogba Kalu  and in 71st minute Dawson Fernandes gave Sporting Clube de Goa three full points.
Lajong started the campaign in an aggressive note but Goan defense line prove too  strong for the local lads. In the twentieth minutes of the game Sushil Kumar Singh had come close giving reds a lead but the shot passed by the target by few inches.
In the forty-third minutes of the game Sukore came close but Joyner Lourenco cleared it  well before it could penetrated into the net.
During the added minute of the game Friday broke the dead lock after he headed  home the Sukore’s volley but their joy lasted for few minutes.  Charged up Goan took control of the game in the second half, and were able to  equalized the game in the fifty-third  minutes of the game when Kalu headed home the free  kick taken by Freiman Peixoto.

Referee Naveen Sundi caught Samuel Sadap bringing  down Peixoto just outside the twenty fourth yard area. Peixoto’s well measured kick landed  right at the forehead of Kaul who made no mistake to equalize the game. In the seventy-one minutes of the game Dawson Fernandes, who was later adjudged the man of  the match, made no mistake to place the Kalu’s minus ball in for the match winner.
With Sunday’s Sporting Clube de Goa win, both the team now have four points each from
three matches.
Post match, Sporting coach S. Ekendra Singh told reporters, “Today’s  result is morale booster for our team and we achieved what we wanted that is to pocket three full  points at any cost”. On the performance of the boy’s in the first half Singh said, “The turf is very fast and the boys took time to adjust with the turf”.

Lajong coach Desmond Bulpin said,  “The result was very disappointing for the team”.- By Suraj Joshi