Luck forsakes Delhi

By M.R. Praveen Chandran

CHALAKUDY, APRIL 2. Delhi was lucky to win against Chandigarh but proved unlucky with the toss as Orissa advanced into the pre- quarterfinals from Cluster VII in the 56th National football championship at the Carmel stadium here on Sunday.

Delhi overcame Chandigarh 2-1 in its last league match, bringing about a two way tie with Orissa which had an identical point and goal difference. The draw of lots favoured Orissa.

Delhi which needed to beat Chandigarh by a two goal margin put pressure on itself when it conceded a goal in the 20th minute. It was largely due to the goalkeeper Mukesh Kumar's mistake, who let in a 25-yard shot from Vinay Kanwar into the goal.

Delhi played listlessly in the first half showing a distinct lack of understanding among its forwards which saw many of its raids lacking sufficient bite to test the rival defence. Chandigarh in the meanwhile concentrated on fast breakaways to mount pressure on the rival ranks. Goal keeper, Mukesh Kumar, brought off two fine saves in succession to deny Chandigarh in the first-half. However, a uncharacteristic blunder by the Chandigarh defence was to pave the way for the first Delhi goal.

The defence failed to clear a cross from right and Vimal Thapa latched on to the loose ball to blast home from close in the 34th minute. Delhi slowly inched its way back into the match. Bhupinder Negi and Deepak Gurung opened the rival defence with intelligent distribution which created confusion in the Chandigarh defence. However, it was only in the second-half that Delhi started dominating its rival.

Hitender Rawat was a constant menace to the Chandigarh defence. But, the Delhi defence was also suspect to fast counter- attacks and the Delhi goal had two close shaves as Chandigarh broke away. Virendar Kanwar's shot hit the upright and bounced off in the 20th minute to give the Delhi defence a jolt. In the 30th minute Rajeev Rattan of Chandigarh hoodwinked two defenders and Mukesh Kumar, but his shot hit the left post and bounced out.

However, Delhi mounted pressure in the last quarter and the Chandigarh defence made shocking errors which were utilised to the hilt by the Delhi players. Delhi took the lead in the 83rd minute when Hitender Rawat headed in a Mohammed Mobin cross from the right. Chandigarh survived a torrid phase in the last few minutes as Delhi made a desperate attempt to score. Mobin was given the marching orders by referee Antony Joseph for unsporting behaviour.

In a Cluster V encounter in the morning, Uttar Pradesh defeated Assam 3-2. Assam had itself to blame as it missed plenty of chances and made grave errors in the defence. To compound its worries was the the insipid performance by its goalkeeper, Suraj Bahadur Gurang.

Uttar Pradesh capitalised on Assam's short comings and converted the chances that came its way. Nandan Singh Adhikari put Uttar Pradesh ahead in the 42nd minute, tapping in a rebound which came off the right post after the goalkeeper was beaten by Jatin Bisht's free kick. Suraj Bahadur Gurung failed to collect another of Jatin Bisht's lob properly, only managing to get his fingertips to the ball and the `gift' was converted by Ajay Singh.

The two reverses woke up Assam from its slumber and it went all out in the remaining minutes. Akum To scored in the 79th minute, capitalising on to a faulty clearance. The striker also scored the equaliser converting a penalty in the 84th minute. But Assam's joy was short-lived as Jatin Bisht scored off a fast counter-attack beating the rival offside trap.

Tripura beat Pondicherry 2-0 in Cluster IV encounter. Sujith Gosh (6th) and Arindam Ghosh (53rd) scored for winner. On Monday Punjab will meet Tripura (Cluster IV) while Assam will clash against Madhya Pradesh in a Cluster V match.

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