CFL 2021/22: Bhawanipore humble Mohammedan
2 min read
KOLKATA: Bhawanipore FC humbled Mohammedan Sporting Club 2-0 in their Calcutta Football League clash on Saturday.
Sujoy Dutta (12′) and Henry Kisseka (14′) were on target for the Sankarlal Chakraboty coached side at Naihati Stadium.
Bhawaniore didn’t get off the mark as quickly as they might have hoped with Mohammedan proving strong tactically, setting up a deep block with pace up front for the counter attack.
Nonetheless, Bhawanipore started to find their place in the match looking like the more organised, more dominant side as they enjoyed a majority of possession.
And it was no surprise when they took the lead in the 12th minute through Sujoy, who shifted the ball to his right foot and took a shot at the near post to put his team ahead. Even a full-length dive from the Mohammedan goalkeeper Zothanmawia wasn’t good enough to stop the shot.
Henry doubled the advantage for Bhwanipore two minutes later. The former Mohun Bagan striker was released by Bayi Kamo on goal and was one on one with the keeper. He kept his calm and passed it into the back of the net.
With Bhwanipore taking a two-goal lead, Mohammedan had to throw caution to the wind as they launched a wave of attacks on the Bhawanipore defence, however couldn’t find a way to break down that final line as they went into the break trailing 2-0, with a mountain to climb in the second stanza.
Going into the second-half Bhawanipore continued to apply pressure and made some decent runs forward. Mohammedan, however, are not a side to give up lightly and despite trailing by two goals kept the intensity high, and the pressure on their opponents as they battled to find a way back into the match.
Although Mohammedan remained determined to get back into the game, unfortunately the front line continued to fire off-target while Bhawanipore started to establish a comfortable rhythm whenever they found themselves in possession making it tough for their opponents to impose their game.
Bhawanipore were also clever throughout, using delaying tactics such as players going down for cramps to ensure the match was of a stop-start nature and prevent Mohammedan from finding their rhythm on attack.
The remainder of the match was a frustrating time for Mohammedan, who tried their best to reduce the margin. However Bhawanipore were able to comfortably see out the remainder of the game to the delight of their coach Sankarlal Chakraborty.