Date:26/04/2003 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2003/04/26/stories/2003042602592000.htm

Sport - Football

East Bengal lifts title

By Our Sports Reporter

The East Bengal team that won the National Football League championship at Kolkata on Friday.

KOLKATA APRIL 25. Kingfisher East Bengal is the seventh National Football League champion. The city giant removed any doubts about its status when it swamped Goan challenger Vasco SC in a glut of goals - 4-0 - in a 21st round encounter of the Oil PSU sponsored event at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Friday.

East Bengal triumphed in style amassing 49 points to ensure the title with a match to spare.

It's last match against the other Goan team, Salgaocar SC, and the whole set of encounters in the concluding round are of mere academic interest as only the final league standings below the champion remain to be decided.

The second place will go to a Goan team. The fight is between second placed Salgaocar (on 41 points) and Vasco (40 points). The contest for the third spot will be between JCT Mills (35 points), Churchill Brothers (34 points) and last year's champion Mohun Bagan (33 points).

The NFL title culminated a triumphant season for East Bengal, which won all five tournaments it participated in. The Independence Cup (in Assam), local Super Division title, IFA Shield and the Durand Cup preceded this title.

Five titles in a season - equalled only by Mohun Bagan last season - speaks of the dedication and acumen of team coach Subhas Bhowmick. He brought together a selection of big talents to deliver as a team.

Beginning in right earnest, the host found the mark through its multi-role Brazilian import Douglas Da Silva. Douglas' effort in the 13th minute was both spectacular and effective as he successfully executed a bicycle kick to convert a corner into goal.

While East Bengal's Brazilian import played freely his compatriot in Vasco - Marcos Pereira - was effectively policed by the burly East Bengal stopper Suley Musah. With Pereira being the main strike-force of Vasco, the host's ploy of marking the former worked well as the visitor was kept under check. On the other hand East Bengal saw its tally increasing as Douglas scored again in the very first minute after change of ends.

East Bengal continued to enhance the score line while Vasco was reduced to a mere spectator. Substitute S. Malswamtulunga - replacing an off-colour Alvito D'Cunha in the attack line - made it 3-0 in the 67th minute. Malswamtulunga playing mainly as an outside-right was impressive with his acceleration and ball control.

He had the Vasco defence totally at his mercy making inroads into the opponent territory at will. East Bengal could well have finished with a bigger score line but for the flat footedness of its Nigerian striker Mike Okoro, who squandered at least three close opportunities before finally finding the target in the 84th minute.

This kept Okoro in the hunt for the title of the highest scorer of the tournament. The Nigerian has scored 17 goals so far and is one goal behind his compatriot Yakubu Yusuf of Churchill Brothers.

Douglas, definitely the key to East Bengal's triumph, was justifiably adjudged the ONGC man-of-the-match.