Date:30/03/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/03/30/stories/2007033007522100.htm

Sport - Football

ONGC holds Army XI

Principal Correspondent

KOZHIKODE: Army XI suddenly forgot how to defend and paid the penalty.

The armymen, who had defended stoutly in the entire first half and were ahead of ONGC, with just a couple of minutes left for the final whistle, were forced to split the point with a 1-1 draw in the NFL second division at the Corporation Stadium here on Thursday.

The army team was lucky not to concede another goal in the second half in which it defence collapsed spectacularly. But the way it played the first half and given the number of chances it got to seal the game with a second goal, it can be pardoned if it felt disappointed with the result.

Army XI is having a reasonable tournament so far after having held favourite Salgaocar in the opening match. ONGC has opened its account in the six-team round robin affair, from which the top two would qualify for NFL's first division.

The armymen took the lead in the 39th minute when Ngernilal displayed commendable presence of mind. The diminutive striker, after receiving a through ball from M.G. Ramachandran down the centre, deceived a couple of ONGC defenders, stopped the ball just in front of an advancing custodian Bilifang Narzary before placing it to the left corner of the post.

ONGC, whose usually reliable import Stanley Cypriaw had an off day, failed to impress in the opening half. The team was able to penetrate the army box only once.

There was a remarkable change in the attitude when the team took the field after the interval.

The ONCG men seemed to have been really fuelled up during the breather, as they attacked with passion.

Tarif Ahmed's entry, in place of captain Amit Mondal up front, gave more teeth to the ONGC attack and he scored in the 88th minute, driving the ball powerfully in from just inside the box, after making good use of a defensive error.