Date:26/11/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/11/26/stories/2008112652501800.htm

Sport - Football

Chirag United beats Vasco SC

Special Correspondent

Chirag moves to ninth position with 12 points

KOLKATA: Playing for almost 70 minutes with 10 men, Chirag United SC defeated Vasco SC 3-1 in a 10th round match of the I-League at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Tuesday. The win lifted Chirag to ninth position with 12 points.

This was Vasco’s eighth defeat and with just two points is in 12th position.

Defender Dulal Biswas, who was booked for elbowing a rival player earlier, repeated the infringement and was sent off.

Yet, Chirag players never seemed to miss him as the 10-man team dominated the proceedings and scored three goals before Vasco pulled one back in the dying minutes.

After Subair Muritala Ali’s ill-directed headers midway through the first half, Chirag always looked like getting a goal.

Two minutes into injury time Muritala tried to head in a pass from left-winger Snehasish Chakraborty. Vasco custodian Milagrio Madeira too tried to punch it away but missed the ball.

Instead of clearing the ball to safety, defender Fulganco Cardozo put the ball inside his own goal.

The second half opened in favour of Chirag as it made it 2-0 in the 54th minute when Chakraborty pushed home a Muritala assist.

Almost at the stroke of the 90th minute came Chirag’s third goal. Chakraborty put through an overlapping R. Dhanarajan whose tantalising centre enabled Muritala to head in.

A minute before injury time, Vasco’s Sherzod Nazarov unleashed a long ranger sensing the rival goalie Gopal Das out of position. The ball sailed over a surprised Das and dipped into the net.