The Hindu : Sport / Football : Fransa FC leaves Mohun Bagan stranded

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Sunday, Feb 06, 2005

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Fransa FC leaves Mohun Bagan stranded

By Our Sports Reporter

KOLKATA, FEB. 5. Debutant Fransa FC pulled off a major upset defeating three-time champion Mohun Bagan 2-1 at the latter's home ground in a sixth round match of the IX National Football League at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Saturday.

Having lost to Tollygunge Agragami on the first day of the month, Fransa would have been more than happy to collect full points against a more highly-rated team at the same venue. This was the Goans' last outing in Kolkata in the first phase and they return home with 10 points in its kitty from six matches.

On the other hand, the woes compounded for Mohun Bagan which sank deeper down the league table following its second successive defeat. Having lost to the league leader Dempo in the earlier round in Goa, this was the third loss in six matches for Bagan, which has seven points.

The action today was far from interesting. With the Goans playing a cautious game, there was not much happening on the field. Bagan suffered the first jolt in the 17th minute when Jules Alberto stunned the stadium into silence with a rasping pile-driver that beat Bagan custodian Prasanta Dora.

Mohun Bagan made some effort in the second session to find the equaliser, but the attackers, including Brazilian Roberto Mendes Silva, Sunil Chhetri and Ashim Biswas — fumbled inside the striking zone. The 50th minute saw Roberto heading over from close to let go an easy opportunity for Bagan before a spate of injuries in a span of three minutes struck the Goans.

Fransa saw two of its defenders, Peter Rodrigues and Sanjeev Maria, down with bleeding injuries while tackling Bagan's forwards. While Rodrigues was treated on the field, Maria received stitches on his wound at the Apollo hospital near the stadium. The rough tackles also saw Mohun Bagan forward Chhetri sustain an injury and he was replaced by Jo Paul Ancheri.

Bagan got the equaliser in the 70th minute when Roberto got his header right diverting home a measured centre from Basudev Mondal.

But Bagan's joy was short-lived as a defensive slip by Noel Wilson saw Fransa restore the lead in the 79th minute. Wilson failed to clear a through pass by Alberto as substitute Joseph Ogor accepted the prized chance as he ran up unchallenged and dribbled past Dora to score with an angular shot. Bagan made a few tries after the third goal, but none of them were good enough to save the day. Fransa custodian Kalyan Chaubey, who stood firm under the bar, received the man-of-the-match award.

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