The Hindu : Sport / Football : Odafe stars in Churchill’s win

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Friday, Dec 14, 2007
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Odafe stars in Churchill’s win

Margao: Odafe Onyeka Okolie’s hat-trick propelled Churchill Brothers to a 3-2 win over East Bengal in the ONGC I-League at the Nehru Stadium here on Thursday.

It was East Bengal which took the lead in the 26th minute through Edmilson Marques. The Brazilian then had a golden chance to double the lead but he wasted a penalty which proved costly. Okolie then responded with three stunning strikes to snuff out East Bengal’s challenge.

East Bengal, which tried to make a comeback in the second half, reduced the margin through Mehtab Hussain in the 86th.

The win took Churchill to nine points from five matches while East Bengal remained on seven after this defeat.

Churchil could have won by a bigger margin had it utilised all the chances. The Goan team played an attacking game from the start with quick, short passes in the middle, keeping the rival defence on tenterhooks.

It had a good chance to take the lead in the 25th but Robert Lalthlamvana drove the ball over from inside the box.

East Bengal, which relied on counter-attacks, surged ahead when Alvito D’Cunha worked his way on the left flank, relayed the ball to Edmilson who shot home on the run.

Churchill equalised five minutes later. Okolie, who was the livewire upfront, accepted a pass from the right and took defenders Debabrata Roy and Airbor Khongjee in his stride.

He raced into the box and his angular drive hit the inside of the post before going in.

Wasted chance

East Bengal had a chance to take the lead again Marques wasted a penalty as he chipped the ball over the bar. The spot-kick was awarded by Maldives referee Ali Saleem after the keeper brought down Marques, who was about to score from inside the box.

Churchill kept up the pressure and was awarded a penalty after defender Debabrata brought down Ogba Kalu Nnanna inside the box. Okolie made no mistake in finding the net.

Okolie completed his hat-trick with a solo effort in the 43rd minute off a pass from Khan Thang Paite to have Churchill leading 3-1 at the break. — PTI

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