The Hindu : Sport / Football : Pune Club shocks Salgaocar

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Pune Club shocks Salgaocar

GURGAON: Pune Football Club shocked Salgaocar Sports Club 1-0 for its first win in the ONGC second division league final round at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium here on Sunday.

The Pune team adopted an attacking approach from the start and put its famed Goan rival under immense pressure. After its woeful defeat to Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) in the opener, Pune worked hard on set-pieces which paid dividends for the side.

In the 16th minute, Godson Odinaka shot home in a scramble following Shanmugam Venkatesh’s delectable corner kick.

Playing at a withdrawn position, Venkatesh efficiently donned the role of a playmaker and crafted some good moves. However, the Pune side could not capitalise on a few opportunities – Godson messed it up after a solo run while Jeje Lal Pekhlua missed a couple of sitters.

The Salgaocar defence looked vulnerable in the absence of seasoned Brazillian stopper Eduardo Lacerda, who played a stellar role in the last match against Sesa Academy. He was down with diarrhoea.

Salgaocar could not get into the groove even in the second session. The midfield crumbled completely and the team did not look like the one that had registered a commanding 2-0 win over Sesa three days ago.

The few attempts the Salgaocar forwards created were not good enough to beat the impregnable Pune defence comprising Kamal Thapa, Rauf Khan and Nigerian Chika Wali.

The Goan team’s coach, Stanley Rosario, admitted that his side missed Lacerda’s service.

“Absence of Eduardo made the difference. Another main defender Peter Costa was also not available because of an injury. On the other hand, the opposition defence was very compact,” he said.

Stewart Hall, the winning team’s coach, was pleased with his players’ fightback. — Sports Reporter

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