The group C 114th IFA Shield match between Mohun Bagan and Mahindra United ends in a draw. Both the teams have earned a point each and finished with 4 points. But Bagan has the goal advantage (+2) and hence moves into the semifinal. They will meet Chirag on 9th September.

Snehasish scored for Bagan in the first half. That was gem of a goal. Marcos gave a pass to James in the right flank – James was near the corner flag. He got hold of the ball, and then a brilliant left footer found Snehasish near the far post. His header was too strong for Subhasish Roy Choudhury who tried to fist the ball out. But the ball was found kissing the net from inside. Required to win the match by at least a three-goal margin for their progress into the semis, Mahindra United was forced onto the backfoot in the face of a concerted Mohun Bagan attack.Subhasish raised up for quite a number of times and stopped Bagan from scoring another goal.

 If Subhasish was the saviour for Mahindra, Shilton was there for Bagan. In number of occasions he showed his abilities and foiled Mahindra attacks, except for once. At the beginning of the second half Mahindra scored when Mijin got hold of the ball and made no mistake. The ball went past Deepak in the 2nd post. 

Both the teams tested the defense of the opponents. But in the second half Chiddi was the lone Bagan player in the attacking third. Hence Mahindra defense had no problems in covering him. However, referring was not up to the mark at all.

Bagan will now meet Chirag United on 9th September in the 2nd semi finals at Yuva Bharati Krirangan, on 8th I-League Champion Churchill Brothers will meet Air India in the first semi finals.

TEAMS

M.Mohun Bagan : Shilton Paul, Dipak Mondol, Rakesh Masih, N.Mohonraj, Surkumar Singh, Marcos Pereira, Kalia Kulothungon, Mickey Fernandez, Snehasish Chakrabarty (Santa Kumar), L.James Singh (Sangram Mandi), Chidi Edeh.

Mahindra United : Subhasish Roy Chowdhury, Denzil Franco, D.Ravanan, Kali Alaudden, Susant Mathew, Debabrata Roy, K.Thoi singh, Md. Rafi, Aseem Kutty, Muritala Ali(Sushil Singh), Suetogar Mijin (N.P.Pradeep)

Yellow Cards : Micky Fernandez, Marcos Pereira and Deepak Mondal (Mohun Bagan) and S.Muritala Ali (Mahindra United).

Referee : A. Arjunan (Services)

 

Mohun Bagan started the season with a bang. Mariners won the first match of IFA Shield 4-0. Chiddi scored a brace while James and Subho scored a goal each. Subho’s goal was from a 40 yards long ranger – gem of a goal

 

I-League runners-up Mohun Bagan opened their season in style, thrashing George Telegraph 4-0 in a one-sided Group C encounter of the historic IFA Shield. The twenty-time Shield champions Mohun Bagan scored through Chidi Edeh (3rd, 40th minutes), James Singh (38th) and substitute Subha Kumar (87th). Nigerian Chidi, new recruit of the Green-and-Maroons, missed a penalty and a few other sitters, which could have increased the goal margin. Playing on home turf with four of their national players — Deepak Mondal, Surkumar Singh, Rakesh Masih and N Mohan Raj — Mohun Bagan ruled the roost right from the kick-off, taking a 1-0 lead in the third minute.

Making most of a James Singh free-kick, Chidi deftly pushed the ball inside the net in an aerial clash with George’s goalkeeper Sibram Dey. In the 20th minute, Chidi was brought down inside the box by Amit Kundu, but the Nigerian failed to convert the penalty with a woefully off target shot, that ballooned over the bar.

               
But Bagan found the opposition net twice in a space of two minutes to go 3-0 up to wrap a superb first-half for the home side. James scored from a Marcos Pereira corner in the 38th minute. The corner kick was blocked by the George custodian but a well-anticipated James did not miss the chance. Capitalising on a Kalia Kulothungan pass, Chidi scored his second goal in the 40th minute with George finding the going tough.

           

The second saw George Telegrapg claw back some of the initiative but the midway substitutions restored status quo once again. Mohun Bagan got a few chances but it was towards the end of the match substitute Subha Kumar, who replaced Marcos, scored from 40 yard thunderbolt which left the opposition stunned, to complete the rout.

Baga



n will meet Mahindra United on Sunday.

Picture: Bartaman, Tridip Sheet

Padma Shree recipient, ex player of Mohun Bagan, Sailen Manna turns 85 today.

He is the former Indian captain of Asian Games gold medal winning team in 1951 who played his entire career for Mariners from 1942 to 1960, he became  captain of Mohun Bagan team for six years from 1950 to 1955. India won four successive titles in the South East Asian quadrangular meet (India, Pakistan, Burma and Sri Lanka) between 1952 and 1955.  In 2000, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) named him the `Indian Footballer of the Millennium".