CFL 2021 -- Peerless SC beat Kidderpore 4-1 in thrilling season opener
DEFENDING CHAMPIONS PEERLESS SC got their Calcutta Football League 2021 campaign to a winning start today.
Playing newly promoted side Kidderpore SC at the Mohun Bagan Ground, Peerless overcame some early scrares to utilise a game of constant pressure to extract eventual results with some new blood and old reliable stars helping them along the way.
When the game kicked off they had a setback almost immediately, when Emmanuel ran in from the right and found a gap through the throng of Peerless defenders. His goal put Kidderpore ahead 2 minutes into the match and created the possibility for a first day upset in the 2021-22 season.
But within minutes Peerless hit back. Former Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan Sporting player Pankaj Moula was the one to get the defending champions back on equal terms. Once the score was level, Peerless started playing their natural game and soon it became obvious that Kidderpore defenders were having to resort to too many fouls for the scoreline to hold for long.
The breakthrough came not long after, when the clock was about to strike 21 minutes. A corner kick delivered by Avinabo Bag found its way to Peerless striker Ansumana Kromah who shot hard but it got blocked by a defender. But on the rebout the ball went to Akash Mukherjee who went for the target but only hit the woodwork. But thankfully for Peerless the ball went to Mohammad Aftab Alam who sank it to the back of the net.
Smelling a positive momentum, Peerless pressed harder to widen their lead. And Kroham who had been working hard to create chances up front finally got his due towards the end of the first half when a deflected ball came to him inside Kidderpore box. He made no mistake in finishing, and gave Peerless a 3-1 advantage going into half time.
In the second half Peerless were happy to maintain their advantage and Kidderpore were not really able to put up much of a fight to come back into the game. The defending champions, however, added to their total when Kromah was brought down inside the penalty box by Dipak Mandal. The striker made no mistake in converting from the spot, landing himself a brace to start the season with.
You can watch the entire match here.
The 4-1 victory marked a strong start to Peerless SC's title defence. They will return to action on 25th August, in what will be a considerably tougher challenge for them from Aryan Club.
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