Play-by-Play: A scrappy show at Sarobar but 'Duffy is kaafi' for Bagan to beat Lajong 2-0
THE SHOW THEY PUT ON was far from convincing, but Mohun Bagan managed to pull off a soothing 2-0 win over Shillong Lajong tonight thanks to a brace from Darryl Duffy.
In a back-and-forth game of quick moves from both clubs that got cut short in the final third, Bagan and Lajong showed eagerness early on but neither seemed able to dominate possession and continuously gave up the ball cheaply. Lajong had started 7 U-22 Indians and Bagan had dropped Kean Lewis to use Katsumi Yusa on the left wing, and though the home team's Japanese captain made a few early runs he wasn't able to create too many chances. A couple of times he found Balwant with a cross but the latter could not make the finish.
Lajong, meanwhile, were making counters through Kinowaki and Zodingliana. Early on when Kinowaki served Dipanda with a good cross and Debjit Majumder fumbled with the save, the Lajong striker almost got an easy tap-in but Bagan defender Anas Edathodika made a sliding clearance to deny him.
The goal came 20 minutes in when Darryl Duffy got hold of a long ball, got past two defenders with twists and turns and sent a low ball past a confused Vishal Kaith to put Mohun Bagan ahead.
As the first half wore on, Lajong came close quite a few times, with Dipanda missing some of the easiest head-in opportunities of the game. The second half began with a period of Lajong dominance but Bagan held on, and Sanjoy Sen was soon making defensive changes to preserve the Mariners' lead.
Towards the end of the game, Pronay Halder forwarded a good long ball that found Balwant Singh inside the box. Under pressure from a defender, he trapped the ball and rolled it towards Duffy. The Scottish striker swung it straight into the net from a close range. Mohun Bagan went up 2-0, and there wasn't much chance for Lajong to make a comeback from that.
This is the second straight loss for Shillong Lajong. Both of them have been away games, and against the two most difficult opponents in the league. Thangboi Singto has been adamant to give his young players all the opportunities and limelight he can afford and as they leave for Aizawl to face Aizawl FC in the season's first North-East Derby on Tuesday, the Lajong head coach would be partially relieved to know that the worst is behind them.
Mohun Bagan, though, are still not the best version of themselves. They are not yet playing their best eleven. Sony Norde is back in town but not yet fit, and Jeje only came on for the last couple of minutes to have a run-around. There seemed to be a lack of coordination in the squad that's probably the result of a very short pre-season. But some individual performances have pulled them through so far. Tonight, Anas Edathodika, Sehnaj Singh, Katsumi Yusa, Pritam Kotal all played their heart out, and Duffy, after prolonged doubts over his health and fitness in the lead up to the game, overcame his fever as well as bad form to knock in a brace. All in all, with 6 points in the bag, Mohun Bagan coach Sanjoy Sen should feel relieved to be on top of the league table.
Here's how the match unfolded, narrated in detail via our blow-by-blow real time updates.
