Dempo stay unbeaten; Air India rally to down Bhratri Sangh

Striker Dudu's goal in the dying moments helped Dempo Sports Club, Goa, to stave off a spirited challenge from State Bank of Travnancore, Thiruvananthapuram, and win 1-0 in a fourth round match, in the Second Division National Football League (final phase) in Pondicherry on Monday.

Following the victory, Dempo extended their unbeaten run to four straight win and took their points tally to 12. SBT have only four points.

In another match, Air India came from behind to drub Bhratri Sangh, Kolkata, 3-1.

In a well-contested match, Dempo pressurised the SBT defence from the beginning but their strikers failed to get the ball into the goal. In fact, both the teams were guilty of missing a few chances. Alesh and Abekka were the worst offenders for Dempo while Hakkim was guilty of wasting a good opportunity for SBT.

In the 40th minute, the SBT were lucky as defender Abdul Basheer, in a hurry to clear the ball, almost shot into his own goal. However, an alert keeper Purushotaman cleared the ball in the nick of time.

After a barren first half, most the second session was a drab affair. However, in the closing moments of the game, Dudu found the net, heading home a centre from Levy.

In the other match, Bhratri shot into the lead in the 13th minute through Dipender Biswas. Stung by the reversal, Air India made some quick forays into the rival citadel and found the equaliser at the 27th minute when Moosa converted a penalty kick. Referee Bhaskaran did not hesitate to point to the spot after a defender handled the ball inside the Bhratri penalty area.

Inspired by the success, Air India unleashed a series of attacks and Bhartri had a tough time in checking their unslaught. The Bhartri defence fumbled under pressure and Air India's moves bore fruit when Toma Singh made it 2-1 in the 42nd minute, with a neat header.

Two minutes from the end, Narendra Meetei made it 3-1 for Air India.

Second Division National Football League 2001-2002 - the complete coverage