Salcete (Goa), Jan 8 Namdhari FC shocked league leaders Churchill Brothers beating them 1-0 in the I-League 2024-25 at the Raia Ground on Wednesday. The loss was Churchill Brothers’ second of the season and a blow to their chance at extending the gap at the top of the table.
While Churchill are still at the top after seven rounds with 13 points, Namdhari, who didn’t start the season too brightly, have moved to third place with 11 points from seven matches. An own goal by Churchill substitute Maibam Deny Singh at the stroke of half-time was the only goal of the match.
Predictably, Churchill started the game on the front foot and looked keen and able to continue the hot streak that had taken them to the top of the table. Namdhari, for their part, were focused on breaking play in midfield, which their enforcers did well to their credit for most of the first half.
Namdhari got the first chance of the game when Manvir Singh collected the ball on the left of the box, turned his marker inside out, and let fly. Goalkeeper Sayad Bin Abdul Kadir made a smart block to save Churchill’s blushes.
The hosts’ first chance of the game fell to the speedy Anil Rama Gaonkar, who drove in from the right flank, into the box, before shooting at goal from a narrow angle. Namdhari goalkeeper Jaspreet Singh’s strong parry fell into the path of Wayde Lekay. The South African took a first-time shot, but it was smartly blocked to go out of play.
Churchill ramped up their attacking forays constantly through the first half, but their inability to be effective in the final third played to their detriment. Namdhari made them pay for it right at the end of the half when Lamine Moro scored the opener.
The goal came off a Namdhari free-kick on the right. The perfectly curled cross was missed by attackers and defenders alike, falling at the feet of Moro in the six-yard area. Despite being boxed in by two Namdhari players, the Ghanaian outmuscled his way to poke the ball which took a massive deflection off of Deny Singh, on its way into the net. Namdhari had an unlikely lead going into the break.
The pattern of play continued well into the second half, and Churchill’s inability to score continued to let them down. Namdhari continued to break play, and also at times, break the momentum of the game with tactical fouls and stoppages in play.
Churchill’s best chance came in an extended period of injury time when the ball dropped for Rama Gaonkar at the edge of the box after Namdhari had messily cleared a corner. The winger chested it down perfectly and hit a volley, which flew just wide. Namdhari held on, through a mix of guile and street smarts to bag the three points.
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