I-League: Aggressive Bharat FC come from behind to hold Pune FC 1-1
A stirring and confidence-filled display from Bharat FC saw the Lions come from behind to record a 1-1 draw against Pune FC in the historic first ever Pune derby on Saturday night at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Mhalunge-Balewadi. Bharat FC fell behind to an early goal, scored in the third minute, but recovered in stunning fashion to get the equalizer and then harry Pune FC constantly to come away with a deserved point.
Fanai Lalrempuia’s precise finish from the left of the Bharat FC box had given Pune FC the lead in the third minute itself. However, an inspired passage of play saw Bharat FC pull out an equalizer through Kris Bright who thundered an accurate header past a flailing Amrinder Singh to bring the Lions right back into the match. The result sees Bharat FC hold on to the eighth spot in the 11-team Hero I-League table with 11 points from 10 games. Pune FC remain in fourth place.
Bharat FC handed Omar Jarun his first Hero I-League start, deploying him at the heart of a back three. The Lions revamped their formation with head coach Stuart Watkiss employing a fluid 3-5-2 strategy. In the second minute, Lester Fernandez’s curling shot was scrambled to safety by Luciano Sabrosa and the clearance off the resultant corner saw Pune FC break with purpose.
Anas Edathodika fed Ryuji Sueoka and the Japanese midfielder release Fanai Lalrempuia on the left. The wily midfielder took a first time shot, sending his low drive into the far corner beating Arindam Bhattacharya in the Bharat FC goal.
The strike though drew an immediate response. Syed Rahim Nabi went on a breathtaking run down the left of the Pune FC defense, cutting past Mathew Gonsalves and Luciano Sobrosa deftly before seeing his shot fisted to safety by Amrinder Singh. Pune FC’s Edgar Marcelino pulled his hamstring in the 20th minute and Lalrempuia Hmar took his place.
Bharat FC continued to create chance after chance, but the final ball seemed to be missing. In the 32nd minute, Bobby Hassell, who put in a spectacular display at the heart of the Lions’ midfield, found Mehrajuddin Wadoo on the right with a precise diagonal pass. The right-back whipped in a cross which found Lester Fernandez on the opposite flank. Lester’s precise cross was met by a powerful Kris Bright header which gave Pune FC’s Amrinder Singh no chance.
With the equalizer in the bag, Bharat FC turned on the style. Hassell in combination with Romuald Boco and Lester seemed to completely control the game. Boco created a lovely chance in the 40th minute, jinking his way past Dhanpal Ganesh in the center, dribbling towards the Pune FC box and pulling the trigger from 20 yards out. The flight of the ball looked to be troubling Amrinder but a last-minute swerve saw the ball evade the far post.
A clash of heads, just before half-time, saw Kris Bright sustain an injury to his head. The Kiwi though, seemed to shake it off and returned for the second half with a bandage.
The second half saw Bharat FC completely dominate proceedings. In the 55th minute, Hassell ‘s perfectly judged side-footed pass went straight to Bright, whose rasping shot from 20 yards kissed the base of the post before going out.
Substitute Surajit Bose, who came on for Rajinder Kumar, was a constant thorn in the Pune FC defense, often confusing the defense with his direct running. In the 67th minute, Bose played his strike-partner Bright through and the New Zealand international was unlucky to see his first-time chip collected by Amrinder. At the other end, Syed Nabi saved Bharat FC after Darko Nikac looked all set to tap the ball in from the middle of the six-yard box. The alert Nabi clipped the ball off the Montenegrin’s toe just as he was about to strike the ball.
The Pune FC defense seemed lucky to still be on level terms with Bharat FC pushing hard. In the 83rd minute, the derby saw its share of drama as Mehrajuddin Wadoo received his marching orders after picking up a second yellow card. Five minutes later, Pune FC’s Dhanpal Ganesh was shown a straight red card after the midfielder put out a vicious stamp on Lester Fernandez who was on the ground after a sturdy challenge.
Bharat FC had a wonderful chance to take home all the points in the dying moments. In the 90th minute, Kris Bright controlled a cross from Nabi on the edge of the Pune FC penalty box. The striker beautifully brought the ball down, took a touch but his half-volley was directed straight towards the keeper.