Barretto powers Bagan into semis

The Bengal outfit had drawn two games making it imperative for them to beat the best side in the show as Iran had won both its matches to top the group.

Now Bagan clash with its perennial rival East Bengal in the second semi-finals slated on Sunday while after rest tomorrow, the Irani team meets Churchill Brothers in the first semi-finals on Saturday.

Bagan began their survival campaign on an inauspcious note. The star forward Jose Santos pulled a leg muscle in the 25th minute and was taken out on a stretcher. That put the added burden of Lynchpin on Barretto but he rose to the occasion.

In the 37th minute Amar Ganguly took a free kick, which hit defender Mansour Jamilian and came back very fast to Barretto just outside the box. In a flash the Brazilain squeezed a pile driver through a maze of Iranians.

In the first match Salgaocar got past Air India with Ahmed Tejani sending in a crushing kick from 30 yards, which curled and beat M Ansari, who found himself guarding the wrong corner. Ahmed thus compensated for missing a sitter of heading a minute before.

The Iranians needlessly over stretched themselves because they had already qualified. Instead they got involved in rough tackles and paid a heavy price for it. Their main scorer Alireza Monajati got a red card and not only he had to go out but will also miss the next match.

Bagan also suffered heavily as the man fouled, Amar Ganguly, was taken away on stretcher and later Jayanto Sen also limped out.

Both Sen and Ganguly had made fluent excursions into the midfield to link up with Barretto. Ganguly particularly always posed danger when in possession of the ball 25 yards away. Once his crackling shot forced substitute Iranian goallie Farsho Yousefi dive to make a save.

The start of the match made the partisan crowd miss a heartbeat, when Reza Hadadi got a free ball near the Bagan goal area and as he was just about to take a pot shot. Unfortunately he handled the ball. The referee did not notice it and realising that he made weak harmless push.

In the dying minutes Mansour lifted a long ball across, which beat Bivash Ghosh but mercifully for about five thousand crazily shouting Bengalis there was no one to tap it home.

CAP: Salgaocar goalkeeper goes air-borne as he collects a save from a header from an Air India forward in their Rovers Cup clash at the Cooperage on Thursday.