Injury blues dampen Churchill’s goals

Defender Danzie Ferrao is also likely to be kept out — another injury related development. Ferrao took the field against Salgaocar in the second half after a lay-off caused by a knee injury.

FC Kochin, coached by Scotsman George Blues, will miss promising right wingback Firoze, sporting four stitches on his forehead — courtesy a viscous jab from the elbow of Abdul Lateef Sariki, a Nigerian who plays for defending champions JCT, according to reports.

Blues, 54, who had a stint with the Qatar under-21 side, said: "Fifa must address deliberate elbowing with a view to making it punishable with an instant red card. If it can be done for tackling from behind, why not for elbowing which is potentially lethal?"

Babu Mather, team manager and FC Kochin secretary, agreeing wholeheartedly that drastic action must be taken on elbowing an opponent, objectively condemned a similar misdemeanor by some of his own players, among several senior players doing likewise in the NFL.

Blues is reasonably pleased with his side’s progress in the competition but has what might appear as modest ambition. He said: "We’d be happy to finish mid-way in the table. It’s a tough league, crammed into a period less than three months and it’s going to be very difficult to be consistent."

"Then again, the other sides are coming at us all fired-up, playing us as though it’s Cup final. We’re a target and they just want to bring us down," Blues added. "All this publicity that we have been getting has piled on the pressure,"

Kochin are presently second after Air-India. They have beaten Churchill Brothers 3-1 in their only meeting this season that took place at the last IFA Shield. Kochin have the redoubtable I M Vijayan, mid-fielder Carlton Chapman, versatile Jo Paul Ancheri and Raman Vijayan, another key striker to complement his senior namesake. But Goan fans will be equally eager to see the Kerala side’s imports in action.

In their first essay in Goa, Kochin will display Ghana junior World Cup ‘keeper Ali Abu Baker and compatriots Abdul Kareem Mohamed and Mohamed Salissu (both mid-fielders) along with Nigerian stopper Saheed Akinsanya.Both Blues and Mather believe the real FC Kochin side will blossom in a couple of years. The club is blooding a second string to step into the boots of ageing stars. Youngsters in the squad — defender Jitesh, mid-fielder Shabbir Ali and Naushad Pari indicate the club’s aim.

Churchill languishing at the bottom of the table with a mere two points from five matches must draw courage from a second-half fightback that enabled the Goa league championssplit points with Salgaocar on Sunday.