Tags:
Journalism of Courage
New Delhi, Oct 31: East Bengal let the prestigious Kelvinator-Durand Cup slip out of their hands after Mumbai underdogs, Mahindra and Mahindra, crept up from behind to register a stunning 2-1 upset in the final here today. The win not only enabled Mahindras avenge their 1990 title loss to East Bengal, but also made them the first Mumbai team to win this coveted trophy.
8220;We knew it was difficult, but not impossible,8221; said Mahindra coach SS Hakim later. That was probably the reason why he had asked his boys to go all out and try their best today.
Meanwhile, East Bengal8217;s Ghanian trio of Musah, Jackson Agaypong and Emmanuel Opoku were working up some good moves with Renedy Singh, Dipendu Biswas and Bijen Singh. In fact, at that point, it looked as if East Bengal were cruising towards their 15th title win.
But, Hakim8217;s Army8217; just refused to give up and started venturing out. With East Bengal trying to consolidate and Mahindras attempting to equalise, the match became action-packed and both goalkeepers were regularly put to test.In the 60th minute, Hussain took a free-kick for Mahindras which rebounded into play after hitting East Bengal goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey. Mohammed Shakeel rushed into the box to attempt another shot when he was pulled down by East Bengal medio Basudeb Mondal. But the incident did not go unnoticed by referee TAHakeem, and, the resultant penalty was duly capped by a regulation Shamsi Raza effort.
Just as it appeared the match will enter extra-time, Manjit Singh did the trick for Mahindra. In the 88th minute, the bandana-sporting striker broke free, collected a pass from Adeshina and left the East Bengal goalkeeper Chaubey stunned with a neat shot for the winner.
