Churchill make third straight Durand final

Despite scoring once,Odafa remained the centre of every move,defensive or aggressive. The Nigerian expressed frustration early in the first half for being disallowed any space by Indian defenders Mahesh Gawli and Anwar Ali,had to be stretchered out following scuffles,pierced the same defenders to score in the 50th minute that followed by a little party in front of the Dempo dugout and picked up a yellow card in added time trying to fizzle Dempos last shot at goal.

But the bigger slice of the cake was offered to Churchills smallest figure on the turf Charan Rai. After a promotion to the starting XI for his late equalizer in the last match,Rai vindicated the opportunity with a bit of luck,putting his team into the lead in the 20th minute. His shot carried a slight deflection from Dempo defender Creson Antao to wrong-foot goalkeeper Abhijit Mondal at the far post.

For Dempo,Nicolau Borges and Anthony Pererira kept feeding the forwards with crosses,but Chhetri and Martins were kept in check by the Dempo defenders.

Ranti came closest to scoring seconds before the interval when his shot kissed the bar. Midfield stalwart Beto,who was otherwise off-colour,pulled one back from a free-kick in the 84th minute. But the goal,arguably among the most spectacular in the tournament a scorcher from about halfway between the box and the centerline only made up for the easier misses from the Brazilian from closer ranges.

Sundays semi-final: Bagan vs Mahindra

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