AGENCIES, NAIHATI: Churchill Brothers and RoundGlass Punjab went toe-to-toe in an epic clash to share the points in the twelfth game of the 2021-2022 Hero I League.
Churchill Brothers, who are considered as one of the title contenders had a rough start to the Hero I League 2021-22. The Goa-based side lost 1-0 to the former Hero I League Champions Gokulam Kerala FC in their first game. RoundGlass Punjab FC on the other hand started their campaign with a brilliant 2-0 result against Rajasthan United Football Club.
The game kicked off with both sides looking to control the play in the midfield with aggressive play. In just the second minute of the game, Churchill Brothers won a Free Kick near the opposition box, this was just a sign for things to come.
RoundGlass Punjab dominated the early proceedings in the game, controlling the game in the middle of the park but Churchill pressed them immensely.
In the 10th minute of the game, Guilherme Dost Santos of Churchill Brothers got injured and had to be replaced by Sekou Sylla.
After coming on minuted before, Sekou Sylla latched onto an inch-perfect cross from Komron Tursunov in the 17th minute to give Churchill the lead. RoundGlass Punjab didn’t bog down and tried to get the score back to level terms with repetitive attacks. Ashish Jha and Rupert Nongrum had glorious chances in the 21st and 25th minute to score for RoundGlass but could not capitalize.
The Churchill resistance finally broke in the 34th minute of the game as Kurtis Guthrie’s right-footed shot from an acute angle inside the box found its way into the back of the net. The back and forth between the two teams continued with both teams enjoying successful passages of play during different phases.
Churchill regained their lead in the 44th minute as a beautiful first-time curler delivered by the Full Back Lamgoulen Gou Hangshing, found Kenneth Ikechukwu headed the ball into the goal. The first half ended with Churchill leading RoundGlass 2-1.
