I-League: Churchill continue unbeaten run with draw vs Gokulam


IANS | Kozhikode | Updated: 30-11-2018 20:18 IST | Created: 30-11-2018 20:18 IST
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The I-League encounter between Gokulam Kerala FC and Churchill Brothers FC Goa ended in a 1-1 draw with both the teams sharing the spoils at the EMS Corporation Stadium here on Friday.

Willis Plaza scored in the fifth minute giving the Goan team an early lead but later in the first half, a showcase of individual brilliance from Gokulam Kerala FC's Arjun Jayaraj saw the hosts equalise in the 36th minute.

Churchill drew the first blood as early as the fifth minute through a brilliant goal from their striker Willis Plaza from an equally outstanding pass from Lamgoulen Hangshing. Willis Plaza is now the highest goal scorer in the Hero I-League with six goals to his credit.

Soon after, Gokulam Kerala came really close to an equaliser but couldn't when a good pass from Antonio German to Rajesh could not find the right direction to the back of the net.

On the contrary, Churchill Brothers kept pressing hard with regular attempts to score utilising the gaps in the Gokulam Defence but could not capitalise on their lead.

Gokulam, who were visibly taken aback by the early deficit, slowly tried increasing their pace and attacks but were unable to convert the good opportunities that came their way.

Their efforts soon got results when Arjun Jayaraj received the ball inside the box from a pass from Christian Sabah and made no mistake in scoring an outstanding equaliser for the hosts in the 36th minute.

The game thereafter changed quite a bit with Gokulam Kerala FC pressing harder and making a few attempts to score as well, but the Churchill defence line stood strong as a wall along with their goalkeeper James Kithan to deny the hosts any chance to score and take the lead in the first half.

The second half began with Gokulam Kerala FC pressing hard for a lead from the 46th minute onwards. The hosts, however, could not convert the opportunities that came their way to earn a lead in the game. Some of them from Churchill Brothers also went haywire when they couldn't really strike to find the back of the net.

The intensity of the game could be judged by the fact that between both the teams a total of 15 shots were attempted in the first 60 minutes of the game. Gokulam Kerala FC led these statistics with nine shots while the visitors had only 6 shots.

Arjun Jayaraj who was rightfully adjudged the Hero of the Match played a fantastic game as the chief playmaker for Kerala. However, his efforts were not really rewarded as the striking force of Gokulam Kerala FC somehow could not get the required finish to walk away with a win.

The dying minutes of the game saw both the teams pressing hard to find that elusive lead that they were vying for but some failed connections and a couple of interesting saves at both ends ensured both Gokulam Kerala FC and Churchill Brothers FC Goa walked away with a point apiece.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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