Blue Colts Down FC Goa Reserves 2-0 In Final League-Stage Game; Finish Atop Group A

Bengaluru: Bengaluru FC B ended their Hero 2nd Division League campaign unbeaten after a comfortable 2-0 win over FC Goa Reserves in their final group stage game at the Bengaluru Football Stadium, on Saturday.

Goals from Edmund Lalrindika (4’) and Naorem Roshan Singh (50’) handed Naushad Moosa’s boys their seventh win in Group A, the most in this season’s competition across all three groups. In fact, in taking their tally to 22 points and scoring 26 goals the Blue Colts logged the best numbers in the group stage despite Group C having six teams playing ten matches, two more than the Colts.

Fielding a strong team, the Blue Colts took an early lead when Edmund picked up a stray ball off a failed clearance on the right before sprinting toward the edge of the box in the 4th minute. The striker then hammered a powerful shot past Shubham Dhas in the Goa goal at the far post for his second goal in as many games.

Bengaluru continued to dominate proceedings thereafter and created a host of chances. The closest they came to the second was midway through the half when skipper Myron Mendes’ inch perfect cross from the left was headed inches wide by Leon Augustine at the far post after the winger managed to get a good connection on the dive.

The second half too saw an early goal, and once again it was BFC B who managed to find the back of the net. Roshan picked up a pass from Edmund inside the box on the left before finishing off at the far post with an outside the boot finish in the 50th minute.

The Blue Colts continued to push ahead with intent and midfielder Sairuat Kima almost got the third. Left-back Parag Shrivas made a solo run down the left before cutting in and firing a low shot on the goal which Dhas parried away. The ball fell for Kima whose shot on the slide came off the upright.

Ten minutes from the final whistle, the hosts had another chance when Namgyal Bhutia’s freekick from 30-yards was palmed onto the crossbar by Dhas who somehow managed to avoid a disaster.

The game took an ugly turn late on as both teams ended the game with ten men after BFC B’s Sairuat Kima and Goa’s Sarineo Fernandes were sent off in the final minutes of the second half.