This story is from January 2, 2015

Pune salvage a point, Bagan lose two

Vasco: Mohun Bagan face a huge challenge: Match finesse with finish or face an early Federation Cup exit. The Kolkata giants were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw against Pune FC at the Tilak Maidan on Thursday after dominating two-thirds of the Group C encounter and now face a daunting task against local challengers Salgaocar on Saturday.
Pune salvage a point, Bagan lose two
Vasco: Mohun Bagan face a huge challenge: Match finesse with finish or face an early Federation Cup exit. The Kolkata giants were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw against Pune FC at the Tilak Maidan on Thursday after dominating two-thirds of the Group C encounter and now face a daunting task against local challengers Salgaocar on Saturday.
Pierre Boya fired Bagan into the lead in the 26th minute with a powerful header but Pune FC leveled scores after their first threat on goal via a penalty, Japanese midfielder Ryuji Sueoka converting in the 66th minute.

Sanjoy Sen’s team must ruefully count two points lost rather than one gained and going by the coach’s admission at a well-attended post-match media conference, must do plenty of soul searching to alleviate their scoring ills evident on the day.
Sen, however, retained hope and optimism: “We are not out of the tournament. If we win two matches we will collect eight points and that should do,” he said.
“We missed so many sitters. Maybe I have to go on to the pitch to score the goals… we must practice more,” said an under-fire Sen.
The Kolkata giants have just two points from as many matches in the five-team group after a goalless opener against Bengaluru FC on Tuesday. Pune are on four from two, opening their campaign with a 3-1 win over cellar team Shillong Lajong. Bengaluru, well placed with four points as well, look set to collect three more at the expense of Lajong, devoid of points, who they play on Friday.

With Salgaocar on three points, courtesy a win over Lajong, Bagan find themselves in an unfamiliar second-last position in the group.
Football, however, would hope for Mohun Bagan’s survival in the competition. If only to keep seeing Sony Norde in action. Possessing twinkle feet, silken touches and a devastating jinking run, the Haitian ran Pune FC’s left-hand side defence ragged.
With the Japanese, Katsumi Yusa, purring away on the right flank and the customary composure by the holding midfielder Lalkamal Bhowmick in the centre, Mohun Bagan created opportunities with a degree of comfort.
Both Norde and Yusa, however, failed to score early on and it set a depressing trend for the green-and-maroons and the prodigality seemed to rub off on Pierre Boya, the withdrawn striker, who failed to beat Arminder Singh in the Pune FC goal.
Norde, inevitably paved way for Bagan’s well-deserved lead, crossing for Pierre Boya to head in powerfully past the goalkeeper.
The Cameroonian spurned a chance to score another after Norde scintillated yet again and the missed opportunities continued when Balwant Singh and Yusa did not do justice to assists by Pritam Kotal and Boya with halftime approaching.
Came halftime and a potential tongue lashing by Karim Bencherifa, guiding Pune, and an exasperated Sen but there seemed no change in the script after the teams re-emerged.
Bencherifa, though, expected his team to change character and technique and was to reveal later that he reminded his players of a painful King’s Cup final defeat and the need to put in 30 per cent more effort.
It seemed to have worked. Pune stemmed the rot, won more balls in the midfield but it took the induction of substitute Thongkhosiem Hadkip and a move involving Ryuji Sueoka and Eric Brown to fetch Pune’s first serious chance – a penalty – after the last named cross met with handball by Shouvik Ghosh.
Sueoka stepped up to blast past Amrinder Singh and level scores and Pune FC astoundingly could have pulled the rug from under Bagan’s feet within moments.
Sueoka crossed from the left for Hadkip who headed into goalkeeper Shilton Paul. The ball fell to captain Arata Izumi who only found the side-netting.
Bagan replaced the luckless Balwant with Jeje who fared no better with a gilt-edged opportunities -- heading waywardly from crosses by Yusa and Denson to compound the Kolkata side’s disappointment.
Result: Mohun Bagan 1 (Pierre Boya 26) Pune FC 1 (Ryuji Sueoka, pen, 66).
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