A late strike by Vimal Pariyar helped Mohammedan Sporting garner three points with a 1-0 win over bottom-rung Vasco SC in the seventh round encounter of the ONGC I-League at the floodlit Yuba Bharati Krirangan on Friday.
If the power-cuts stayed away from YBK, then it was the turn of flies and mosquitoes to hold up the match for close to 10 minutes.
In what may sound bizarre, the mosquito spray used outside the ground seeped inside to make visibility poor and forced the match to be suspended 22 minutes before changeover.
The first-half, which remained goalless, belonged to the Goan side which dominated but were left ruing with luck not favouring them.
In fact, it was Mohammedan Sporting goalkeeper Tungshang Tharangachan who stood out with three brilliant saves that denied Vasco their first win of the league.
Shabbir Ali's boys stepped up the momentum in the second-half and captain Mike Okoro set up Goutam Thakur in the 52nd minute only to see the latter's shot coming off the woodwork.
The winner came in the 86th minute when Pariyar scored from a Sovan Chakraborty cross from the left.
Vasco goalkeeper Milagrio Medeira missed the flight and Pariyar headed home from behind.
The win helped the city team take their points tally to nine from eight matches, while Vasco stayed on two points.
© 2024 Rediff.com -