Blasters rally to hold Jamshedpur
JAMSHEDPUR: Australian great Tim Cahill opened his goal account in the Indian Super League and Jamshedpur FC another before the breather. Yet, that wasn’t enough for the hosts as Kerala Blasters struck back in the second half for an entertaining 2-2 draw here on Monday.
It was all Jamshedpur in the first half as star forward Cahill (3’) and Michael Soosairaj (31’) put them two goals to the good. However, a spirited comeback from the visitors saw Slavisla Stojanovic (71’) and CK Vineeth (85’) restore parity and claim a share of the spoils.
The home team got off to a perfect start with a goal as early as the third minute from a corner kick. Sergio Cidoncha’s delivery was headed in by a diving Cahill to register his first ISL goal.
High on confidence after the early goal, Jamshedpur controlled the game and were able to string passes almost at will.
The visitors struggled to impose themselves and Soosairaj was seeing a lot of the ball on the left wing. He cut in and sent a shot over in the 20th minute but made amends 10 minutes later. A throw-in from the left fell to Soosairaj inside the penalty box and the Tamil Nadu born winger curled a delightful strike into the far bottom corner to double Jamshedpur’s lead.
Despite the setback, Blasters fought back and reduced the deficit in the 71st minute. Two second-half substitutes combined as Sahal Abdul Samad found Seiminlen Doungel on the left wing. The youngster’s cross was emphatically turned in by a stunning left-footed volley from Stojanovic. Doungel went on to fashion Kerala’s second goal with just five minutes left in regulation time. He surged to the byline before cutting a pass back which Vineeth swept in, much to the chagrin of the home faithful.
DELHI HOST NORTHEAST
NEW DELHI: Delhi Dynamos will look to put the defeat against Mumbai City behind them when they face an in-form Northeast United in an ISL match at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Tuesday. Dynamos have lost three and drawn two of their five games this term.