MUMBAI, November 18: Mohun Bagan, the wind in their favour, struck back in the second half to virtually eliminate Sesa Sports Club (Goa) 2-1 in a Bristol Rovers Cup quarter-final Group X league football match that ended in derision, here tonight.

The organisers at the Cooperage need do some soul searching after an irate crowd threatened to push down fences and swarm the pitch in a last-minute incident that brought Abdul Khalique a yellow card for a violent tackle on Sesa's Xavier Fernandes.

Security looked woefully inadequate for an event of this magnitude, especially with match officiating leaving much to be desired.

Sesa will look back on another cruel quirk of fate after surrendering the lead at half-time through Kanan Priolkar's 35-yard pile-driver from a pass by Alvito D'Cunha.

After Khalique equalised for the Calcutta league champions in the 64th minute amid a second-half attacking frenzy, the Goan side conceded a debatable match-winner in the 72nd minute.

Nigerean Emakka's push on goalkeeper Francis Fernandes found no sympathy from referee Michael Andrews as Bagan's Sri Lankan striker Roshan Perera scored.

But Sesa coach Vishwas Gowkar was still happy with his team's performance despite a second-successive defeat after taking the lead. The Goans conceded a debatable penalty in their match against Air-India which they lost by an identical score-line on Sunday.

Apart for the officiating, Gowkar attributed Sesa's reverse to the loss of an injured Kanan Priolkar, goal scorer, and mainstay in the attack.

In the absence of coach Amal Dutta, manager Sajal Bose expressed disappointment with Mohun Bagan's inability to make good a score of chances that fell in an opening second-half burst.

Priolkar made full use of a kind bounce from Alvito D'Cunha's return pass to leave Hemanta Dora standing in goal with an awesome left-footer in the 13th minute.

Sesa had the match well in their stranglehold as Mohun Bagan's mid-field, missing Basudev Mondal and Satyajeet Chatterjee, was virtually non-existent.Premanand Gadecar should have extended the lead shortly later from D'Cunha's curling free-kick but the mid-fielder produced a damp squib with a header on the run that failed to disturb Dora.

D'Cunha failed in a one-on-one battle with Dora after outpacing the Bagan defence in chase of Levino Pereira's long through on the half-hour as Sesa showed a penchant to attack dangerously on the break.

Bagan's offensives in the first-half were few and infrequent but Dipendu Biswas came close to scoring with crosses from Amit Das and Khalique.

It looked that the ball wouldn't roll Bagan's way as a flurry of attacks came to nought. First, Emakka was denied by Francis Fernandes' finger tips from a free-kick before Perera's blinder from point blank range struck the underside of the bar and bounced back into play.

It was then the turn of Biswas to agonise as he struck the post from Amit Das who burst into the area after leaving two defenders for dead.

But Bagan defied superstition to draw level after the metal-work failed to save Sesa completely. Perera hit the post with a sharp attempt following a corner and after Biswas' header came off the goalkeeper, Khalique nodded home the equaliser.

Sesa almost regained the lead in a rare raid minutes later but D'Cunha booted inches over from 30 yards.

Mohun Bagan, who made a premature exit from the IFA Shield in progress in Calcutta, secured the match following a free-kick taken by Rajendra Prasad, the mid-fielder from Orissa.

In frenetic action in front of goal, the burly Emekka appeared to charge goalkeeper Francis Fernandes before Perera lodged the ball in the net with 18 minutes remaining.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.