CALCUTTA, March 22: Mohun Bagan finally kept their tryst with destiny. They did not have to wait for the result of the Salgaocar-JCT match for that. They did it in their own way, even though their opponents Mahindras might not have liked it. Bagan, after being pushed out of the main stage of the inaugural National Football League, won the coveted title in its second edition. What could be more sweeter than annexing the League in front of their 70,000 odd vociferous fans at the Salt Lake Stadium. The 3-0 win over Mahindras was the icing on the cake that always seemed theirs.The man made who made it possible was that Nigerian footballer often described as the best foreigner to have played in India and who gets mobbed wherever he goes. Chima Okerie got all the three goals and had he been in better form, he would have got a couple more too. "Chima", Mahindras coach Deryk de Sousa needed just one word to point out Bagan's superiority in this League, going as far as saying that it was this man who had broughtBengal football back into limelight.
Thumbarrathi K Chathunni too basked in Bagan's glory. For him, it was a glorious end to an excellent season. He had coached two clubs to the top of Indian football. Salgaocar won the Federation Cup under his guidance and now Bagan won the National League. "Best day in my coaching career," Chathunni could not have used better words to describe his feelings today.
Bagan colours -- maroon and green -- filled the stands long before the schedule kick-off today. The fans had started celebrating even before the game started. A helicoptor added colour to the occasion, dropping a Bagan flag on the field. The situation could have overawed anybody and Mahindras are not too used to such conditions.
Yet, it must be said to the Mumbai team's credit that they produced one of their best games in the pressure-cooker atmosphere. In fact, it was Bagan who were feeling most of the pressure. They had to win; their fans would not have accepted anything else.
Mahindras, on the otherhand, had nothing at stake. "We were playing against a superior team and we knew that we would lose but not in this manner," a dejected Mahindras coach De Sousa said later. He was referring to Bagan's first and third goals, which they felt were the referee N K Chetia's gift to Bagan under pressure.
Bagan maintained pressure throughout even though the Mahindras defence refused to buckle. Moving up through Roshan Pereira and Chima Okerie with Amit Das and Lolendro Singh feeding from the midfield, Bagan created a number of openings. However, the Mahindras team was up to its task, keeping all the men back to plug the gaps and going ahead whenever required.
The absence of Khalid Jamil forced the Mumbai team to slow down in their counter-attacks, but the Bagan coach too ensured that at least three of his boys stayed back at all times. The Bagan defence's task was made difficult by a jittery goalkeeper Raju Ekka, who appeared all at sea. This forced the Bagan president and the manager for today's match Tutu Boseto persuade his coach to allow Hemant Dora to replace Ekka. Dora made a couple of good interceptions to justify the substitution.
The first goal came at the stroke of half-time through a spot-kick. Lolendro Singh and Amit Das put Pereira through inside the Mahindras box, and as the Sri Lankan made his way through the defenders, Sushanta Majumdar tripped him from the back. The referee awarded the penalty even as Mahindras disputed the verdict and later called it unfair. Okerie converted to score his first goal of the match, sparking off mad celebrations in the stands.
Bagan had to wait till the 77th minute for their second goal. RP Singh's calmly taken flag-kick found Reazul Mustafa inside the Mahindras box. Mustafa just touched it in Okerie's direction who found the mark with his right foot. The issue was beyond Mahindras and they knew it.
The third goal too, the Mahindras camp felt, should have been disallowed. Okerie latched on to a Ranjan Choudhury pass, looked at the linesman once just to seewhether he was off-side, and then proceeded unchallenged to complete his hat-trick with a minute from time.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
