Reigning I-league champions Churchill Brothers defeated their local rivals Dempo SC 2-1 to make their way to the third consecutive Durand Cup final. Churchill Brothers have had a thumping start to their new season clinching the IFA Shield a week ago outclassing Mohun Bagan in the final.
Last year Durand Cup runners-up and 2007 champions Churchill Brothers will surely like to write off their 2008 final performance when they went down to Mahindra United 2-3 in a unconventional way.
The Carlos Roberto Pereira da Silva coached side was the better team today and rightly deserves to be in final, while Dempo failed to rise to the occasion as they hardly played their natural game.
Young Charan Rai was picked ahead of Jason Vales in the Churchill Brothers starting eleven and the right winger justified his selection scoring the first goal for his team. The Manipuri winger picked a Naoba Singh pass from the right and hammered in his shot that went in after a deflection from Cresson Antao's foot in the 21st minute leaving Dempo custodian Abhijit Mondal stranded.
Dempo came close to level terms in the 37th minute when Anthony Pereira made a brilliant run from the right getting pass Khanthang Paite and Robert Lalthalma to provide a teasing cross into the centre. Churchill Brothers goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya just managed to flick it out before Nicolau Borges' header was off target.
Dempo almost got the equalizer at the stroke of half time when a diving attempt by Ranty Martins Soleye struck the woodwork as Churchill successfully went into the break with a precious 1-0 lead.
Odafe finally broke his hoodoo and that too with his trademark style in the 50th minute to double Churchill Brothers lead. Picking up a Khanthang Paite pass from the edge of the box, Odafe tussled it out with the Dempo defenders before blasting his right footer into the far post for an ecstatic celebration.
Its early days for Sunil Chetri with Dempo's as the Indian international striker is yet to find his form and rhythm. The Ranty and Chetri combination upfront could have put the Churchill defence into sixes and sevens which clearly lacked in today's match.
Anthony Pereira playing his normal position as the right wing half did justice to his performance while Nicolau Borges wasn't that much effective from the left.
Nigerian Ogba Kalu Nnanna failed to book his name on the score sheet getting two genuine scoring opportunities fell for the play maker. His right footer landed safely in the hands of Abhijit Mondal after exchanging a couple of passes with Odafe.
Beto's scorcher from 35 yard gave some glittering hope to the Armando Colaco coached side in the 83rd minute, but it was too late for the former champions as Churchill Brothers successfully held their one goal lead to end Dempo's campaign in the 122nd edition of the Durand Cup.
Gouramangi Singh is the only player form the national team on the Churchill Brothers roster while star studded Dempo have seven Indian internationals to their ranks, who were outplayed by the young Churchill Brothers side.
It's raining titles for Churchill Brothers at the moment. Escalating their successful run from the last season the young guns of the defending I-League champions are getting better and better, and their Brazilian coach Carlos Pereira will surely like to add a second title to his name when his side will either take on Mahindra United or Mohun Bagan in the coveted Durand Cup final on September 22.
Source: IndianFootball.com
From the archive. First published on footballkerala.com on Sunday 20 September 2009, restored from the site's 2012 database. Text as originally published.