I-League: Churchill Bros keen to extend lead at the top

Panaji: Last week was a good one for Churchill Brothers. Playing at home, they won quite comfortably against Gokulam Kerala, a team that could have possibly challenged them for the I-League title.
The 2-1 win provided enough proof of Churchill’s title credentials, possibly even taking Gokulam Kerala out of the equation. There’s a seven-point gap between the teams.
Then, two of their challengers – second-placed Namdhari FC and Inter Kashi, placed third – also tasted unexpected defeats, leaving Churchill unchallenged at the top of the table with a two-point advantage.
“The journey is very tough,” said Churchill coach Dimitris Dimitriou. “We are focused only on our opponents, our games, and in the end, we know that we will make the cut. We are not focusing on other matches. Our aim is to be competitive in every single game. Whatever other teams are doing, it's not to our interest. We have to improve with every game.”
Churchill will be keen to pocket three points against a free-falling Delhi FC at the Panchayat ground in Raia on Tuesday. The visitors have taken just one point in their last seven games and have now lost five in a row.
Dimitriou though is not taking anything for granted.
“The Delhi clash is another difficult game. It’s a hard journey and we are now facing a opponent that’s well organised. It’s a modern team, they have their academy (players) and those who have represented India (at junior levels). I just want my team to be competitive,” said the experienced coach.
When Churchill faced Delhi away, they raced to a 2-0 lead with goals from Wayde Lekay and Trijoy Dias but faced stiff resistance in the second half. “They dominated the second half and we were lucky that we escaped with a win. They had their chances,” said Dimitriou, recalling the 2-1 win.
Delhi are rooted at the foot of the table with just nine points from 13 matches.
Their loss against Sporting Club Bengaluru in the last game turned their season from bad to worse, but there’ still time for the visitors to turn things around. With wins against Sreenidi Deccan and Shillong Lajong, they have shown that they have the ability to match the big guns.
“Nobody likes being at the bottom of the table, despite us being a dominant side in each game,” said Delhi coach Yan Law. “It’s not been an easy phase. We have to stay positive and keep working (hard). This team has a lot of potential.”
It’s a clash between the team at the top of the table and one at the bottom. On paper, it’s an unequal clash, but when a similar match-up happened last week, Churchill were forced to share the spoils against SC Bengaluru.
“Both of us are fighting for different reasons,” said Law. “Churchill have the big advantage. They are at home but we are here for three points. We have to get out of the bottom.”