Dempo edge past Churchill

BANGALORE: For the second match running, Churchill Brothers, Goa, turned in a dour performance. In their opener, they edged out Vasco in a match that was decided in the tiebreaker. On Monday, however, they were at the receiving end, as Dempo, Goa, rode on a lone goal from Brazilian striker Cristiano de Lima Junior to edge out Churchill. Dempo thus set up a semifinal clash with Tollygunge Agragami in the 26th Federation Cup football championship, ensuring at least one unfancied team in the final.
Dempo again exposed Churchill''s lack of power upfront.Coach Shabbir Ali started with striker Najeeb on the bench, pairing Paresh Shivalkar with Ibe Johnson upfront. Shivalkar''s performance hardly justified the cap.
Handicapped as they were, Churchill seemed dependent on luck to swing a verdict in their favour. All they came up with was a fist of half-chances and a ticket home.
While Churchill had little going their way, Dempo weren''t doing a great deal either. They had a much more potent strike force in Ronty Martins and Cristiano, but their finish, or rather the lack of it, made for a concoction of insipid stuff.
Time and again the pair drove into the area, only to be turned back by their own wayward shooting. Cristiano, well set up by Jose Colaco, struck a left-footer just wide, and a little later, the Brazilian let the ball get too far ahead of him on an unhindered run following a corner at the other end.
Ronty missed a sitter in similar style after latching on to a relay from Cristiano.