Bhawanipore FC edge past Garhwal FC 2-1 in I-League qualifier

KOLKATA: Bhawanipore FC inch closer to their quest for an I-League berth edging past Garhwal FC 2-1 in the qualifiers at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Wednesday.
Goals from Philip Adjah (8th) and Pankaj Moula (50th) helped Sankarlal Chakraborty's team bag their second straight victory of the campaign.
Substitute Afdal Varikkodan scored a consolation goal for Garhwal, but their I-League dream was dashed after suffering their third consecutive defeat.
The win helped Bhawanipore go level on points (6) with Mohammedan Sporting. MSC are on top thanks to a better goal difference of +1.
Bhawanipore started the match on a positive note and were rewarded inside 10 minutes of play. The visitors were undone by a superb pass from the halfway line by defender Arijit Bagui, as he played a delicate chip over the opposition defence. Ghanaian striker Adjah, who was standing unmarked, made a fine run to eventually slot the ball past goalkeeper Sayak Barai for an early lead.
Garhwal stepped up and created a couple of goal-scoring chances but Bhawanipore goalkeeper Shilton Paul made crucial saves to deny the opposition.
Just before the half-hour mark, Adjah could have doubled the lead but his shot from inside the box went over the crossbar.
Bhawanipore went into the break holding the advantage although Garhwal enjoyed much of the possession.
The home side doubled their lead five minutes after the change of ends, when Anup Raj sent a pin-point cross to Moula from left flank, and the latter made no mistake in heading the ball home.
In the 76th minute, the Delhi-based side finally hit the target when Rahul Das took advantage of a sloppy Bhawanipore defence to tap in from close range.
Bengaluru hold ARA 1-1
In the day's second match, FC Bengaluru United converted a last-gasp penalty to hold ARA FC 1-1 at the Kalyani Stadium.
Forward Pratik Swami helped the Ahmedabad-based side take the lead in the 36th minute.
But super-sub Mohammad Asrar Rehber scored from the spot in the sixth minute of injury time to salvage a point for Bengaluru, after Jaison Vaz was brought down by ARA goalkeeper Melroy Fernandes