EK Nayanar Gold Cup: BN Railway knock out MEG, enter semis

KOZHIKODE: It was one of those games that would leave a footballing purist fuming. There was not much on offer in terms of attacking verve and the defence was shocking on most occasions. Tactically as well, both managers came out firing blanks, not even reacting to the way the match was progressing.
In the end, a dour 1-0 outcome lifted BN Railway, Kolkata into the semifinals of the EK Nayanar Memorial Gold Cup at the expense of an off-colour MEG, Bangalore, at the Corporation stadium on Thursday.
The only person on the pitch who showered himself with any glory was the vanquished keeper Sharat Narayan, who ironically, was sent off late in the piece. The MEG No. 1 pulled off a highlight reel full of classy stops to keep his side in the hunt, before seeing red in the 88th minute for using his hands outside the box to stop opposition striker Christian, who was through on goal.
Pratim Sarkar was the hero on the night for BN Railway, netting in the 57th minute at the end of a fast counter-attack. Railway did have most of the ball possession up to that point, but their foreign recruits Christian and Eric were wasteful in front of goal. When they did manage quality shots on target, Sharat time and again denied the Kolkata side.
It took a special finish from Sarkar to finally beat the in-form keeper. Streaking in between two MEG defenders, Sarkar kept his composure to set himself with a good first touch, before firing into the bottom-left corner with perfect placement and requisite power.
Ganesh Singh, the BN Railway keeper, also stood up to the task when called upon but his playacting and time-wasting irritated not just the opponents, but also the audience. But along with a solid backline marshalled by Man of the Match Akhil Raj Banshi, Ganesh ensured that MEG, who struck five goals in their previous game against Kerala XI, were kept quiet.
BN Railway go through to join Mumbai FC and Air India in the semifinals while the final spot could be decided in the game between Southern Samity, Kolkata and Shillong Jajong FC on Friday. Lajong have four points from the two games they have played so far and a draw would be enough to see them through to the final four. Samity, who lost to Mumbai FC on Thursday, have to beat Lajong and then get a result against Army XI in their final group game on Saturday.