Dempo’s bid to defend their title went up in smoke as they lost to Sporting Clube de Goa through an own goal by defender Rowlison Rodrigues in the 21st round of the I-League at Duler ground here on Sunday.
Sporting managed to win through a self goal scored by Dempo’s defender Rowlison Rodrigues in the 51st minute.
With the win, Sporting leaped to seventh position with 29 points from 21 matches while Dempo remained at the third position with 35 points from 20 matches, eight points behind leaders Churchill Brothers.
Dawson Fernandes sent a pass to Juanfri on the left, whose cross got deflected by Dempo defender Rowilson Rodrigues into his own net, before goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani could do anything.
Bagan edge Arrows
In Kalyani, Mohun Bagan managed to pulled off a narrow 3-2 win over Pailan Arrows. The relegation-wary Mohun Bagan took a 3-0 lead in no time with Aibor Khongjee (5th) and Tolgay Ozbey (19th, 20th) striking in tandem.
But the AIFF developmental outfit showed fine character after the early setback and made their way back brilliantly with goals from Shaiju Mon (41st) and Seminlen Doungel (49th) but could not find the equaliser.
In Pune, hosts Pune FC were held to a 2-2 draw by Shillong Lajong. Edinho Junior (13th, 56th) struck a brace for the visitors while Boima Karpeh (51st, 59th) netted a double for Pune.
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