JOIN USCIL and RWF played out a forgettable 1-1 draw in their Super Division encounter here at the Bangalore Football Stadium on Tuesday.
In a match which did not come to life until well after the 80th minute, it was Nirmal who opened the scoring for CIL in the 15th minute from the spot.
RWF equalised through Rajesh in the 32rd minute following a defensive error. Both teams could have probably snatched the winner at the end but for the woodwork.
It was Rajesh who had the first clear sight of goal in the third minute when his rasping drive from just outside the centre of the box was parried by CIL goalkeeper N Venkatesh.
Rajesh tested the keeper again in the opening exchanges but it was the opposite No. 10, Nirmal, who made the breakthrough.
Nirmal ran onto a through ball but was felled by the goalkeeper Hari, who got a yellow card for his troubles. Nirmal picked himself up and sent the keeper the wrong way to put his side in front. Both sides had sterile possession and play broke down whenever they tried an offensive pass.
In the 33rd minute, RWF’s Rajesh capitalised on some loose defending to ram home the leveller from close range.
The game finally became stretched in the second half and both teams had decent chances with CIL’s Sakath coming the closest when his left-footed shot rebounded off the post.
RWF, themselves, had three glorious chances but their composure in front of goal let them down as the clock ticked down on an insipid encounter.
Results: Super Division: CIL: 1 (Nirmal 15th) drew with RWF: 1 (Rajesh 32rd). ‘A’ Division: Bangalore Kickers: 1 (Arun 36th) drew with LRDE: 1 (Surendra Baba 59th). Wednesday’s fixtures: ‘A’ Division: AGORC vs SAI. Super Division: ASC & Centre vs Jawahar Union.