Red Star hold Colombo FC to 2-2 draw
By Althaf Nawaz
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Up Country Lions’s Mohamed Ishan, who was instrumental in scoring one of their goals against Renown SC which earned him Player of the Match, celebrates after scoring
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Table leaders Up Country Lions SC maintained their superiority with a 2-0 victory over Renown SC at the Sugathadasa Stadium yesterday, remaining unbeaten in the second edition of the Super League Soccer Tournament conducted by Football Sri Lanka.
Undoubtedly the best skilled team in the fray, the boys from Up Country dominated proceedings from the start, but lady luck deserted them in the early stages of the game and they were unable to score. However, as the game wore on, they managed to boot two swashbuckling goals in each half, which enabled them to notch up their ninth consecutive win.
They have now secured 27 points and is the only unbeaten team at the conclusion of the preliminary round, which is a remarkable effort.
They have now qualified for the Super Six round, which is scheduled to kick off in a few weeks.
After some anxious moments of play, neither side was able to break the deadlock until the final quarter of the first half. Up Country Lions striker Mohamed Ishan finally found the net off a well-executed header after latching on to a nippy pass from his co-striker Mohamed Akib to go for lemons 1-0.
After the turnaround, Renown – fielding a young side – found their rhythm in the initial quarter, but failed to maintain the momentum and ran out of firepower due to poor physical fitness, which gave their rivals an opportunity to capitalise on the situation.
The winners placed the final nail on the coffin when Akib put up a belligerent performance to increase their lead with a spectacular goal which made the scoreline 2-0, which remained until the long whistle.
Red Star SC vs. Colombo FC
Meanwhile, on Saturday at the same venue, Red Star SC managed to force a 2-all draw against Colombo FC after trailing 2-0 in the first half.
Colombo FC have only themselves to blame for their dismal performance in the second half, where some of their players opted to play rough, which resulted in one player being sent off after being shown two yellow cards. They had a lead at the breather and scored their second goal early in the second half.
But the lads from Dharga Town surged into the game quite magnificently to hold their nerve and scored twice, one of them off a penalty.
Both teams have qualified for the round of six.
