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In their second Maha Derby of the season, DSK Shivajians made history as they registered their biggest win ever in the I-League as well as the joint biggest win of the season along with East Bengal who beat Minerva Punjab 5-0 in January.
The Team from Pune put on quite a show scoring five goals against visitors Mumbai FC. Halicharan Narzary scored on the 14th and 27th minute while Sanju Pradhan, Lallianzuala Chhangte and Mawihmingthanga scored on the 48th, 67th and 83rd minute(s) respectively.
Sticking to his philosophy of playing an attacking formation, DSK Shivajians went into the tie with all guns blazing, with Sumeet Passi marking his return from injury with a great attempt in the very first minute. This set the tone for the game as DSK Shivajians looked to exploit the pace of Halicharan Narzary and Sanju Pradhan at every given opportunity. This policy paid dividends on the 14th minute where after a number of attacks, the Assamese finally opened the scoring, slotting an inch perfect cross by Sanju Pradhan into the back of the net. The man from Kokrajhar doubled his tally on the 27th minute where he netted a low ball from DSK Shivajians’ creator in chief Juan Quero. The striker missed the chance for his hattrick prior to the Half Time whistle, while Spaniard Juan Quero was denied a penalty as well. The teams went into the Half with DSK Shivajians firmly in the driving seat with a two goal cushion.
The second half could not have started better for the Pune based side, with birthday boy Sanju Pradhan scoring DSK Shivajians’ third goal on the 48th minute. Juan Quero was, once again, in the thick of things with it being his final ball that the Sikkimese winger capitalised upon. With DSK Shivajians breaking the Mumbai offside trap at will, substitute Lallianzuala Chhangte added his name to the fairly lengthy list of scorers, opening his account for the campaign where a superb piece of tactical awareness saw him pounce on a Milan Singh ball to speed away and apply the finish to a well worked routine. Dominant in possession, DSK Shivajians added the cherry on the cake with Mawihmingthanga scoring the fifth goal of the game on the 83rd minute, giving Juan Quero a hattrick of assists on the night. Dominant in possession, swift in attack, and solid at the back, Dave Rogers master plan worked brilliantly, with DSK Shivajians five goal victory giving the side some much needed momentum heading into the run-in.
“We’ve won a Derby Game, but what’s important is the direction of our football club, of developing young talent has been reflected. We’ve dominated games all season, what this was is just a reward for the boys. This result is just another statement on the future of Indian football,” said DSK Shivajians manager Dave Rogers.
DSK Shivajians sit seventh in the I-League table with 14 points of as many games. They will next play Shillong Lajong FC at the Balewadi Stadium on April 8.
