KOLKATA, INDIA: An entire generation of East Bengal supporters were not born when their club last won a national title – the National Football League in 2003-04. That interminable wait – of 22 years – finally came to an end on Thursday, May 21, when they lifted their maiden Indian Super League trophy by defeating Inter Kashi 2-1 at the Kishore Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata.
Needing a win to secure a trophy that had seemed within grasp for most of the campaign, the Torchbearers were put on the back foot early on in the game when Alfred Planas put Kashi ahead in the 15th minute. The sides went into the half-time break with an anxious East Bengal looking over their shoulders.
However, things changed quickly in the second half, with Youssef Ezzejari levelling the score in the 50th minute. Moreover, the game turned around completely in the 73rd minute when winger Bipin Singh looped in a delicate-looking cross over the six-man Kashi defence. The ball found the outstretched feet of Mohammed Rashid, who tapped it wide of Kashi goalkeeper Shubham Dhas and into the net.
The stadium erupted in joy. Rashid went over to the horde of supporters nearest to him, and it was a surprise that fireworks could not be seen on this hot summer night. East Bengal saw the rest of the game off with excellent game-management skills.
East Bengal managed the game well to lift their maiden ISL trophy
A tricky moment came when Rashid found himself lucky not to be sent off after a tussle with Len Doungel, not long before the final whistle. And when it was finally blown, the crowd, filled to the brim with East Bengal supporters despite it being a designated away game, pulled down the barriers off the stadium, thronged onto the pitch and lifted their heroes on their shoulders.
Meanwhile, the defending champions Mohun Bagan came from behind to beat SC Delhi 2-1 in stoppage time at the Salt Lake Stadium, barely ten kilometres away from the Kishore Bharati, but to no avail. The two sides finished level on points (26) in the league table, but East Bengal pipped their rivals by goal difference (19- 14).
This is the first time that an ISL title was decided on goal difference. Elsewhere, Jamshedpur FC and Odisha FC played out a goalless draw while Mumbai City FC beat Punjab FC 2-0 in inconsequential fixtures. The latter fixture was memorable because it saw three red cards being shown – two to the Shers and one to the Islanders.
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