I-League 2021: Hat-trick hero Clayvin Bernardez powers Churchill Brothers to win; Real Kashmir, TRAU play out draw – Sports News , Firstpost

Clayvin Zuniga Bernardez scored a hattrick for Churchill Brothers in a 5-2 win over Indian Arrows. Twitter@ILeagueOfficial

Kalyani: Clayvin Bernardez’s hat-trick and Luka Majcen’s brace helped Churchill beat Indian Arrows 5-2 in an I-League match on Sunday.

Bernardez struck in the 35th, 58th and 69th minutes while Majcen was on target in the second and 75th minute.

The All India Football Federation’s developmental side scored through Vanlalruatfela Thlacheu (9th) and Gurkirat Singh (21st).

Churchill Brothers took the lead in the second minute itself. Luka Majcen’s header found the back of the net after a strong shot ricocheted off the crossbar and fell his way. The early setback, however, did not deter the young Arrows.

The Arrows got back into the game, playing free-flowing attacking football. Their efforts bore fruit in the ninth minute when Vanlalruatfela found the target.

In the 21st minute, Gurkirat Singh was brought down inside the box and the forward himself scored from the spot-kick to give Arrows the lead.

With Indian Arrows scoring two goals in the space of 15 minutes, Churchill tried to soak up the pressure by playing a deep backline.

The Arrows’ attacking spell was, however, halted in the 35th minute when Clayvin Bernardez headed home after a cross from the left flank found him inside the box.

Churchill Brothers started to batter the Indian Arrows defence in the second half with Luka and Bernardez’s physical prowess giving the young Arrows defenders problems.

In the 59th minute, the pairing combined and Bernardez’s powerful shot from the edge of the box left the Arrows custodian stunned as Churchill once again took the lead.

The Goan side extended their lead in the 69th minute. Bernardez found the back of the net once again, this time with a thumping header off a corner kick.

The Arrows tried to reduce the deficit but to no avail. Churchill Brothers put the match beyond Arrows’ reach in the 75th minute when Luka’s header from a free-kick crashed into the back of the net to give his side a three-goal lead.

TRAU’s Komron Tursunov scores league’s fastest-ever goal

Tiddim Road Athletic Union’s (TRAU) Tajik recruit Komron Tursunov made history by scoring I-League’s fastest goal ever in the ninth second to help his side eke out a 1-1 draw against Real Kashmir FC.

Tursunov bettered the earlier record in the name of Katsumi Yusa who scored a 13th-second goal for NEROCA FC against Churchill Brothers in the 2018-19 season.

The Tajik international’s strike, however, was cancelled out by Mason Robertson’s 70th-minute header at the Mohun Bagan Ground.

Tursunov’s curling effort from outside of the box found the back of the RKFC net, leaving the opposition in utter disbelief. The sheer suddenness of the goal left Real Kashmir FC in disarray as TRAU dominated the opening exchanges.

Real Kashmir fought back and in the 22nd minute, Mason Robertson’s effort from a freekick came close to grabbing the equaliser.

Since then, it was TRAU dominating possession though the Snow Leopards had the lion’s share of goal scoring chances.

In the 25th minute, Dipanda Dicka tried to find the back of the TRAU net after his swift effort inside the box was saved.

The best opportunity for the Snow Leopards fell to Lukman Adefemi in the 37th minute but he missed a free-header inside the box with only the opposition custodian to beat.

Despite TRAU’s possession, chances came were rare and far between for the club from Manipur. They had a golden opportunity to double their lead in the 58th minute when Komron was put onto goal by a swift counter-attack.

After turning his marking man inside out, Komron could only test the keeper into making an easy save, as the Snow Leopards survived.

Sitting deep and hitting on the counter-attack, TRAU committed bodies into defence in an attempt of holding on to their lead.

In the 70th minute, Mason Robertson found the equaliser for Real Kashmir after his thumping header off a Ralte freekick found the back of the net. The equaliser spurred the Snow Leopards as they searched to take the lead but to no avail.