Gokulam Kerala FC trump Aizawl FC powered by a clinical brace from Jourdain Fletcher

High-flying Gokulam Kerala FC registered a 2-1 victory against Aizawl FC in the I-League at the Kalyani Stadium on Friday. Jourdaine Fletcher (64', 89') hogged the limelight with a brace against the Mizoram-based club. With the victory, the Malabarians have now jumped to second in the league standings. Meanwhile, are eighth in the table with nine points from as many games.

Although Aizawl FC have been struggling this season, it's no secret that Yan Law's side are one of the most comfortable sides on the ball. But Gokulam Kerala FC looked like the more adventurous team in the early minutes. It took just seven minutes for the Malabarians to carve open the Aizawl FC defense, but forward Luka Majcen missed a tap-in and squandered GKFC's opportunity to breakthrough.

Gokulam Kerala FC were comfortable in building out from the back and controlled the tempo of the game. In the 13th minute, the Calicut-based club yet again tested Aizawl FC when Emil Benny's long-range effort was stopped by Anuj Kumar.

But as the minutes rolled by, the Mizoram-based club slowly grew into the game and had their first effort of note in the 21st minute through Joseph Vanlalhruaia. But Kerala custodian Rakhsit Dagar was up to the task.

Minutes later, Gokulam Kerala FC had a string of opportunities to pull ahead. Firstly, through Jourdaine Fletcher, who found himself at the end of a defensive header in the Aizawl FC box and lined up for a volleyed effort. But his first-time shot was saved by Anuj Kumar.

But Fletcher was almost immediately setup by a through ball on the left hand side of the box. He took a snap shot at the keeper and Kumar yet again tried to gobble it. But the ball rolled out of his control and Luka Majcen tried to tuck it home. But the Aizawl FC custodian galantly saved the Slovenian forward's shot.

A cloud of fear consumed the stadium in the 32nd minute when Gokulam Kerala FC's Ronald Singh went down after a collision with the opposition keeper. After some initial treatment on the pitch, he was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. Sourav K replaced him on the pitch.

Deep into the half, Aizawl FC kept troubling the GKFC defense as Samuel Lalmuanpuia shot onto the wrong side of the post after an amazing set-piece routine.

---

Jourdain Fletcher scores a brace in the second half to lead Gokulam Kerala FC to a victory

Coming out after the break, Gokulam Kerala FC were determined to pin back their opposition. Almost immediately, they were rewarded for their aggressive approach when substitute Sreekuttan VS found himself in the clear after a build-up from the Malabarians and tapped the ball home. However, the goal was deemed offside.

Vincenzo Alberto Annese's men seemed to have run out of luck when, in the 58th minute, his side hit the crossbar through Luka Majcen. Sreekuttan VS set the ball up nicely for Jithin, who cut it back for Majcen, but the striker could not convert the chance.

But finally, in the 63rd minute, Gokulam Kerala FC drew first blood through Jourdain Fletcher, who tapped the ball home after it was parried away by Anuj Kumar from a Sreekuttan VS shot. With the lead now in their grasp, the Malabarians continued to pile the pressure on Aizawl FC.

The Mizoram club grew desperate as they threw men forward in the dying moments of the game. However, GKFC caught them on the break in the 88th minute when Fletcher evaded the offisde trap and was through on goal. One-on-one with the keeper, the Jamaican forward kept matters simple and tucked it into the bottom left corner.

But the game had more twists and turns left to unveil. When Aizawl FC looked down and out, Ayush Dev Chhetri pulled a goal back for his team right at the 90th minute. The 18-year-old attempted a crisp shot from outside the box and it flew into the top left corner.

However, Ayush's thunderous strike came just a tad too late for Aizawl FC's liking as they didn't have enough time on the clock to carve out an equalizer. Although Yan Law threw his men forward, they were caught off guard yet again and Fletcher was through on goal. But this time the last defender, Robert Primus, brought him down just outside the box. Primus was shown a red card as Aizawl ended the game with 10 players.