Sreenidi Deccan FC pass Kenkre FC test

The two debutants, Sreenidi Deccan FC and Kenkre FC, met at the Naihati Stadium for their I-League clash. Third-placed Sreenidi Deccan FC are in high flying form at the moment, managing to stay unbeaten in their last five games in the league.

However, they were held to a 1-1 draw by Churchill Brothers FC in the previous game. Meanwhile, Kenkre FC are currently at the bottom of the table and have not recorded a single win so far this campaign despite showing patches of improvement in their game.

The Deccans started the match on the front foot, piling pressure on the Kenkre FC defense right from the first whistle. Mohammed Salah sent in a ball from his own half towards David Munoz but the Colombian was caught offside.

Kenkre FC's Ranjeet Singh Pandre was causing problems for the opposition with his pace. The forward was soon on the scoresheet for his side. A counter attack was initiated on the left flank by Vijay Nagappan, who managed to pass with the outside of his foot to find Ranjeet. Ranjeet went past the goalkeeper and put the ball in the back of the net.

Within minutes, Sreenidi Deccan FC were able to get back into the game. Lal Chungnunga's freekick wasn't read properly by Tenzin Samdup and the ball went into the net.

The equalizer came as a shock to Kenkre FC as the side tried to go past Sreenidi Deccan FC again but failed to do so because of Shibinrak Kunniyil. Fernando Santiago's side were constantly barging in the door for another opportunity but Akhil Kothari's side were up to the task.

The Mumbai-based side had to make a substitution before the half-time whistle after Jishnu Balakrishnan picked up an injury. He was replaced by Suraj Jeet Singh Negi.

Sreenidi Deccan FC sneak away with a winner against Kenkre FC

Kenkre FC started the second half better. Arya Gandharva's through ball found Ranjeet in space but the latter's volley went over the bar. Fernando Santiago made a few changes in the second half. Arijit Bagui was brought on to replace Mohammed Salah while Louis Ugochukwu Ogana replaced Vanlalbiaa Chhangte.

The Deccans managed to fire themselves into the lead with David Castaneda Munoz's goal. A defensive error allowed the Colombian to capitalize and put the ball in the bottom left corner.

Fernando Santiago made another change. Vineeth Kumar Velmurugan was brought on to replace Rosenberg Gabriel. At the other end, Aravindraj Rajan was brought on for Kenkre FC to replace Vijay Nagappan.

Akhil Kothari's side made some last-ditch attempts to rescue a point from the game but were unable to create any magic in the final third. With Sreenidi Deccan FC's compact defense, their job has become harder.

Yash Mhatre was brought on to spark some life into the game. Siddharth Colaco sacrificed for it. Girik Mahesh Khosla managed to get some game time as well. He replaced the goal-scorer.

With the referee's whistle, Kenkre FC's poor run extended even further with Sreenidi Deccan FC steadily positioning themselves in the league table.