MDFA Elite Division: PIFA Colaba and Century Rayon ends in a stalemate

by Siddharth Yadav November 15, 2017

The top-most division in Mumbai Football – MDFA (Mumbai District Football Association) Elite Division resumed on Wednesday evening at Cooperage after a long break.

PIFA Colaba locked horns against a newly-promoted Century Rayon side in an end-to-end encounter where both the sides had to settle for a 1-1 draw.

PIFA Colaba started on a brighter note and took control of the match tempo very early into the match. Their high pressing and swift counter-attacking football paved the way for the opening goal of the match. Striker Venkatesh’s sublime effort in the 15th minute broke the deadlock which gave PIFA a huge sigh of relief after dominant display in the first fifteen minutes of the match.

Rayon’s Thatcham Vashum, Winner, Sunil Mane and Kashung combined well to keep the pressure on PIFA’s stubborn backline. PIFA could have doubled their lead later in the first-half when Ankush Pradhan’s delightful cross was headed wide by striker Kamran Ansari.

Rayon’s immense pressure proved to be clinical as they equalized in the additional time of first-half. Midfielder Thatcham Vashum unleashed a lethal shot from 25-yards which comprehensively sailed past the hapless goalkeeper into the top corner. The match was tied at 1-1 in the first-half.

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In the second-half, PIFA Colaba stepped up and dominated the rest of the match with a superb display. The only thing which had been missing from PIFA was their killer instinct in front of the goal.

After a beautiful build-up by PIFA’s Mikhil Tandel and Aditya Dalvi, striker Kamran Ansari missed a glorious opportunity when he blazed his right-footed shot over the bar from 13-yards. A couple of minutes later, Noorani almost restored the parity for PIFA when he saw his curling effort denied by Rayon’s goalkeeper by Nitin Choudhari.

In the stoppage time, a superb corner by Sushant Jadhav fell into Noorani’s path who once again failed to convert his effort as he blazed his shot over the bar. In the end, both the spirited outfits had to share the spoils which surely could have gone either way. A clinical display in the final-third by PIFA would have undoubtedly changed the course of the match.

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