HDFC to face UBI in Nadkarni Cup quarter-final

by Siddharth Yadav February 9, 2018

9th February 2018, Mumbai: On Thursday evening, the 111th edition of RCF Nadkarni Cup 2018 saw two matches – HDFC played Central Bank of India (CBI) in the first game while Union Bank of India (UBI) locked horns against Millat FC in the second and final match of the day. HDFC and Union Bank of India romped to victory which also set up a quarter-final clash between both the sides in the RCF Nadkarni Cup 2018.

HDFC (Ramesh Singh 32′) 1-0 Central Bank of India (CBI)

In the first game, Elite Division side Central Bank of India (CBI) faced Super Division side HDFC at RCF Ground, Chembur. In what turned out to be a cagey affair, a determined performance by HDFC saw them edging past CBI 1-0 to record a memorable victory.

Throughout the game, it was HDFC who dominated the match proceedings. The Super Division side hardly let CBI dictate the game as they deceived CBI’s midfield who failed to create more opportunities for their strikers.

Kevin Patrik and Andrew Burthelo did come close for CBI in the first-half but their poor composure in front of goal never bothered HDFC’s goalkeeper. It was in the 32nd minute when Ramesh Singh’s left-footed strike from outside the box gave HDFC a deserving lead.

Ramesh Singh was fantastic for the majority of the match but it could have been phenomenal had he not wasted some of the golden opportunities in the second-half. Winger Siddesh Batawale had an incredible game too as he created a havoc down the right flank.

Failing to create chances led to CBI’s loss as HDFC’s patience paid off with a narrow and deserving 1-0 win.

Union Bank of India (Vinod Pandey 12′, Ranjeet Pandre 19′ and Sameer Swamy 24′) 3-2 Millat FC (Kamran Siddiqui 52′ and Kalpesh Rane 63′)

In the second game, Millat FC and Union Bank of India (UBI) played out a thriller. After taking a quick three-goal lead, UBI almost gave away the match as Millat FC displayed a scintillating performance in the second-half where they missed out by only a goal as UBI edged them 3-2 to progress into the quarter-final.

Vinod Pandey’s looping header opened the scoring for UBI in the 12th minute before Ranjeet Pandre’s low drive took a wicked deflection and ended up in the back of the net. UBI was completely steamrolling in the first half-an-hour. Sameer Swamy made it 3-0 in the 24th minute which totally took Millat FC off the path.

But just like they fought back in the Republic Day Cup 2018, Millat FC’s grit and dedication almost took the game into the penalties. In the second-half, Millat FC dominated the proceedings. Kamran Siddiqui cut short the deficit in the 52nd minute before Kalpesh Rane added another goal as suddenly Millat was only a goal behind to make an incredible comeback.

Rayyan Shaikh, Kalpesh, Kamran, Farhan Butt and Adnan Ishke had an outstanding second-half along with goalkeeper Anas Ishke who denied Shannon Pereira with two spectacular saves to keep the match alive. In the end, it was UBI who prevailed as their three first-half goals proved enough to send an energetic Millat FC side home.