Heartbreak for Kenkre as Rajasthan confirm I league promotion with 0-0 draw

by Chittu Shetty October 23, 2021

Despite some late flurry of chances, Kenkre FC failed to break Rajasthan United’s defense as the latter becomes the first team from the state to qualify for the I League.

In what has been a close competition for the title, it all came down to the final game of the tournament for the final title decider. Going into the game, the equation was simple. To get to Hero I-League, Kenkre FC had to win the game and get all three points against Rajasthan United FC. A draw or a loss, and it would be Rajasthan United to be crowned as champions.

Both these teams had shown great determination, resilience, and grit to get to this stage but in the end, a goalless draw meant it was Rajasthan United, a team that had remained unbeaten throughout the tournament to confirm qualification.

The game began with Kenkre looking to attack right away but the first big chance came in the 11^th minute when Kenkre FC worked the ball well to find Varun Mathur behind the defensive line of RUFC however, Gurmukh Singh made a crucial tackle in just when the final ball was about to be released from Varun. A few minutes later, Pravitto released Negi down the right whose cross finds Azza. The latter gets to the ball, goes round the goalkeeper, and puts the ball into the back of the net only to find the flag has been raised for Offside.

Around the half-hour mark, Kenkre had another good chance when Azza picked out Pravitto in the center, who is through on goal but does not get a proper first touch. He tries to lob Vishal Joon after that but fails in the attempt. At the other end, in a free-kick situation, Aman Thapa beats the wall to gets his shot on target however Tenzin makes a full-stretched save to keep Kenkre in the game.

The game continued to meander along with Kenkre dominating the possession but Rajasthan United’s defense did not budge. Around the hour mark, Kenkre had an excellent opportunity to go 1-0 up when Ranjeet Pandre found himself behind the defensive line of Rajasthan United. As the goalkeeper tried to come off his line, Ranjeet went for the chip but his attempt went way off target.

As the game entered its final ten minutes, Kenkre had once again a big chance to break the deadlock after a brilliant give and go between Lester and Yash Mhatre resulting in the former finding himself in space inside the box with just keeper to beat. However, Lester’s shot from a close angle was well blocked by Rajasthan GK Vishal to deny Kenkre the goal. The resulting corner was too cleared off the line as the game soon went on to end goalless.

The draw meant Rajasthan United finished unbeaten throughout the league and end the final round with 7 points to clinch promotion to Hero I League Qualifiers while Kenkre were left to rue their missed chances. Despite missing the opportunity, it was an excellent campaign for the Mumbai outfit and has certainly ignited interest among the Mumbai football fans.