Kochi/Manjeri: Egyptian Abdelhamid Shabana scored a late winner as Churchill Brothers became the first team to reach the semifinals of the Federation Cup, with a thrilling 2-1 win over a spirited Eagles FC in Kochi on Friday.
Churchill with six points from two matches have confirmed the semi-final berth ahead of United SC who have three points from Group A.
Hot favourites Pune FC face an exit at the group stages after losing 0-1 to struggling United SC.
Second half substitute Baldeep Singh, who replaced the injured Ranti Martins, struck the winner in the 72nd minute as United put an end to their miserable run in all competitions and importantly, kept their Cup chances alive.
In Manjeri, Brazilian Josimar Da Silva Martins and Rakesh Masih’s second half goals helped Mohammedan Sporting Club to register their second win, 2-0 to show city mates Bhawanipore FC the door in the Group D match held here.
Eric Brown was the most influential United attacker and it was his all important cross that assisted Baldeep’s goal. The Liberian found Baldeep with a timely pass from the edge of the box and it was neatly swept in by the forward.
Mohammedan Sporting had to wait for 75 minutes to break the jinx as Martins sent in a powerful header from a corner. After 10 minutes, Masih assured the victory with a long-ranger that beat the Bhawanipore custodian.
In the second half, Ashim Bishwas was able to make some impact in the Bhawanipore box with some impressive shots but the forward’s first attempt was denied by goalie with a brilliant dive while he missed the target by a whisker in his second attempt. In the 73rd minute, Bhawanipore had their first major chance in the game but their striker Nabin Hela squandered the chance.
