Downtown Heroes earn historic first Durand Cup win

Downtown Heroes FC – 2 (Darius 29’ 84’)   Indian Air Force FT – 0

Match 11 of Group A played between Indian Airforce FT and DOWNTOWN HEROES FC of the 133rd Durand Cup 2024 at Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in KOLKATA on August 02, 2024.

Khel Today Bureau

Kolkata: A brace of goals by Downtown Heroes’ Liberian forward Darius Snorton Perwood against the Indian Air Force Football Team (IAFFT) here at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (VYBK), was enough to give the Club from Srinagar a historic first win in the IndianOil Durand Cup. After going down in all three games in their debut campaign last year, Perwood’s strikes on either side of the two halves in what was the second game in Group A for both teams, giving the Heroes a crucial three points in their present 133^rd IndianOil Durand Cup campaign. The Airmen on the other hand have now lost both their group games.

While the team for Kashmir play Emami East Bengal FC at the city’s second venue Kishore Bharati Krirangan on 7^th August, the Air Force team play the other local giants Mohun Bagan Super Giants in their final group fixture a day later at the same Venue.

All 43 matches of the 133rd IndianOil Durand Cup will be broadcast LIVE on the Sony Sports Network (Sony Ten2 HD) as well as livestreamed on the SonyLiv OTT platform

Hilal Rasool Parray the Heroes’ Head Coach started with the same 3-5-2 formation that he had used in the first game against Mohun Bagan Super Giants, but made at least three changes to that 11. Priya Darshan the Air Force coach on the other hand made as many as five changes from their first game loss to Emami East Bengal FC.

The Heroes had the better of the exchanges in the first half and got the fruits of their labour in the 29^th minute when forward Perwood’s penetrating run inside the box from the left, was found beautifully by Aafreen Parray and the Liberian placed the ball clinically past Dinesh in the Air Force goal.

The long ball from their own half to find Aafreen in space was floated by Mohammed Inam, who had a brilliant game controlling the midfield and distributing from it.

The second-half was played for most parts in blinding rain and while the Airmen were more enterprising, Umed in the Heroes goal was hardly troubled/throughout the game.

Perwood sealed the deal for the Heroes with a second strike in the 84^th minute, latching on to a cross which found its way to him with space in the box. He controlled well, sidestepped one defender and with the keeper to beat, blasted home with a striker’s confidence.

Key Clash between Bengaluru and Inter Kashi tomorrow at Kolkata

Bengaluru FC will face Inter Kashi tomorrow in a crucial Group B encounter at the Kishore Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata with the kick-off scheduled for 7 PM. A win for Bengaluru will take them to the top of the table with six points, inching closer to the qualification spot from the group. Bengaluru comfortably beat Indian Navy FT in their first match while Inter Kashi played out an entertaining 1-1 draw against Mohammedan SC. Inter Kashi will look to create an upset and go on top of the table with four points.

“I was pleased with what I saw in our performance against Indian Navy, but there is still a lot of work to do. We know that consistency is key in tournaments like the Durand Cup, and Inter Kashi will pose a different challenge. They are a team that performed really well in the I-League last year, and I’m sure this will be a tough game. The boys are focused and ready to give their all,” said Bengaluru Head Coach Gerard Zaragoza before the game.

In a 4 PM kick-off on Saturday, ISL side Odisha FC will take on para-military team Border Security Force XI at SAI Stadium in Kokrajhar. Odisha FC who will be fielding their reserve side will look to start their campaign in Group E with a win.