Following the result, MMC remained unchanged in the second position with equal 16 points as that of third place Yeti Airlines Himalayan Sherpa Club who earlier defeated Caravan Sangam FC of Pokhara 4-1. League champion Police leads the table with 20 points, with last match still to play. [break]
Coming from a goal deficit, MMC equalized the match eight minutes from time when Anil Gurung headed to cancel Three Star´s African recruit Isah Karim´s 41st minute goal. In an effort to recoup, Gurung made a bouncing header in cross of Amir Shrestha to send the ball past net.
Earlier, against the run of play, Karim had put Three Star in charge in counter attack beating an offside trap. Karim who beat MMC goalie Bishal Shrestha in one-versus-one position was supplied pass by Yogesh Gurung.
But MMC squandered a golden opportunity of winning the match and keeping afloat its title hope when African player Anatole´s spotkick hit the pole and rebounded towards pitch only to dash MMC´s hope in the first minute of stoppage time. The spotkick was awarded after Bikash Singh Chhetri fouled Gurung in the box two minutes from time.
In the one-sided show, MMC had created nearly a dozen chances but Three Star´s goalie Kiran Chemjong made some heroic save to deny the opponent attacks. Unlike MMC, Three Star, which got limited to 10-man, created only one chance and succeeded in scoring. Three Star got short of a player in the 89th minute after Bijay Dhimala was booked with second yellow card.
Custodian Chemjong denied Santosh Sahukhala and Japanese player Ito Dan´s powerful strike from box in the first half. In the second half, Chemjong prevented skipper Nirajan Khadka, Sujal Shrestha and Yugal Kishor Rai´s shot. He also caught Sahukhala´s and Shiva Shrestha´s diving header as well.
Following the draw, MMC´s coach Meghraj KC said that the draw against a star studded opponent was possible due to cent percent effort of his players. "Though we are out of title race, the result proves that Three Star is capable of challenging any team of the nation," said KC.
"The match was in our hand but we could not achieve victory after boys failed to utilize numerous scoring chances," MMC coach Hari Om Shrestha said during the post match conference, "Failing to utilize penalty was bad luck of the team. I had signalled defender Sandip Rai to take the penalty but he did not do so saying that goalie Chemjong was his teammate in the national squad and Chemjong was well aware of his technique."
Coach Shrestha also blamed busy schedule and lack of rest to players for their poor show. "The organizers conducted the league unsystematically. Having national players is not sufficient to win a match. How can the same team and player play football properly without getting two days rest?" said Shrestha, venting ire on the busy schedule.
Sherpa thumps Sangam
In the day´s kick off, Yeti Airlines Himalayan Sherpa Club thumped Caravan Sangam FC of Pokhara 4-1. Kunjan Gurung netted twice for Sherpa while Som Bahadur Malla and Jagjeet Shrestha also achieved target.
Malla flick headed to open scoring in the Pukar Gahatraj´s goal bound corner to open scoring in the 24th. Gurung scored his first goal of the league two minutes later to give his team a 3-0 lead in the 38th minute. Shrestha scored fourth goal for Sherpa in the 69th minute.
Ganesh Lawati on loan from Armed Police Force to Sangam hit the consolation for Pokhara based team eight minutes from time.
Following the result, Sherpa bettered its hold in third position with 16 points while Sangam remained unchanged in the ninth place with three points.
Beautiful game turns ugly
The all exciting and thrilling football match between Mega Three Star and Laxmi Hyundai Manang Marshyangdi (MMC) turned ugly with member of organizing committee manhandling Three Star coach Meghraj KC at the technical box.
Before the tension erupted, the thrill and excitement of football was at its peak. Three Star players were busy in resisting the opponent attacks while MMC players were piling consistent pressure to score another goal and bar Police from lifting the title.
But Rupandehi District Football Association´s secretary and responsible official of local organizing committee Sher Bahadur Bhandari manhandled coach KC after the match stopped in the 88th minute. The match was halted nearly for ten mintues.
Tensions escalated after Three Star player Bijay Dhimal was sent off in the 89th minute for second bookable offence. He had protested referee Sudish Pandey´s decision of awarding penalty to MMC.
After being sent off, Dhimal kicked a water bottle near the players´ box of his team. Soon after, the spectators hauled numerous water bottles from parapet towards Three Star´s players box.
After that aggressive coach KC furiously looked at the parapet to "protect his players." "I was simply trying to protect my players," KC said during the post match conference, adding, "I was requesting responsible persons and security officials to give protection to my players."
"But two person (Sher Bahadur Bhandari one among them) wearing organizer´s batch threatened and pushed me," KC said and quoted one of them as saying, "This is Butwal not Kathmandu mind it."
"Such big and prestigious tournament should not be conducted under hooligans grip. The organizers themselves started hooliganism. Anything can happen here to players and team officials and ANFA should make proper security arrangements," KC said.
KC also vowed not to come Butwal for any football tournaments in future. But Bhandari said that he had asked coach KC to cool down. He also accepted that there were pushing from both sides during the scuffle. "While I had approached KC to calm him down he used filthy and abusive words which made the situation more tense," Bhandari said.
Meanwhile, MMC coach Hari Om Shrestha also expressed dissatisfaction towards security arrangements at the ground and parapet.
Talking with the reporters, Hari Shrestha, the president of Rupandehi District Football Association and the president of local organizing committee said that the event was shameful and he was saddened by the event.
"We will discuss this with ANFA´s technical committee and, if needed, set up an inquiry committee in future," said Shrestha, "It will send a negative message about Rupandehi district to the whole nation."
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