EB fans see red and go on a rampage
Calcutta: Kingfisher East Bengal fans went berserk after their team’s 0-1 loss to Prayag United, at the Salt Lake Stadium, on Tuesday. ‘Disappointed’ over not being able to vandalise the swanky team bus, the crowd vented their ire on the exhibition venue that was on inside the stadium complex.
They broke the flower pots, hurled whatever they could lay their hands on, as the delegates and private securitymen scurried for cover.
The crowd was obviously upset by the way East Bengal conceded the goal in injury-time and waited for ‘villain’ Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.
Gurpreet though got coach Trevor James Morgan’s backing at the post-match media conference. “I take full responsibility for the bungle. I asked him to move upfront. But strangely no defender saw Gurpreet moving up.
“I screamed and screamed but they never bothered to listen. Our defenders should have been there to thwart Vincent.
“They are saying that they never saw Gurpreet moving up. How can you miss someone who is seven feet tall?” Morgan said.
Morgan said his defenders were playing “Sunday football”. “It was shambolic defending. My defenders were playing Sunday football. It’s frustrating.”
Morgan said he would persist with Gurpreet. “Why not? He will play against Mohun Bagan on Saturday” he shot back.
Prayag United coach Shankar Sen praised his team’s discipline and never-say-die attitude.
“Hats off to my players. They played splendidly. We are back in the reckoning for the title, Sen said.
“Our strength is our reserve bench. Monday morning we came to know Denson (Devadas) and Arnab (Mondal) would not be available.
“But I had faith in my reserve bench. And look how (Mohammed) Rafique and others performed.”
And man of the moment Kayne Vincent was over the moon. “Most memorable goal of my career. Never ran 90 yards and scored a goal. I think I was lucky today,” Vincent said.
He added that first thing that came to his mind after he got the ball was never to lose it.
“I told myself ‘I am not going to lose this ball… Come what may. Had I missed this goal, I do not know what I would have done to myself.”
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