SHILLONG: Royal Wahingdoh FC started well but could not sustain the momentum as they went down to Mumbai FC 1-2 in a Round 7 Hero I-League match at the Cooperage Stadium in Mumbai on Friday.
The Royals drew first blood in the 14th minute but a second half comeback by Mumbai who scored in the 51st and 73rd minutes respectively saw the hosts runaway with the match.
However, despite the defeat, RWFC held on to their top spot in the standings with 13 points from seven games.
Earlier, table toppers Royals started to dominate the proceedings from round about the 10-minute mark and went into the lead as early as the 14th minute through a Bekay Bawar goal. After some good work down the right between Kim Song Yong and Seityasen, the ball fell to Bekay just outside the area. His shot took a deflection off a defender and trickled into the corner of the nets.
RWFC could have taken the lead in the 12th minute itself but Seityasen Singh’s cut in from the right went narrowly wide. Nevertheless, Santosh Kashyap’s boys left no room for Mumbai comeback in the first 45 minutes and went into the break with a 1-0 advantage.
The trio of Seityasen Singh, Bawar and Kim Song Yong also created a lot of trouble for the Mumbai defence. They were well fed by their midfield, particularly from Godwin Franco and Densil Theobald.
Naoba Singh also combined beautifully with Seityasen and Densil in the first half but he picked up an injury late in the half and had to be replaced.
The half-time break, meanwhile, helped Mumbai regroup and they equalised a few minutes after restart. The Royals were unable to clear the ball from a Mumbai attack in the 51st minute and Justin Stephen used the situation to his advantage to give Mumbai the lead.
In the 73rd minute, Mumbai struck again, this time through Md Rafi. An Allan Dias long throw from the left was not properly dealt with by the Wahingdoh back liners and Rafi poked the ball home from close range to give the home team the lead.
RWFC will next take on Pune FC in another away game on February 28.
