Jamshedpur FC

History has officially been written by Owen Coyle and Squad 2021-22 as Jamshedpur FC qualified into the playoffs for the first time and the moment will be etched in everyone’s memory in years to come as they not only bagged the 3 winning points but also also defeated Hyderabad FC with a solid 3 goals and a clean sheet at the Athletic Stadium, Bambolim.

The game kicked-off with the two squad’s eyes focused only on the win as Jamshedpur rolled the ball to begin the thrilling encounter between the two table toppers. The determined Men of Steel started off a crucial game with numerous attacks right from the get go as they aimed to take a lead in the opening minutes of the game and they did exactly that. Peter Hartley headed it right at the goal after Alex Lima swung in a corner towards the far post. The ball came to Mobashir on the outside of the box after the keeper parried it away. The local lad from the city of Jamshedpur fired a low shot that took a deflection off a Hyderabad defender, which led the goalkeeper, Gurmeet Singh in the wrong way. The ball found its way into the net, which gave JFC a 1-0 lead. The goal was ruled as an own goal by Chinglensana Singh.

The contenders for the #1 spot, Jamshedpur FC pushed even harder with their constant attacking threat and compact defence which established them as the dominant side in the first period of the game. Right before the two sides took a drink’s break, Jamshedpur FC doubled their lead with their 2nd goal through another corner kick. Peter Hartley, the captain, doubled the Men of Steel’s advantage. The ball is swung in by Alex Lima towards the far post, same as the first goal. Hartley rose to his tallest point as he beat Khassa Camara who could not head the ball away to safety. The ball came in contact with Hartley's head and travelled across the face of goal as Gurmeet Singh was frozen in place and was unable to respond to parry the ball away which made it 2-0 for Jamshedpur FC. The first period of the game came to an end with the Men of Steel in the upper hand on the scoresheet as well as the game statistics.

The second 45’ minutes took off with the Nizams focused on coming back in the game. They made some changes for their side and kept their hunt for goals on but the unbeatable defensive line who held the fortress down at the Jamshedpur goal denied the table toppers every opportunity to score. The game’s intensity kept going up as the two young squads did not back down for even a minute. The Jamshedpur landed the final blow to the Nizams with their 3rd goal of the night after a defensive error to clear the ball stung them badly. Khassa Camara received the ball in the middle outside the box and attempted to clear it, but completely missed it as it landed at Alex’s feet. Lima, with a wonderful first touch on his chest, lobbed the ball over the defence line towards Daniel Chima who was on the run inside the box as he slotted the ball into the bottom corner with a sweet outer foot finish to make it 3-0. After a couple of minutes, the Men of Steel were at a disadvantage as Mobashir was sent back to the dressing room for his aggressive behaviour. A rash tackle by Akash Mishra led to a heated face-off between the two and the referee gave Mobashir the marching orders which reduced the Jamshedpur side to 10 men on the pitch.

With an extra man advantage on their side, the Hyderabad attacking squad rained down multiple attacks aimed at the Jamshedpur goal with some hopes still left to land some goals into the back of the net and try to get back into the game somehow. Head Coach, Owen Coyle made some important defensive changes in the squad and brought fresh legs into the game to play at the back to ensure the game ended in Jamshedpur’s favour and also maintain a clean sheet. Despite being a man down, the team in lead (Jamshedpur FC) still managed to make some attacks happen but the Hyderabad goalkeeper made sure he didn’t let any more goals slip in and parried away a powerful shot from Jordan Murray which could have landed in the bottom corner. A close chance came for the Nizams to score a goal in the final few minutes of the thrilling clash but Rehenesh who was way off his line, made a quick instinctive save with one hand to keep the ball out of the net and was successful to register his 5th clean sheet of the season.

The Jamshedpur squad made history with this exhilarating win over Hyderabad FC as they took over the top spot in the league and cemented their spot in the playoffs for the first time since the club’s inception. The Men of Steel were on cloud 9 after they grabbed the winning points and walked out victorious from the outing at the Athletic Stadium, Bambolim after they gave their fans a night that they would cherish forever.