Shillong, March 14 (IANS) Luka Majcen’s double strikes ensured Diamond Harbour FC edged past Shillong Lajong FC 2-1 in Match 15 of the Star Cement Indian Football League (IFL) 2025-26 season at the SSA Stadium in Shillong on Saturday.
With this win, Diamond Harbour climbed to second in the table with six points, behind Sreenidi Deccan on goal difference, and Shillong Lajong dropped to fifth place in the table with four points from three matches.
Shillong Lajong FC head coach Birendra Thapa kept faith with his starting XI, naming the same line-up for the second match in a row, while Kibu Vicuña made the solitary change to his side, bringing in Bryce Miranda in place of Halicharan Narzary on the left wing.
Diamond Harbour opened the scoring in just the second minute, before the Shillong Lajong defence had time to settle. Luka Majcen received the ball inside the box and laid it off for Antonio Moyano, whose effort forced a save from goalkeeper Siwel Rymbai. However, the rebound fell kindly for Majcen, and the Slovenian striker slotted it into the back of the net with ease to give his side the lead.
The striker doubled the advantage with another clinical finish at the near post. Jobby Justin was released down the right wing by Hugo Díaz after Shillong Lajong were dispossessed on the edge of the box. The skipper delivered a low cross across the six-yard box, which Majcen finished neatly past the diving goalkeeper.
The Reds were brave enough to stick to their plan and play their high-intensity style of football. They continued to press high and use their wing-backs and wingers to good effect to trouble the Diamond Harbour defence.
The home side almost halved the deficit, but a combination of goalkeeper Dheeraj Singh’s fingertips and the crossbar denied Everbrightson Sana’s header. Left-back Saveme Tariang whipped in a cross into the box, and Sana rose high to power a header goalwards, only to be denied.
Shillong Lajong’s expansive style of play, with the wing-backs pushing high up the pitch, left spaces for the opposition to exploit on the counter-attack. Diamond Harbour nearly added a third just before half-time through such a move. Luka Majcen’s initial effort was palmed away by the goalkeeper, but the rebound fell to Bryce Miranda. The winger attempted to chip the ball over the keeper, only to see his effort come back off the crossbar.
The hosts finally halved the deficit nine minutes after the restart with a scintillating counter-attack that began deep in their own half. A long throw from the opposition was cleared by the defence, with the ball falling to Everbrightson Sana. The striker quickly released Gladdy Kharbuli, who had made an early run into space, and the midfielder shrugged off his marker before finishing expertly past Dheeraj Singh in goal.
Shillong Lajong controlled the match from that point on, with most of the play taking place in the opposition’s half. They dominated the midfield, with Lamlallian Vaiphei particularly impressive at the heart of it, dictating play with his passing and delivering dangerous set-piece balls into the box.
Everbrightson Sana came close to scoring after the hour mark when he contested a high ball with Dheeraj. The ball floated and was destined to find the empty net, but it was cleared off the line by the retreating Melroy Assisi.
Moments later, Sana spurned a glorious opportunity to level the scores. After a slick passage of interplay, Damaitphang Lyngdoh cut the ball back into Sana’s path, but the striker’s sliding effort flew well over the bar to the disappointment of the home side.
Diamond Harbour, who were pinned to their own half for most of the second half, amped up the intensity on the attack in the latter stages of the match. Substitute Sunday Afolabi struck the crossbar with a thunderous hit from long range, and Siwel Rymbai dived low to deny Moyano in stoppage time.
In the end, the side from West Bengal kept hold of their one-goal lead and secured their second straight win of the season.
–IANS
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