Trailing by a goal at half-time, Inter Kashi fought back in the second session to overcome local giants Churchill Brothers in a Round 5 match of the I-League match 2023-24 at the Tilak Maidan on Friday.

It was a match of two halves — the first half belonged to Churchill Brothers while the second went in favour of Inter Kashi, who fought back valiantly after the break to win the match 2-1.

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For Inter Kashi, substitute Gyamar Nikum was the hero as the midfielder’s last-gasp winner sealed the game for his team. Jackichand Singh had scored the equaliser for Inter Kashi after Ricardo Nicolas Dichiara had given the lead to Churchill in the first half.

Kashi’s second win on the trot took them to fifth place in the points table. They have seven points from four matches with two wins, one loss and one draw. Churchill Brothers are eighth in the standings with four points after playing an identical number of matches. For the record, it was Churchill Brothers’ second consecutive loss.

Churchill Brothers’ though started the match with a positive intent and had as many as 10 attempts on goal compared to Inter Kashi’s zero shots on goal in the first half.

Churchill took the lead in the 38th minute when their Uruguayan midfielder floated in a corner from the left. Most of the Inter Kashi defenders and goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya failed to judge the flight of the ball as the ball landed sweetly at the feet of Dichiara. The Argentinian forward didn’t make a mistake as he kept his cool to slot the ball home.

Inter Kashi, though, soaked in all the pressure from Churchill in the first half. They regrouped and came back with a purpose and found the equaliser in the 52nd minute.

Inter Kashi played a few quick passes to rattle the Churchill refence before the Spanish forward Mario Barco Vilar sent in a cross into the box from the left. Jackichand was in the right place at the right time to volley home and level the score.

Stung by the reverse, Churchill tried to rally on their home turf. Despite their efforts, the profligacy of their forwards proved costly. They managed 20 shots at the goal of Inter Kashi, who only took two shots. However, Inter Kashi capitalized on their opportunities.

Vilar was once again in the thick of the action when Inter Kashi scored the winner. The Spaniard dribbled past a Churchill defender on the left wing before deftly releasing Edmund Lalrindika. The midfielder went on to deliver a low cross into the Churchill box and Nikum made a brilliant run to strike the ball neatly into the back of the net. Inter Kashi held firm for the remainder of the match to notch up a fine win.