A last gasp goal from Zarwan Johar ensured Colombo FC drew level with Renown as the final of the City Football League President’s Trophy was called off due to bad weather with 10 minutes still left on the clock resulting in the two teams sharing the spoils in the final.
Both teams were forced into changes as Renown skipper Hakeem Kamil was unavailable due to suspension with Shamil Ahmed replacing him in the lineup and Colombo FC already without star winger Bodri Dimitri making a surprise change opting to go with key player Zarwan Johar on the bench with Shazny selected to partner AC Frank up front.
Colombo FC started slightly better but couldn’t trouble the keeper with their efforts with Momas Yapo and Frank failing to hit the target from decent chances early on in the piece.
However once the Renown midfield clicked, they really put the Colombo FC defense under the pump with forward Job Michael blazing over twice in quick succession from fairly presentable chances.
Photo Album – City FL President’s Trophy – Final
Renown then had a shot deflected over by the wall from an indirect free kick inside the box after Imran collected a backward pass from skipper Raumy Mohideen.
Imran made amends however by making 2 brilliant saves in quick succession, first saving from a 1 on 1 against Michael and then tipping the rebound from Mohamed Rizni around the post.
Michael’s persistence paid off though as he put Renown a goal up, converting from a tight angle after being played through by right back Dimuthu Priyadarshana 25 minutes in to the first half.
Play was then stopped by the referee for a short while due to concerns for player safety as lightning and thunder loomed over the grounds.
This didn’t dampen the spirits of the Renown players as immediately after the restart Prasad Yogarajah sent a shot narrowly past Imran’s far post and then saw his cross put narrowly wide by Mohamed Rifnaz just before half time.
The quality of play in the second half was severely affected by the incessant rains as both teams struggled to impose their style of play on the fixture.
Zarwan on for Frank, who picked up an injury in the first half, was a real bright spark for Colombo FC causing problems for Renown right from the start of the second half. He hit the bar early on in the half as the momentum in the game steadily started to shift towards Colombo FC.
The equalizer eventually came from a free kick won by Zarwan on the edge of the box, the pin point delivery by Raumi headed home by Zarwan himself to tie things up 75 minutes into the game.
Unfortunately the match was called off in the 80th minute as light became an issue, denying the crowd what would have been a thrilling climax to an entertaining tournament.
Colombo FC and Renown SC were then adjudged joint champions by the organizing committee, a fair result based on both teams’ performance on the day.
ThePapare.com Man of the Match: Fazul Rahuman
