Last edition’s runners-up Dhaka Mohammedan Sporting Club suffered a shock 0-2 defeat to Rahmatganj MFS in
their fourth Bangladesh League match at the Kamalapur stadium on Friday.
Their first league defeat of the season meant Mohammedan are now in danger of losing out their top position to Sheikh Russell, who have equal nine points with a game in hand.
Rahmatganj took a deserved lead in the 33rd minute through their Ugandan skipper Idris Kasiraye before another African recruit of the side Onokoro Felix netted the second four minutes into the second half making it 2-0.
Idris wriggled past Mohammedan defender Ramzan Ali to enter the penalty area and placed the ball at the far post with a low right-foot drive, stunning the popular Motijheel outfit.
Desperate for an equaliser, Mohammedan came close to scoring in the first half injury time when winger Sharif provided a through pass to Ridon who was near the six-yard box. But Rahmatganj goalkeeper Arifuzzaman Himel acrobatically parried his attempt.
Felix made the comeback tough for Mohammedan, scoring with a long-range shot from 30 yards out, which triggered an angry reaction from the handful of Mohammedan supporters.
Mohammedan also tried for goals with long-range shots in the second half but none of their efforts was strong enough to beat Himel.
They managed to avoid a bigger humiliation as Idris missed an open net sending the ball over the bar after dodging past advancing goalie Titumir Chowdhury Titu in the 71st minute.
Mohammedan coach Shafiqul Islam Manik, however, had no grudge against his players and only blamed the Lady Luck for their shock defeat. He was also critical of the referee for what he claimed denying them a deserved penalty.
‘My boys had their best game in the league today but were not lucky enough to take any point. We did everything to score but failed,’ he said.
‘The referee was also harsh towards us. He did not award us a penalty. Maybe he took a kind of revenge on us as some of our supporters had harassed one of his colleagues,’ said Manik.
Rahmatganj coach Ali Asgar Nasir said he knew Mohammedan forwards were slow and they had a good chance if they could score, something that happened in the game. He hoped to finish among the top five after collecting seven points from four matches.
