Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club returned to winning ways in the Grameenphone Bangladesh Premier League as they outplayed Feni Sooccer Club 3-0 at the Shaheed Salam Stadium yesterday. The defending champions, who came into this match on the back of a 0-2 defeat at the hands of Farashganj, dominated proceedings from the beginning and came away with three well deserved points, which took them to 15 points from 13 outings and lifted them to sixth position in the 11-team table.
The Feni club, on the other hand, who had lifted themselves out of the bottom position with a couple of important victories and draws in the last week of March, once again find themselves hovering just above the drop zone. Feni have 10 points from 13 matches, just one above Rahmatganj and Arambagh at the bottom, both of whom have a game in hand.
That good run of form a month and a half ago saw the Feni side hold Sheikh Jamal to a 1-1 draw at the Bangabanhdu National Stadium. So, there were expectations of a good show in front of their own crowd this time, but the hosts failed to show much resolve in holding the visitors.
Sheikh Jamal started the match at a blistering pace and took the lead in the 12th minute, thanks to their Nigerian striker Kester Akon who slotted in the ball from inside the box after being provided with a minus from compatriot Joseph Asufi.
The two Nigerians combined once again to double the lead on the hour mark. This time, the roles were reversed as Kester became the provider with a cross from the wing which was headed in by Asufi.
The third goal came two minutes before the end of regulation time when Touhidul Alam Sobuz, who came back 10 minutes earlier as a substitute, received a through ball from Kester and dodged past the Feni goalkeeper before placing the ball at the back of the net.
Sheikh Jamal coach Yusuf Babu was satisfied with his charges but felt the margin of victory could have been bigger.
“We should have won the match by a bigger margin. But I am happy anyway as the team played well throughout the match. All the departments played well today and I am happy to see them bouncing back from a morale shattering defeat last week,” said Babu, adding that his target is to consolidate the position in the points table now.
-With The Daily Star input
