On a Sunny Sunday evening at Baddagana Sri Lanka Air Force took on Don Bosco in their second match of the season. The Air Force having drawn with Pelicans SC in their first match, were keen to get some points on board.
Don Bosco on the other hand having lost their first match to SL Navy 5 goals to 0 was under pressure with their crowd heaping so much hope in them.
The SL Air Force lead by Janaka Chaminda got off to a good start when Kavindu Ishan created an opportunity in the first ten minutes of the game. Possession was very even in the first half and the first corner of the match was won by Don Bosco even though they couldn’t pose too much of a threat by it. Airforce kept on pushing hard at the Don Bosco defense which was lacking experience and confidence. And after few close calls Air Force finally found the back of the net by the boot of Duminda at the 27 the minute.
Don Bosco defense was not organized and it was bound to be broken. Just when one thought the Airforce was in charge of proceedings, Don Bosco bounced back with an equalizer. A free kick taken by Niluk Janith perfectly sat up for Georges Durrell, who just had got his timing and direction right, to sail through easily. All of a sudden the energy levels were high in the Don’s camp and they were fighting back. First half ended with one goal each for both sides. Airforce was dominant even though Don Bosco were good in patches.
The high on confidence Don Bosco team after that equalizer came with hope and fight. They showed how resilient they can be throughout the second half. On the other hand Air Force was under immense pressure after conceding that equalizer. Their frustrations levels were high which lead some players to be booked, in fact the only two yellow cards of the match were conceded by the Air Force players. Chances were created by Sachin and Duminda of the Air Force but the Don Bosco defense was up for it with their crowd backing them up.
Don Bosco had their moments but Airforce defense was hard to penetrate. The Airmen were probing hard and at a point Chathuranga Fernando came very close but he just couldn’t finish it off. Three minutes were added as injury time, as Don Bosco fans sensed a much better result than the previous match. That is when Kavindu Ishan shattered all their hopes and scored the winning goal. The ball was kicked by the midfielder of the Air Force to the vacant area and Kavindu was just too good for the defenders; it was just a matter of deceiving the goal keeper which he did with ease and the Don Bosco resistance came to an end in the 92nd minute much to their disbelief when the final whistle was blown. At the other hand Airforce was relieved having won their first match for the season.
