Super League Kerala 2026: Forca Kochi defeat Thrissur Magic 4-1 on penalties
Forca Kochi win the first Penalty shoot-out of the SLK 2026.
The first match of the second matchweek of Super League Kerala (SLK )2026 did not disappoint at all, as 10-men Thrissur Magic managed to clinch a goalless draw against Forca Kochi. Despite their solid defense throughout the game, the Magicians lost to the Kochi based team 4-1 on Penalties.
In similar fashion to their first game, Forca Kochi’s winning moment came from a strike courtesy of Rahul Raju, this time around, taking the winning Penalty of the game. The player of the match went to the Kochi Custodian Jamiy Joy, who made one crucial save in the shoot-out.
With this win, Forca Kochi gain 2 points and climb to the top of the SLK 2026 table with 5 total points, while Thrissur also move forward to the 4th place due to their 1 point. The 1 point was earned by the team due to the draw in the 90 minutes.
Missed chances, big tackles and a Red Card
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The home team Thrissur Magic started the first half in control of the match. They managed to press their opponents quite early in the match.
The amount of pressure put on the away team was so immense that the Magicians found themselves winning 5 corners in just the first 7 minutes of the match. The Kochi based team took the pressure on the chin and still tried to keep possession of the ball as much as possible to build up slowly from the back.
In the 8th minute of the match, Alan Saji collected a long ball at the halfway line, where upon after collecting took the ball all the way to the opposition box, before being tackled right before taking a shot.
The Forca Kochi custodian Jaimy Joy showcased his class, by saving the Kochi goal twice in the span of a few minutes. The first chance came in the 10th minute when Senthamil S went after a long ball and was tackled before he could get a shot off.
Just a few minutes later, Thrissur midfielder Sergio Gil in an effort to make a cross, sent the ball towards the goal instead, which required a full stretch from the Kochi keeper to be kept out.
In the 21st minute of the game, Forca forward Paulo Henrique fouled Thrissur midfielder Bladimir Castro. After Henrique was shown a Yellow for the challenge, Bladimir made a derogatory gesture, which resulted in the Thrissur man earning a Red Card.
After being 10 men down, Thrissur sat back for most of the remaining half, withstanding the full might of the Forca Kochi attack.
Frustrated Kochi & a strong Thrissur defense
In the second half, Thrissur tried to attack early in the half, which left their defense vulnerable more than once, therefore, it led to Kochi getting a plethora of chances to go ahead in the tie.
Even though they got multiple opportunities, the away team forwards were unable to convert any chances that came their way. Being unable to score, Kochi’s forwards started to get frustrated and made unnecessary challenges.
In the 58th minute of the match, Forca’s Eliton feinted his way past Lenny Rodrigues in order to get in a position to take a shot. Eliton took a long shot towards the Thrissur goal, but the ball deflected of the keeper before making contact with the goal post. Because of the flurry of deflections, the ball somehow did not go in.
In the 80th minute of the game, Nithin Madhu managed to leave his marker and send a beautiful cross towards the corridor of uncertainty. Thankfully for Forca Kochi, their lone goalscorer of the SLK 2026, Rahul Raju was in a perfect position to help the ball on its way to the goal. Unfortunately for the Forca Cruz, Raju slid over the ball instead & missed a golden opportunity to score a goal.
Forca Kochi should have been able to convert at least 1 of their many chances, but the Thrissur defense held strong and kept a clean sheet during the 90 minutes of the game. Despite a host of close calls, neither team could score, which led to the first ever Penalty Shoot-out in SLK 2026.
Because of the new rules, if a match ends in a draw within 90 minutes, there will be a Penalty Shoot-out to decide the winner of the match. The loser of the shoot-out gets 1 point (that they would have gotten because of the draw), while the winner gets 2 (an extra point for winning the shoot-out).
Penalties
All 4 Penalty takers of Forca Kochi scored their Penalties, whereas Abdul Samad scored the lone penalty for Thrissur Magic.
Diego Hernandez was first to score a penalty, as he sent Magic Custodian Kamaludheen the wrong way. Henry Plazas took the first penalty for Thrissur. In an effort to hit the top-right corner, he hit the crossbar and missed the goal entirely.
Rennan Arujo then converted his penalty to increase Kochi’s lead to 2-0. It was then Abdul Samad who scored the first and only penalty for Thrissur. Nahuel Pereyra stepped up and scored Kochi’s 3rd penalty of the shooot-out.
Magic’s young prodigy Muhammed Afsal took the 3rd penalty for Thrissur, which was saved by Jaimy Joy. The winning penalty was taken by Rahul Raju, who slotted it in to win the match for Forca Kochi.
Who is top of the SLK 2026 points table, after Thrissur Magic vs Forca Kochi?
Forca Kochi currently lead the points table with 5 points, 1 win & 1 draw.
When is the next match of SLK 2026?
The next match of the SLK 2026, will be played on 2nd October, 2026 between Calicut FC & Malappuram FC. The match will be played at the EMS Corporation Stadium in Kozhikode. It is scheduled to start at 7:30 PM IST.
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