Indian Women's League: BBK DAV, Kolhapur draw; Kickstart edge Baroda

Kickstart’s Mona scored the solitary goal of the game in the 68th minute.

Punjab’s BBK DAV Football Club played out an entertaining 1-1 draw with Football Club Kolhapur City in their Hero Indian Women’s League (IWL) Group A fixture at the Bangalore Football Stadium on Monday. Lhingneilam Kipgen broke the deadlock for BBK in the 74th minute before Madhu Bala equalised for Kolhapur ten minutes later. [KH_ADWORDS type="3" align="center"][/KH_ADWORDS] The first half was mostly dominated in midfield, as either side lacked inspiration going forward. The game was goalless at the break, but the tides turned in the second half towards the business end of the match. A seemingly speculative cross from the left flank that evaded just about everyone found Kolhapur substitute Lhingneilam Kipgen in the 74th, who had a relatively tame effort on goal with the defenders closing her down but BBK goalkeeper Radhika Khodre committed a horrendous error, as the ball deflected off her hand and bounced over the line. Kolhapur seemed to be heading towards another victory, albeit with a stroke of luck, but BBK equalised in the 84th minute, when their skipper Neha Mann rose to the occasion quite literally and with a back header, flicked the ball down the path of Madhu Bala, setting her through on goal and with only the keeper to beat, did so with great aplomb to level the scores. 1-1 it finished, with both sides left ruing individual mistakes and pondering on what could have possibly been.  [KH_ADWORDS type="4" align="center"][/KH_ADWORDS]

Kickstart FC 1-0 Baroda Football Academy

Kickstart FC earned a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Baroda Football Academy in their Hero Indian Women’s League (IWL) group fixture at the Bangalore Football Stadium on Monday. Kickstart’s Mona scored the solitary goal of the game in the 68th minute. The first half was quite evenly contested with Kickstart coming close in the 33rd minute when Kavya weaved her way down the middle and had a fine attempt on goal. It was matched by Baroda keeper Afshan Ashiq with a fine save. It was Kavya again in the mix just seconds before half-time, and with some fine footwork she found her teammate Renu, who had a crack from close range but Ashiq pulled off another magnificent save to keep the scores level, heading into the break. [KH_RELATED_NEWS title="Related News | Article Continues Below"][/KH_RELATED_NEWS] The deadlock was broken in the 68th minute, when a looping delivery from Kavya deceived everyone, including the keeper. The trajectory of the cross suggested that it was goal-bound anyway, but Mona was lurking at the far post and for further insurance, tapped it into an empty net to put Kickstart in front. Some fine defensive solidarity ensured that the Karnataka outfit held on for the three points.