Blame it on the ref
The blood and thunder Western Union Premier Division Football League clash between title aspirants Abahani and Muktijoddha Sangsad Krira Chakra ended in a goalless stalemate at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur yesterday but there was no shortage of incidents.
An error-happy referee Tayeb Hassan infuriated players and fans during the match that ultimately triggered the first violent clash of the season with police forced to confront hundreds of Abahani supporters even after the game had ended.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The policemen were called into action after a section of the Abahani faithful went on a rampage inside the stadium after the final whistle. They baton-charged the unruly supporters, few of whom received minor injuries including Abahani official and former national booter Dewan Shafiul Arefin Tutul.
Fighting also spilled outside the stadium area and at one point a microbus belonging to satellite channel ATN Bangla was damaged. Police had to lob tear gas shells to dismantle the incensed crowd.
Tension started brewing in the 75th minute when referee Hassan signaled goal after a Maxim free kick from the right top corner of the box brushed past the side netting.
The shell-shocked Muktijoddha players understandably demanded cancellation of the goal but substitute midfielder Tushar went overboard and landed a kick on the referee.
Hassan eventually revoked his decision after consulting assistant referee Abdul Hannan and signalled a goal kick. He also showed Tushar the red card. The game had already stopped for eight minutes.
Now there was another 10-minute delay as Hassan tried to convince the Abahani booters that it wasn't a goal. A visibly dejected Maxim even took off his shirt and wanted to leave the ground but teammates restrained the Russian and the match resumed.
Abahani were furious once again towards the end of the match when Russian midfielder Nikolai was apparently fouled by Muktijoddjha defender Din Mohammad inside the D. But the referee overlooked Abahani's appeals for a penalty.
When the match finished, Abahani players and officials led by manager Monem Munna challenged the referee but police rescued Hassan before anything untoward could happen.
The quality of football in the much-anticipated encounter never reached the desired level.
With Muktijoddha missing four key playersProdeep, Harry, Riyadh and Moni, Abahani had the more options to attack.
Although they came close to scoring on a couple of occasions, brilliant goalkeeping from country's number one custodian Aminul Haque prevented the Sky Blues from breaking the deadlock.
Aminul magnificently gripped a blistering rightfooter from Maxim in the very first minute of the match diving to his right. Aminul again had the ball in his control to deny Maxim's goal bound attempt in the 67th minute.
Muktijoddha also had two good chances in the second half but failed to cash in. Substitute Bidyut's shot from the top of the box missed the side bar in the 53rd minute while Ghansha's header from a Matiur Munna free kick went over the cross piece in the 68th minute.
Despite the draw, Abahani remained atop the table with archrivals Mohammedan Sporting Club on 13 points from seven matches. Muktijoddhas are trailing them by a point.
The outcome of yesterday's match left Brothers Union, who have 12 points from six outings, with an opportunity to take a solo lead in the table provided they beat Sheikh Russell KC in their seventh game today.
Earlier, in the day's first match, Dhaka Wanderers Club posted a solitary goal win over Dhanmondi Club.
Nigerian forward Williams scored the winner in the 31st minute.
Wanderers raised their tally to eight points from seven matches while Dhanmondi, who tasted their fifth defeat, are at the bottom of the table with only two points.
Red card: Tushar (Muktijoddha Sangsad)
Yellow cards: Ghansha, Matiur Munna, Tipu (Muktijoddha), Nikolai, Joy and Faisal (Abahani).
TEAMS
ABAHANI: Nizam, Osamanu, Sila, Mahmudul Hasan, Masood Rana, Parvez (Rakib), Nikolai, Joy, Faisal (Uzzal), Khokon and Maxim.
MUKTIJODDHA SANGSAD: Aminul, Hasan Al-Mamun, Din Mohammad, Papel, Lajuk (Belal), Ghansha, Bidyut, Matiur Munna, Tipu (Tushar), Arcedia Toe and Kanchan (Saiful).
Referee: Tayeb Hassan.
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