Farashganj defender Abu Faisal tries to stop a run by Abahani striker Emily (R) during their Citycell B. League match at the Birshreshtha Matiur Rahman Stadium in Narshingdi yesterday.Photo: STAR

Abahani put their wretched start in the Citycell B. League behind yesterday with a scrappy 1-0 away win against Farashganj at the Birshreshtha Matiur Rahman Stadium in Narshingdi.
Abul Hossain fired the winner three minutes before halftime of the second round game for the defending champions, who suffered a shock 2-1 defeat to Rahmatganj in the opening match of the professional league's second edition last week.
With stalwarts Joy, Pradeep, Siraji and Mamun still nursing injuries, the Sky-blues hardly looked comfortable on a bumpy pitch at the Narshingdi Stadium, which made its B. League debut as old-Dhaka outfit Farashganj's home ground.
With the battle containing mostly in the middle throughout the first half, Abahani made most of a defensive lapse to seal the victory when Farashganj central defender Abu Faisal headed a cross by Abahani captain Nazrul -- the centre-back who had to play as rightback -- towards the top of their area.
A half-hearted clearance reached Abul just inside the penalty box and the Abahani midfielder smashed a low drive into the far corner to separate the two sides.
Abahani's second chance almost put the visitors 2-0 up in the first-half stoppage time but Nigerian midfielder Emeka nodded a cross by Ibrahim just wide.
After the resumption, the two sides failed to ignite the 4,000-strong crowd -- who came despite heavy showers shortly before the match -- but Abahani came alive in the last ten minutes to produce a series of chances.
Instead of trying to just hold onto the slim lead, Amalesh Sen sent fresh legs of Zahed Parvez, a half-fit Mamun and Tipu in the latter pat of the game to keep Farashganj on the defensive.
However, Zahed headed a chance wide while veteran Tipu also failed to keep his shot on target. In the dying moment, Emily set Zahed with a sitter but the young winger missed the mark for inches as the heavyweights had to remain satisfied with a slender victory.
It was Abahani's second win against Farashganj this season after a 2-1 success in last month's Federation Cup semifinal.
On the other hand, Federation Cup's surprise pack Farashganj -- who lost 3-2 to Sheikh Russel in their league opener in Dhaka, remained pointless after two defeats in as many matches.
"I admit that my boys have not played well since we lost the Federation Cup semifinal to Abahani. We were unlucky to lose against Russel to a last minute penalty. Today, it was Faisal's fault. Otherwise we looked set to win at least one point," said home coach Kamal Babu, who will be pitted against fellow old-Dhaka rivals Rahmatganj in the next round in the capital.
Abahani's old guard Amalesh said he was not able to field a full-strength side.
"We have three major injuries and Mamun is also not hundred percent fit. And the players were a bit shaky after a first round loss," said Amalesh adding that he withdrew Ghanaian striker Ibrahim as he was getting aggressive towards the end.
"He could have had a card any time, so I replaced him. In fact, my midfield was not up to the mark. Still, we wasted a few good chances in the last minutes."
Abahani manager Satyajit Das Rupu complained that the ground was not well prepared.
"It did not get enough time to prepare for top level football and players were at injury risks. We had also expected a lot more spectators," said Rupu, whose side host Chittagong Mohammedan in Dhaka on Wednesday.
TEAMS
ABAHANI: Biplab, Nazrul, Sujan, Yussif, Waly, Abul (Tipu), Pranotosh, Emeka (Mamun), Ujjal, Emily and Ibrahim (Zahed).
FARASHGANJ: Al Amin, Rony, Uttam (Mamun), Abu Faisal, Ramjan, Rasel, Dominic (Faisal and Rintu), Kabir, Amirul (Khokon), Enamul and Yusuf.
Referee: Azad Rahman.