ATK Mohun Bagan crowned ISL champions after penalty shootout win over Bengaluru FC
Margao, Mar 18: ATK Mohun Bagan held their nerves in a tightly contested Indian Super League final to beat Bengaluru FC 4-3 on penalties and lift their maiden title here on Saturday.
In a game that ended 2-2 in regulation time, ATKMB's Dimitri Petratos scored all three penalties he took on the night before Vishal Kaith's save from Bruno Ramires' in the shootout brought them one step closer.
Bengaluru FC's Pablo Perez then sent his spot-kick over the bar as the Mariners sealed the result in a game where they had unsettled Bengaluru FC right from the start.
Bengaluru FC were forced into bringing Sunil Chhetri early on after Sivasakthi Narayanan was stretchered off in the opening seconds of the match.
Things went further away from plan in the 13th minute when Krishna handled the ball from a Petratos corner as ATKMB were awarded a penalty. Petratos finished the job from the spot to put his team in front.
ATKMB made use of this advantage to put pressure on Bengaluru FC, who picked up a glut of yellow cards on the pitch and one off it for head coach Simon Grayson.
But in the final minute of first-half stoppage time, they were given a way back when Bose missed the ball and made contact with Krishna while attempting a clearance. Chhetri stepped up to take the penalty and sent Kaith the wrong way to restore parity.
In the final quarter of the game, Rohit's shot from the edge of the box created a series of corners, before a deflection found Krishna at the far post, and the striker nodded it home in the 78th minute.
But five minutes from time, the game was all square again. At the edge of the Bengaluru FC box, Kiyan Nassiri went down after a nudge from Perez as ATKMB won their second penalty of the evening. Petratos was on hand to score again.
In the third minute of stoppage time, Asish Rai's goal bound shot was cleared off the line by Prabir Das. Moments later, Colaco and Nassiri almost combined to score, but Bruno Ramires provided the crucial interception as the game went into extra time.
Udanta Singh and Rohit failed to hit the target in their respective attempts in extra time, while Manvir missed from a few yards out for ATKMB.
Towards the end of extra time, Sandhu spilled Petratos' long-range strike, but it bounced out for a corner that led to nothing before the game headed into penalties.
In the nervy penalty shoot-out, Golden Glove winner Kaith stepped up for his team for the second game in a row, while no one missed from the spot in a game dictated by penalties throughout.
As the winners, ATKMB took home a prize money of Rs 6 crore, while runners-up Bengaluru FC received Rs 2.5 crore.
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Nitish loses cool inside Bihar assembly over opposition's 'guns and bullets' jibe
Patna (PTI): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar lost his composure inside the state assembly on Tuesday when opposition members created a ruckus alleging that his government was ruling the state with the help of "guns and bullets".
The 76-year-old leader, who stood up to admonish the unruly members, also had a slip of tongue, as he underscored the brute majority enjoyed by the NDA, saying "our strength is two thousand and two".
The BJP-led coalition, which includes Kumar's JD(U) and a few smaller parties, had swept the Bihar assembly polls last year, bagging 202 seats of the 243-strong House.
Trouble began soon after the House assembled at 11 am, with RJD MLA Kumar Sarvajeet registering a protest against the police's baton charge on village 'chowkidars' (watchmen) here a day ago when they were staging a demonstration to press the demand for a hike in stipends.
"The 'chowkidars' who were demanding a hike in their pay are very much employees of the Home department. Yet, they were treated in a deplorable fashion yesterday," alleged Sarvajeet.
Several other MLAs of the opposition party also raised a slogan: "bandook goli ki sarkar nahin chalegi (will not allow a rule by brute force, with the help of guns and bullets)".
This provoked Kumar, the longest serving CM of the state, who heads the JD(U) and has had a couple of short-lived alliances with the RJD in the past.
He shouted: "Do not talk rubbish. This government will run without any hiccups. Just look at us. We are two thousand and two. And just look at how many of you have been left now."
Kumar was apparently referring to the RJD's drubbing in the last assembly polls when it returned with a tally of 25, one of its worst ever performances.
When RJD leader Bhai Virendra reminded the JD(U) supremo of their two short-lived alliances in the last one decade, Kumar shot back: "Yes, and you people always indulged in mischief, a reason why I pulled out never to return".
The CM also reminded the opposition party, which was unseated from power by the NDA helmed by him in 2005, that "You did nothing worthwhile during the period you were in power... Law and order had been so abysmal that people feared getting out of their homes after 5 pm. So you better not talk nonsense."
Amid the heated exchange, some of the opposition MLAs trooped into the well, briefly plunging the House into turmoil.
The agitated members got pacified after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary rose to interject and said, "We will call representatives of various associations of chowkidars for talks. Their demands will be looked into, and appropriate action will be taken."
