Defending champions Ba registered their first win at the 2023 Extra Supermarket Futsal Inter District Championship (IDC) outclassing Tailevu Naitasiri 3-2 in their second Group A fixture at the Vodafone Arena in Suva yesterday.
After a 4-2 drubbing to Nadi on Day 1, the Deepesh Prasad coached side made a strong comeback on Day 2.
It took them eight minutes to go on the scoreboard through skipper Ravinesh Chand as he beat the experienced Naitasiri defenders and slotted the ball past goalkeeper Mohammed Khan.
Continuous pressure from Naitasiri saw coach Sushil Singh pull out Junaid Ali and replace him with Ayush Prakash and he paid dividends by taking full advantage of a defensive blunder and getting the equaliser in the 13th minute as the teams headed to the break all level.
The second half was pretty tense and tight with teams putting on a strong battle and keeping each other’s defence at bay.
It was Prakash, who gave Tailevu Naitasiri the lead for the first time in the match in the 25th minute when Kavitesh Pal took a shot but it deflected off the goalmouth and landed on the feet of Prakash, who banged on to grab his second goal.
However, Naitasiri’s joy was cut short when Ba responded immediately a minute later through Ruel Grayven getting the equaliser for the Men-In-Black.
Replacement, Ratu Dau’s inclusion on the court lifted Ba’s tempo in the game as he sneaked in with the winner leaving the Naitasiri defence stunned and baffled.
Both sides have a crucial match each remaining today with Ba set to take on Navua at 4.30pm after Naitasiri faces Nadi at 3pm.
