Veteran pair of Edwin Sahayam and Daniel Dass scored a double each to inspire a 5-3 victory for Labasa over Rakiraki in the opening Group B match of the 2023 Extra Supermarket Futsal Inter District Championship (IDC) at the Vodafone Arena in Suva today.
Rakiraki made a quick start and Malakai Lavecake neatly finished off a through pass from Amar Kumar which was flicked on by Avitesh Kishore in the 2nd minute.
Labasa put on a strong fight and managed to get the equaliser through Sayaham with a powerhouse attempt which gave goalkeeper Bhavish Prakash no chance at all in the 10th minute.
Minutes before the break, Dass gave Labasa the lead for the first time in the match when he riffled a powerful strike past a hapless Rakiraki goalkeeper.
Rakiraki received two free kicks which Lavecake took but blasted both over the crossbar as Labasa narrowly led 2-1 at halftime.
The Northerners continued their fine form in the second stanza while tiredness took its toll on the Rakiraki defence which Dass took advantage of and bagged his second goal.
Two minutes later, Sahayam extended Labasa’s lead when he tapped in a timely cross from Ashnil Raju.
It was Avitesh Kishore, who came off the bench and brought some life back for Rakiraki after he pounced on a well-curled cross from Kavinesh Prasad in the 30th minute.
However, a minute later, the goalscorer copped the first yellow card of the tournament for a foul play on Labasa’s Mohammed Altaf.
No later, the 22-year-old rectified his mistake and grabbed the third goal for Rakiraki through a beautiful finish that was laid to him by Elvis Raju.
However, the Westerners gave away a penalty to Labasa when their defenders fouled Shahzaib Aziz in the box.
Sahayam took the penalty and made no mistake as he beautifully slotted the ball at the back of the net to seal the win.
Labasa will take on futsal giants Suva at 8.30pm tomorrow while Rakiraki will meet Lami at 4pm.
The teams:
Rakiraki: Bhavish Prakash (GK), Malakai Lavecake, Tevita Rabakewa, Kumar Amar Sahil (C), Avitesh Kishore, Avinit Chand, Mohammed Tauseef, Elvis Raju, Kavinesh Prasad, Nilesh Prasad, Zaman Khan, Sikii, Sandeep Ram.
Labasa: Rajneel Narayan (GK), Mohammed Zaid, Mohammed Altaf, Edwin Shayam (C), Ashnil Raju, Mohammed Irshaad, Daniel Dass, Devneet Prasad, Shahzib Aziz, Suhail Khan.
