SCOREBOX
Samaleswari SC 1 (Kartik Choudhary 82’)
Dempo SC 2 (Richmond 28’, Rane 58’)
---
PANAJI
Dempo SC came through a testing opening spell and took control through goals by Richmond Owusu and Laximanrao Rane to beat Samaleswari SC at the Birsa Munda Athletics Stadium in Rourkela, making it two wins from two in the Indian Football League 2026-27.
The Golden Eagles moved to top of the table with six points while their opponents from Odisha are rooted to the bottom after their second loss.
Head Coach Samir Naik named an unchanged side, and for a while it was Samaleswari who looked more comfortable. They held the ball, pushed forward from deep and asked questions of the Dempo defence, while the Golden Eagles took time to find their rhythm. Cledson Da Silva was the brightest spark in that stretch, finding himself in good positions without the finish to match.
Dempo stayed solid where it mattered. Roshan Panna’s shot, the best of the hosts’ early chances, was denied by a crucial save from goalkeeper Subhajit Bhattacharjee. At the other end, a Rane corner found Rowllin Borges, whose header was cleared away.
Then one long ball changed the match. Knerkitalang Buam sent it forward and Owusu ran onto it with the Samaleswari defence stretched, one-on-one with the goalkeeper, he finished from a tight angle for the opening goal in the 28th minute. It was a goal of pace and composure and Dempo went into the break with the lead.
The second half opened with the same intent. Laximanrao Rane chased down the ball, cut back and drove a clinical finish into the net in the 58th minute to make it 2-0. The match then settled, with Dempo in control.
Samaleswari kept pushing and found a way back through a long-range effort from Kartik Choudhary, which made it 2-1 and set up a tense finish. The hosts threw everything forward and the closing stages grew stretched and frantic, but the Golden Eagles stayed organised through added time and held on until the final whistle.
