What do you think about the referee, asked a frustrated Adrian Luna of Kerala Blasters after the 1-1 draw against the bottom-placed SC East Bengal in the Indian Super League at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Mormugao, on Sunday night.
That summed up the mood in the Blasters camp for the Kochi team had much reason to be disappointed. Spanish forward Alvaro Vazquez's attempt in the 15th minute was first ruled as a goal but disallowed a few seconds later.
The Blasters had the advantage as they moved towards the goal but referee R. Venkatesh had spotted an Amarjit Kiyam handball just outside the box and had blown the whistle. But as the ball moved forward, Vasquez sent it into the net and the referee whistled again. That caused confusion and much controversy and after a brief discussion with the assistant referees, Vazquez's goal was disallowed.
East Bengal went into the lead 20 minutes later with Australian Tomislav Mrcela guiding a long throw from Raju Gaikwad into the net.
The Blasters got the equaliser in the 44th minute and this time Vazquez's attempt, from the edge of the box, hit Mrcela's head before heading into the goal. It was first given as an own goal by Mrcela but was later credited to Vazquez.
After the lively first half, the second half failed to live up to expectations. Despite Uruguayan midfielder Adrian Luna's hard work, the Blasters could not find the match-winner. SC East Bengal kept a compact defence and managed to clinch a draw, the third for both teams.
The Blasters' goalkeeper Prabhsukhan Singh Gill stood out, stopping many attempts by the Red and Gold brigade.
The Blasters climbed to seventh, while SC East Bengal remained at the bottom.
The result: SC East Bengal 1 (Mrcela 37) drew with Kerala Blasters 1 (Vazquez 44).
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