Title aspirants Dempo Sports Club, Goa edged past Tollygunge Agragami 2-1 to brighten up their prospects in an unimpressive but eventful National Football League match at Kolkata on Wednesday.
Medio Clifford Miranda, who played a stellar role in the middle, opened the account for the Goans in the 68th minute before substitute Wilton Gomes struck the winner in the 77th minute to cull full points from the rain-interrupted away match at the Salt Lake stadium.
Tollygunge youngster Gauranga Dutta, who came as a replacement, earlier restored parity in the 73rd minute to bring the hosts back into the game albeit for a brief period.
With this victory, Dempo moved up to the second spot in the league table with 27 points from 14 outings - below leaders East Bengal, who have an equal number of points from 13 matches.
Tollygunge, on the other hand, accentuated their relegation risks and were now placed only above Indian Bank with just 13 points from 14 matches.
Dempo, who were held 1-1 in the first round, took a cautious approach and relied mostly on counter attacks while Tollygunge went on the offensive from the start but failed to convert any of the chances that came their way.
After a barren first half, the match got back some colour in the second session which saw three goals in 10 minutes.
