KOCHI: An own goal from Keziah Vendroop and a howler from custodian Gurpreet Singh Sandhu helped Blasters beat Bengaluru FC 2-1 in the ISL-10 season opener at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium here on Thursday night.
The victory also helped the Kerala side gain revenge on their arch-rivals after they had decided to walk off the pitch in protest against Sunil Chhetri's goal during the playoff match between the two sides in Bengaluru last season.
Former Blasters skipper Jessel Carneiro, struggled to keep Blasters' Daisuke Sakai at bay as he couldn't match the Japanese forward's pace. One such electrifying run on the right flank from Sakai saw Jessel bringing the Japanese down and getting a yellow card.
Though the Blasters' players demanded a penalty, the referee maintained that the foul was committed outside the box and awarded the hosts a free kick. The resultant kick saw Blasters demanding another spot kick as they felt that Milos Drincic was obstructed by the BFC defenders inside the box. But the referee paid no heed to their claim.
Results: Kerala Blasters 2 (Veendorp OG 52', Luna 70') bt Bengaluru FC 1 (Curtis Main 90')
