Aizawl FC 3 (Lalrinzuala 13′, 51′, Lamine Moro 42′ og)
beat
Namdhari FC 0

AIFF Media Team

AIZAWL: On a dramatic April evening in the Durtlang hills, Aizawl FC ensured their survival in the I-League with a 3-0 demolition of Namdhari FC on Saturday, April 5, 2025. Their star forward Lalrinzuala was involved in all three goals at the RG Stadium. The result put Aizawl on 23 points, pipping their nearest rivals SC Bengaluru to the post by two points and extending their stay in the I-League for the 11th season in a row.

The hosts knew exactly what they had to do to keep their I-League status intact come the end of the season — match or better the result from SC Bengaluru, who played out a 2-2 draw against Sreenidi Deccan at the same time. A crowd of 7,692 had turned out to give voice and instil faith in a team that had suffered through a rough ride — mostly of their own making. 

Aizawl’s attacking prowess has never been in question. Only five teams have outscored them this season — four of which are in the top five in the table. The questions have always been about their defence, which has conceded the most goals in the league — nine arriving in their last two games alone. They have kept only four clean sheets this season, two of which arrived in the first two weeks of the season. If survival was based on defending hard, Aizawl were running uphill with a cannon strapped to their back. 

The squad probably knew this and therefore bet on attack being the best form of defence. Right from the start they took control of the game and forced Namdhari into hurried passes and last-ditch defending. In the 8th minute, they had their first chance, Lalrempuia drifting in to perfectly meet a free kick on the volley, two yards from goal but somehow putting the chance over.

It didn’t matter because one of their sparks of the season, Lalrinzuala, scored the opener five minutes later. Having been played through by a Lalbiakdika pass, the forward rounded the Namdhari goalkeeper before calmly finishing into an empty net. 

Knowing their leaky defence Aizawl didn’t decide to sit back and absorb the pressure, instead constantly looking to double the lead. Not long after, Lalrinzuala had a chance to double it, when Luis Rodríguez’s contested header fell to him inside the six-yard box. On the turn, he looked to smash it in only for a last-ditch sliding block denying him the goal. 

It was ironic and cruel then, that the defender who made that block, Lamine Moro went on to score an unfortunate own goal from a Lalrinzuala cross in the 42nd that doubled Aizawl’s lead. They were halfway to safety.

Two minutes into the second half, news petered in from Hyderabad that Sreenidi had taken the lead against SC Bengaluru. It was just the boost Aizawl perhaps needed. In the 50th minute, Lalrinzuala scored a second, to have effectively sealed the result, flicking in Malsawmzuala Tlangte’s low cross and giving the hosts a 3-0 lead.  

The final quarter of the game was all about damage control. Earlier this season, Aizawl had lost points after being three goals up and would’ve been aware of how things could go wrong merely through a loss of concentration. There was no such drop in application or energy, at times, Aizawl were closer to scoring more. Three were enough, though, to survive and bring some cheer after a long season of suffering.