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Big boys thru' to semis

Sports Reporter
Brothers Union and Abahani reached the semifinals of the Independence Day Gold Cup winning their respective matches at the rain-soaked Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.
Moroccan forward Adil, who replaced his compatriot Hicham Inani in Brothers' starting line-up, made an instant impact on his Dhaka debut by scoring on either side of the break as the men on orange emerged Group B champions with a comfortable 3-0 thrashing of Youngmen's Club Fakirerpool. They will take on Mohammedan Sporting Club in the second semifi-
nal on March 28.
Abahani on the otherhand, were in a must-win situation to avoid the embarrassment of a premature exit from the tournament. They kept their supporters on the edge throughout the match against Farashganj Sporting Club before scrapping through with 1-0 win with Zahed slotting the match winner. That set the Sky Blues up for a clash against Group A champions Muktijoddha Sangsad in the first semifinal tomorrow.
Brothers finished their group campaign with seven points while Abahani, who were thumped 4-0 by Brothers in their previous match, collected six points. Farashganj, on four points, only needed a draw to make it to the semis.
BROTHERS-
YOUNGMEN'S
Prolific Russian striker Victor Edward shot Brothers ahead in the 11th minute with his fifth goal in the tournament. Edwards placed the ball home from a low left sided cross delivered by Parvez Babu.
Another attack from the flank proved successful in the 38th minute when Adil headed in a centre by right fullback Siraji.
The second half was played under heavy showers with the ball all but floating on the waterlogged pitch. It was almost impossible for the players to play their natural game. But both teams looked determined to complete the match and Adil sealed victory by executing a 73rd minute penalty after midfielder Liton was tripped in the Youngmen's box.
ABAHANI - FARASHGANJ A pool of water near the western corner of the ground delayed the start of the Abahani-Farashganj match by 90 minutes.
When the game finally kicked off, Abahani wasted a golden opportunity to take the lead when Farhad sent a spotkick wide in the 26th minute after he was fouled by rival defender Apu inside the danger zone.
Farashganj, who had held Brothers 2-2 in the group opener and beat Youngmen's 3-2, had their chances. But Nigerian striker Felix could not take advantage of a one-to-one situation with Abahani custodian Nizam. The goalkeeper was again in action when he denied Kabir.
Abahani midfielder Zahed failed to pounce on a rebound in the 40th minute but made no mistakes minutes later when he was the first to react after Ujjal's shot came off Farashganj goalie Piru.