Churchill Brothers missed out on a chance to go to the top of I-League points table as they played out a 1-1 draw with Sporting Club Bengaluru in Raia, Goa, on Monday.
After Wayde Lekay's ninth goal of the season had put Churchill Brothers in the lead in the 61st minute, Clarence Fernandes, making his first start in the I-League, drew SC Bengaluru level in the 73rd.
Following this result, Namdhari FC stay atop the leaderboard with 24 points from 12 games while Churchill are now a point behind at 23.
It was SC Bengaluru's first ever away point in the I-League, ending a run of six straight defeats on the road.
The Golden Tigers, with nine points, are out of the bottom spot for the first time in two months. Delhi FC now occupy the 12th and last place.
SC Bengaluru took the game to the Red Machines and were unlucky not to find the opener as the woodwork denied them twice.
Both opportunities arose from corners. In the 23rd minute, Saiyyad Umar's delivery was met with an off-balance header by Clarence Fernandes. The loose ball fell for Alex Sanchez, who flicked a half volley that hit the top of the crossbar.
Four minutes later, Churchill Brothers goalkeeper Sayad Kadir made a fingertip save to keep out Salam Johnson Singh's volley.
Captain Carlos Lomba took the resultant corner, finding Shafeel PP in the box, who thumped a header straight onto the crossbar. Later, when Lomba himself had a sight of goal in first-half added time, he blasted a first-time half-volley inches above the frame of the goal.
After a lacklustre first half, Churchill head coach Dimitris Dimitriou was quick to roll in the changes. New signing Rafiq Aminu and Colombian midfielder Sebastian Gutierrez, returning from an injury, came off the bench to add a new dimension to the hosts' attack.
They created the opening goal in the 61st minute as Gutierrez picked out Aminu on the overlap with an exquisite outside-of-the-boot pass. The Ghanaian showed quick feet before sliding the ball across the face of the goal.
With goalkeeper Yuya Kuriyama beaten, Wayde Lekay cheekily back-heeled it into the empty net.
But the visitors were in no mood to return empty-handed.
They created the equaliser just 11 minutes later with a free-kick near the touchline.
As Lomba sent a knee-high delivery into the box, Clarence Fernandes, a former Churchill player, swung his left foot at it and thumped it past Kadir.
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