Ludhiana, Dec 3 : Dempo SC rode on Matija Babovic's early strike in the second half to beat Namdhari FC 1-0 in the opening game of Round 3 of the I-League 2024-25 season at the Namdhari Stadium.

It was Dempo's third clean sheet and second win in a row that takes them to the top of the table for the time being with seven points. Last week, they had beaten Shillong Lajong 2-0, with Serbian Babovi?? scoring the second.

Namdhari, on the other hand, remain winless and down in 10th spot with a solitary point. The meeting between record champions Dempo SC and relative newcomers Namdhari FC began with a flurry of chances for the former. Dempo got their first big chance in just the fourth minute as an unmarked Seigoumang Doungel miscued an accurately-delivered Damián Pérez free-kick. Minutes later, the Argentinian saw two long-range attempts flash wide.

After withstanding the early pressure from the visitors, it was Namdhari's turn to test Dempo's line of defence. Fernando Capobianco's side were particularly threatening from set-pieces. Ghanaian midfielder Joseph Gordon nearly caught Ashish Sibi wrongfooted from his curling free-kick but the Dempo goalkeeper recovered in time to push it out.

Francis Addo, returning after serving a one-game suspension due to his red card against Delhi FC, was denied the opening goal by a crucial deflection from Mohamed Ali. The Dempo captain stuck his leg out to divert the Ghanaian's powerful strike off target.

In the 38th minute, Addo went for an acrobatic volley from a Bhupinder Singh corner that would've surely been a goal of the season contender had Sibi not been alert to make the save.

Dempo were once again quicker off the blocks at the start of the second half, and this time Namdhari were caught napping. The Golden Eagles got the breakthrough in the 47th minute when Knerkitalang Buam's long ball unlocked the hosts' high backline, allowing Matija Babovic to run behind and poke the ball past a hapless Nishan Singh. Babovic almost got another one six minutes later as he glanced a header from a Mohamed Ali cross over the bar. Then came Namdhari's best chance of getting an equaliser as Cledson Carvalho da Silva, who had a dormant first half, stole the ball from Ali in the final third, raced into the box and drilled a low strike centimetres wide of the far post.

From then on, the game became just about Dempo trying to fend off Namdhari's Brazilian duo of Cledson and Vicente de Paula Mercedes, who came off the bench. But that Cledson chance turned out to be the closest the hosts would come to getting a goal in the match. Dempo remained solid defensively and Samir Naik's impactful substitutions helped them see off the game and come out with all three points.

Next, the Golden Eagles will play fellow promoted side SC Bengaluru in Bengaluru on Saturday.

Namdhari will host Aizawl FC on Sunday.

/IANS