(Football) Jamshedpur FC were forced to share the spoils with Hyderabad FC after a 1-1 draw at the Athletic Stadium in Bambolim on Thursday. Greg Stewart scored the opening goal for the hosts in the 41st minute while Bartholomew Ogbeche equalized in the 56th minute in what can only be described as a game of two halves. With this result, both the sides failed to enter the top four as Jamshedpur FC are currently 5th with five points while Hyderabad FC are sixth with four points.

With Jamshedpur FC’s captain Peter Hartley on the bench, the armband was handed to Eli Sabia with Hyderabad FC head coach Manolo Marquez going with the same starting XI that defeated Mumbai City FC over the weekend. Greg Stewart, who played in the Scottish Premiership under Steven Gerrard at Rangers dominated the show in the first half and kept threatening the Hyderabad FC defense with his runs inside the box. 

He soon grabbed the opening goal of the evening before half-time but should have easily had at least one more based on his performance. A quick throw-in from the left gave the ball to Stewart who cut past four defenders and the former Rangers player sent a fantastic curler into the top far corner for a goal. He should also have scored in the 20th minute when Stewart picked up the ball from midfield after a pass by Hitesh Sharma and made a majestic run to the box, leaving Hyderabad FC centre-back Juanan for dead but was denied by the post.

However, the Nizams drew level on the 56th minute when Bartholomew Ogbeche’s brilliant one-two with captain Joao Victor resulted in a shot at the bottom right corner. Despite both teams making an effort to take the lead, they failed to break the deadlock with Lithuanian footballer Valskis squandering a few opportunities for the hosts while Jamshedpur FC goalkeeper Rehenesh denied any opening for Hyderabad FC.

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