You may call them invaders. But those die-hard supporters of Brothers Union have every reason to win a permanent place in that stand after their beloved team in orange defeated Mohammedan by a solitary goal in the title-deciding play-off match of the Premier League on Monday evening.

Brothers began to celebrate clinching the coveted domestic football crown for the second successive year after they clung on to a 22nd minute penalty scored by central defender Sujan.

The tall defender not only held his nerve after referee Mansoor Azad declared his first 12-yarder null and void with a neatly taken second shot into right hand corner of the net, but also manned the Brothers fort like a true general for the rest of the match.

Brothers, who surrendered a first half lead in the drawn last league match against Mohammedan last Friday, however did not commit the same mistake against an unimaginative Mohammedan. They might have conceded a few yellow cards and gave away as many corners that Mohammedan had wished for, but never allowed their rivals to dictate the game.

There was concern in the Brothers tent regarding the fitness of Russian striker Victor Edward. But the top marksman for two successive seasons wistfully confused the Mohammedan defence with his sudden burst of speed and immaculate passing. The nimble Victor also created the only goal of the match. He galloped to catch a long ball from Abul leaving Mohammedan right back Rony in his wake. Rony made a desperate attempt stop the Russian who was about to take a crack with Mohammedan custodian Biplob at his mercy. But the Mohammedan defender could only manage to pull the Russian down in the forbidden zone, leaving referee Mansoor to point to the spot.

Victor came close to scoring what could have been his 13th league goal on the stroke of the final whistle when he drove a first-time side volley off a low Liton cross from the right. But his shot flew over after hitting the crossbar.

While Victor did the trick for Brothers, Mohammedan desperately lacked a player up-front get back into the match. The popular Motijheel outfit banked a lot on their Sierra Leone striker Donald Roberts, but his listless presence evoked more disappointment than cheers for the strong 10,000 Black and White fans.

Donald also spoiled the easiest chance of the game nine minutes after Sujan stepped up to convert the penalty. He chested an Alfaz pass with great authority in the six-yard box but showed an amazing ability to fire the ball over the bar when a simple nod was enough to sent the ball in.

Mohammedan came close to scoring again in 84th minute when Motiur Munna, who scored a 76th minute equaliser when the two teams met on Friday, took a sublime free-kick from the edge of the right-hand box. A hard-working Faisal Mahmud met that ball with a glancing header but Brothers custodian Mohammad Ali gripped the ball diving to his right.

Ali also tipped a Motiur shot over the bar. Mohammedan captain and ace striker Alfaz who is known for his ability to pull off some stunning goals, but Brothers defence hardly allowed the danger man any breathing space.

And when the final whistle was blown all the Brothers players rushed towards their coach Wajed Gazi like children to a happy father.

"Actually it's very difficult to express my emotion right at the moment. It is the best achievement in my long 23-year coaching career. A long-cherished dream came true for me. I enjoyed success last season with Sheikh Russel but this is special," said the 64-year old Brothers coach Wajed Gazi.

"I just told my boys to remain cool on the pitch and I am happy that they were playing according my plan. I must give special thanks to Edward who played his part brilliantly."

Captain Sujan said that retaining the title gave Brothers great satisfaction in light of the recent accusations of match-fixing by some leading clubs in the crucial stage of the league.

"We finally proved that was not the case and they did it just to affect our morale. I must say we deserved the victory because the best team won the title," said the stopper Sujon, who put on a brilliant performance in the second half after Jewel Rana got injured.

Sujon's only regret was that the former national captain was absent from the celebrations as he was admitted to a local hospital after a clash of heads with Mohammadan defender Peter Odaf.

His Mohammedan counterpart Alfaz Ahmed however blamed their game plan.

"You can't expect to win such a crunch match with a team down to ten-men because I didn't felt the presence of our foreign striker (Donald Roberts). Just ask our coach why he allowed him to play full time," said the ace marksman.

But Mohammedan coach Kazi Jasimuddin Jasi pointed his finger to referee Mansoor Azad for their failure.

"I don't think it was a penalty and any a poor decision can affect the outcome of a big match like this," commented the former national booter.

Yellow cards: Masud Rana, Inani, Shuvro and Edward (Brothers), Faisal (Mohammedan).

TEAMS
BROTHERS UNION: Ali, Jewel Rana (Jahangir), Sujan, Shuvro, Masud Rana, Siraji, Inani, Pranotosh (Liton), Abul, Sujan, Emily (Khokon) and Edward
MOHAMMEDAN: Biplob, Nazrul, Hasan, Odaf, Ronny (Nakib), Matiur Munna, Asad (Sentu), Faisal, Manju (Zahid), Alfaz and Donald
Referee: Mansoor Azad