Sporting Clube de Goa [Images] defeated Salgaocar by a solitary goal to take the top spot after the 18th round in the National Football League.

Dudu Omagbemi, who is the league's leading scorer, scored the only goal of the match, at the Nehru Stadium in Margao, Goa, when he headed home a well-directed cross by Adebayo Adewusi from the left.

The strike, three minutes before the interval, also took Dudu's goal tally to 15.

Sporting moved to the top spot, with 38 points from 18 matches, two points ahead of East Bengal, while Salgaocar, who suffered their eighth defeat, remained in seventh place, with 22 points from 18 matches.

Desperately searching for the equaliser in the second half, Salgaocar went on the offensive and were only denied a point by Man of the Match Luis Barreto, who brought off some brilliant saves off Freddy Mascarenhas, substitute Samson Singh and Felix Ibrebru.

Salgaocar had a chance to equalise early in the second half but Ibrebru, who was well-placed inside the box, shot wide following a long pass from the right by Jyoti Kumar in the 46th minute.

Later, Freddy Mascarenhas snatched the ball from defender Rajesh Meetei, sprinted down the right and on entering the box took a shot which keeper Luis Barretto did well to put out.