Follow pitch-side reporter Leeza Mangaldas as she takes you behind the scenes this Hero ISL season. New posts every Monday exclusively on indiansuperleague.com.

Match Week 3: Nov 29 - Dec 3

Week 3 of Season 4 meant that all Clubs had already played two matches, and had warmed up as it were. We’d seen some moments of brilliance in the first two weeks, but overall, the teams - and the teams behind the teams (including us broadcast folks) - were just getting our feet wet at the start of what is to be four months of non-stop footballing action ahead.

FC Pune City vs Mumbai City FC

The first match of the week was on Wednesday night - the Maharashtra Derby. I got to watch it at a beach shack in Goa, where I had already arrived for Thursday’s match.

With endless plates of butter-garlic prawns and fried calamari for company, it was the next best thing to watching live in the stands.

Mumbai City FC were unlucky on the night, losing to FC Pune City 2-1 despite being one-up at half-time thanks to Balwant Singh’s stunning goal in the first half. But Ranko Popovic’s men showed great character to come from behind in the second half, with Alfaro in red hot form.

And who can deny the excitement of a winning goal in the final minute of the game? The Stallions’ new celebrity co-owner Arjun Kapoor looked positively jubilant. The party was definitely in Pune that night.

I ate the last of my calamari and headed to my hotel room to do some pre-match reading for FC Goa v Bengaluru FC which I was covering the next day.

FC Goa v Bengaluru FC

Thursday: It was the Gaurs' first home game of the season, and having grown up in Goa myself, I was thrilled to be covering it. It’s always lovely when work brings you home, even more so when home is Goa and work is a football match.

I also had the pleasure of the company of my fellow sportscaster Arjun Pandit and our expert, former England International, Russel Osman, since the whole pre/post show was being broadcast from the stadium in Goa. Fun fact: Russel starred in Escape to Victory, arguably one of the greatest sports movies of all time.

Now Arjun has a wicked sense of humour and we had spent most of the flight here laughing at his wisecracks. But we also talked about how the match was sure to be a good one given how sharp both teams’ attacks have been looking. Two Spanish coaches coming head-to-head… would it be a goal fest or a cagey game of chess on the pitch?

Prior to the match, I chatted with Bengaluru FC's Erik Paartalu, who was in great spirits having scored twice in their previous game. He too said he thought this was sure to be a good one. And he very kindly agreed to make his best funny face with me.

Jokes aside though, if we’d expected a slick action flick, what we got was a full-blown thriller!

The big talking point was Bengaluru goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu being sent off before half-time but despite being down to ten men, they put up a valiant fight. Goa won 4-3 with a hat-trick from Coro. The fans at Fatorda couldn’t have asked for more. Seven goals and a red card - it was just the sort of drama that makes football such a mesmerising sport to watch.

Jamshedpur FC v ATK

Friday, I was back in Mumbai for a day - and made the most of it by watching Jamshedpur FC v ATK while getting a mani-pedi. It’s no mean feat being a female pitch-side reporter - while you traipse across the country immersing yourself in match stats, you also have to remember to ensure your nail polish is always perfect.

Guess you can’t get a seven-goal bonanza every night: it ended 0-0 in Jamshedpur with the Men of Steel left still looking for their first goal of the season. But it was heartening to see the stadium packed for their brand-new Club’s first ever match at home.

Delhi Dynamos FC v North East United FC

Saturday had me waking up at 5 AM to head to the airport to fly to Delhi, bleary eyed from the exhaustion of a week of early morning flights, but pumped about the Lions versus the Highlanders.

Since we fly practically every alternate day, every member of the crew has their own inflight tips and tricks to ensure they can use the travel time to catch up on sleep. My secret is a super soft silk eye mask that blocks out light completely.

It was freezing in Delhi that evening, but the Highlanders were on fire. They’d had two matches without a goal, let alone a win — and then boom! They scored two in the first half itself, and even kept a clean sheet.

Halicharan Narzary had a brilliant game and sounded truly proud of his team when I interviewed him post match. The result had given the NorthEast United boys a much-needed dose of confidence.

It was also a starry night. John Abraham was beaming, and he even huddled with his boys post match. The Delhi Dynamos’ new brand ambassador Jacqueline Fernandez lit up the pitch with her exuberance despite the result. And a radiant Mrs. Nita Ambani seemed delighted at how brightly the Indian players are already shining this season.

Sunday morning: another red-eye for me! But I was headed to Mumbai where I’m based, to unwind for two days since there are no matches on Monday and Tuesday - it’s what we call our weekend. In this life of hotels and suitcases, coming home once a week keeps you sane. And lets you do your laundry properly.

I then watched both of Sunday’s matches from the comfort of my bed.

FC Pune City v Chennaiyin FC

Chennai's 1-0 win over hosts Pune made me think of a Johan Cruyff quote I'd read somewhere. (I'm a little nerdy like that.) He'd said that "all it takes to win a football game is to score a goal more than your opponent". That is exactly what the Super Machans did on the night - and in the end, it was the key to getting the three points. Pune may have been the dominant team, but Chennai got the goal.

Kerala Blasters FC v Mumbai City FC

The Blasters, on the other hand, registered their third consecutive draw so far, this time against Mumbai, but they did manage to score their first goal of the season, and it came fairly early on. A through ball from Berbatov found Rino Anto who followed with a terrific cross. Mark Sifneos did the rest.

Mumbai managed to equalise in the second half thanks to a late goal from Balwant Singh. Then, with just a few minutes to go before the full-time whistle, CK Vineeth received his second yellow card of the night, shortly after he'd received his first, and was sent off as a result.

It all ended 1-1 in Kochi, as Match Week 3 came to a close.

I called it a night and fell asleep as soon as the second match ended, eager to recharge in time for Week 4. Be sure to come back here next week for another sneak peek at my Hero ISL experience!