SC East Bengal head coach Mario Rivera was disappointed as his team failed to collect three points after playing a 1-1 draw against NorthEast United FC in Match 104 of the Hero Indian Super League at the Tilak Maidan Stadium, Vasco da Gama, Goa on Monday.

NorthEast United went ahead a minute before the half-time whistle riding a goal from Marco Sahanek but SC East Bengal restored parity early in the second half when Antonio Perosevic converted a penalty.

The Red and Gold brigade remained at the bottom with 11 points but they still have a game in hand against Bengaluru FC at the same venue on Saturday. While for Khalid Jamil's men it was the final match of the season, they finished 10th with 14 points from 20 games.

Rivera addressed the media during the post-match press conference.

Here are some excerpts from his press conference:

Do you think this match was winnable as NorthEast United FC was not in their best of form?

Yes, we should have won the match. We took many shots, almost 18, we made everything to create a chance and to have the chance. But we couldn’t score one more goal. 

What happened to Darren Sidoel before the match? Would he be able to take part in the next match?

He injured his ankle in the warm-up. We don't know, we have to wait for the test tomorrow to check him. After the test tomorrow we can only tell if he can play in the next match or not.

You brought in Nepalese defender Ananta Tamang. Will he be able to play in the last match?

Let’s see, he only made it to the one training session the day before the match. We will see tomorrow if he’s fit or not fit after the quarantine. If he’s fit we will use him.

Any message for the fans as competition coming to an end?

Yeah for the fans, we have to tell them that we tried and fought till the end. They can see that in our matches and we will try to win the next match and dedicate that win for them.