NAGOA: Salgaocar FC and FC Goa played a sparkless 1-1 draw to split points in the AIFF U-18 Youth League (Goa Zone) match played at Nagoa panchayat grounds on Thursday.
It was the Salgaocar FC team that surged into the lead in the 54th minute of play through a curling free kick unleashed by attacking medio Kaushik Negi that crashed to the top corner of the nets which made FC Goa react with some attacking play to level the score in the 63rd minute through substitute Lalawmpuia who sent a stiff grounder to kiss the nets.
Both teams played on level terms and depended mostly on the long and high balls and though the teams did resort to some short passes, there was hardly any spectacular show which was expected from them, given the fact that both teams have professional staff to train the youngsters.
Some of the moves, however, did exhibit traits of professional skills, particularly the trapping and positional play that the youngsters tended to rely upon.
Salgaocar FC looked intimidating in the first session and could have gone into the lead in the very 5th minute of play had the powerful shot that was let loose by Kaushik Negi entered the nets. The striker missed just by a whisker even though FC Goa keeper Alison Soares looked confident.
It was then the turn of Salgaocar’s striker Claide Frazer Fernandes to try and find the mark, but his shot too missed the target by a whisker.
Salgaocar FC’s ascendency period lasted only for a while and then it was FC Goa who began to show their influence in the proceedings but could not seriously threaten the rival’s goal until midway into the first session when medio Darren Fernandes drilled a power-packed effort which was smartly responded by Salgaocar FC keeper Antonio Da Silva with safe pair of hands.
FC Goa thereafter had some more shots at the Salgacoar goal but Antonio Dylan was in no mood to budge an inch from his fine positioning in the goal and anticipation of the ball to quell the FC Goa forays.
The second session too was played in the same vein as the first half as the ball moved from one end to the other with both teams trying all their best to outwit each other.
Salgaocar FC went into the lead in the 54th minute of play following a free kick which referee David Rebello awarded on the top of the box towards the left as Salgacaor’s medio Chaitan Komarpant was fouled by FC Goa’s defender Sadik Shaikh.
Salgaocar’s medio Kaushik Negio brilliantly curled the freekick, dispatching the ball to the top corner of the nets to beat FC Goa keeper Antonio Dylan.
The match wore with both the teams pressing hard. However, in the last fifteen minutes of play FC Goa, who had the upper hand, scored the equaliser through substitute Lalawmpuia who had just entered the field of play. Lalawmpuia ran down the left flank, quite unmarked and on receiving a neat pass from Darren Fernandes sent the ball angularly with a right footed striker to beat the Salgaocar F C keeper who had remained defiant for quite some time.