Life has its ups and downs! You win some, you lose some. See the Indian cricket team’s performance at the T 20 world cup. One cause for worry is player’s monetary expectations without performance. Hopefully all will be well soon!
- Rodney Severes, Seaman, Majorda
It is very depressing to witness this. I was the secretary of the
association and we won the Santosh Trophy. Those moments were very memorable.
It felt terrible to hear we had lost to Gujarat. Some of the people at the helm
should start working hard or quit otherwise Goan football will die like other
sports like Volleyball.
- Savio Messias, Former football Administrator, Vasco
I have not followed the Goa Santosh trophy team’s performance much this
year but it’s weird that so many top players from the Goa Pro League have not
made it to the team. Gujarat’s manager also happens to be Goan. So he probably
knew this team well and hence the master class. I don’t know how the squad
selection is done but we definitely did not send out our best team.
- Conrad Barretto, Football Dugout, Margao
Goa has the best grassroots program as of now in the country. Although
other states are catching up fast. “One swallow doesn’t make a summer”. Goa
just won the Durand Cup. Yes we need to pull up socks, other team’s are getting
better.
- James Marcel Mendonca, Duler Mapuca.
With Goa being the focal point of Indian football the state teams are
always under the spotlight. Ever since the commencement of ISL, critics have
raised their levels. Every move any team from Goa makes is watched. With FC Goa
losing the opening 2 games and Santosh trophy team also losing, the question of
Goa’s dominance has been raised to another level altogether. But as a Goan and
a follower of Goan football it doesn’t bother me when Goa’s dominance has been
questioned, as most of the ISL sides directly scout the Goa Pro League for top
talents with a huge number of Goan players plying their trade in ISL and I
league. As far as the Santosh Trophy team is concerned there are better players
in Goa that are not selected in the team. And FC Goa just has a bad patch of
form that takes no time to turn around. So it’s too early to judge the Goan football
with its history so deep and long.
- Johnny Carvalho, Sound Engineer, Nagoa, Verna
Players who haven’t even played proper 90 minutes of football for this
season here in Goa were given first 11 preferences. I really don’t understand
how and why? They will lose first. The selection of the coach of the team for
the Santosh trophy tournament has to be questioned and removed. A coach who
topped the Goa pro league for 2 consecutive seasons was not given a chance. The
assistant coach who was taken was not even part of any team for the last season
of the pro league. How does he get a chance to even be there as an assistant
coach? There were a lot of injury concerns pertaining to some players at the
start of the season for the Goa pro league. I don’t understand how these people
were given a chance there and taken there. There were many more players who
deserved a spot. If you take players based on their previous year pro league
stats many were left out
- Valley Rodrigues, Footballer, Cortalim
I don’t think we need to press the panic button so soon. As far as the
Santosh Trophy squad for Goa goes, it was a young inexperienced team compared
to the big names that used to participate in the glorious past of the
Tournament. Now since many of Goa’s top players ply their trade in tournaments
like ISL it’s not possible to send the best team. As far as FC Goa goes, it is
still early stages of the tournament. Our problems haven’t been compounded by
the numerous injury problems for some key players. As soon as these players are
available, we will see a different picture. We still believe in Goan Football
overall. #VivaGoa
- Omi Tunes, Musician, Vasco-Da-Gama