MAPUSA: St Francis Xavier HS, Siolim cruised their way past St Anne’s HS, Tivim to emerge champions of Bardez Zone under-14 Subroto Mukerjee football tournament organized by DSYA at Tivim ground, Wednesday. There was no score at half time.
After a barren first half, SFX Siolim surged ahead in the fourth minute of the second half when St Anne’s goalkeeper Domnic D’Souza failed to collect a fierce out-of-the-box shot from SFX Siolim’s Valeno Fernandes.
Spurred by the success, SFX Siolim raised the tempo and doubled their lead seven minutes later through Prakash Semipuraskar, who slotted home from close range.
Down by two goals, St Anne’s tried hard to get back into the game but Dattaprasad’s powerful free-kick was thwarted away to safety by SFX Siolim’s goalkeeper Vinit Agarwadkar.
Subsequently, St Anne’s Sunil Desai had a golden chance to score in a one-on-one situation but the promising striker shot wide with only the rival custodian at his mercy.
However, with eight minutes to go for the final whistle, St Anne’s pulled one goal back through Sunil Desai when he shot past goalkeeper Vinit with a deft placement.
In the final quarter, St Anne’s went all-out in search of the equalizer but the rival defenders stood tall in protecting their citadel.
Later, in the third-place play-off match, Sacred Heart of Jesus HS, Anjuna edged past St Anthony’s HS, Monte de Guirim 2-1. Rohan Gadekar and Nagesh Mayekar scored for Sacred Heart while Shevan Mandal pulled one back for St Anthony’s.