Team Herald
sports@herald-goa.com
MAPUSA: Calangute Association were on eighth position before COVID interrupted the league proceedings. The Club had registered just five wins in 19 outings, but among those five, they had upset Salgaocar FC with a 2-1 win.
The last season’s performance didn’t please their fans and management. This season, the club recruited experienced campaigner Valentine Ezeugo as the coach, who in his hay days played for all the top clubs in the State and country.
Ezeugo stated that the club managed to retain most of last edition’s players which should be a key component in their pursuit to a better finish this year. However, the Club has lost the services of Gaurav, Sanij, Mulla to Sporting and Joaquim and Jober to Churchill Brothers.
But the club were successful in replacing their former players and with the arrival of experienced Nickson, Melvin and Rohan the team has grown even stronger where in their last three friendly matches they won against Vasco SC and Velsao SCC while lost to FC Goa.
The club’s midfield is very stable and has been in good form. The style of play has been complementing the team as their attack from behind worked out well during the friendlies. The backline looks shaky under-pressure but in time, it should get better. However, this Calangute squad will give a tough fight for their opponents in this edition of GPL.
Though the club stood tall in the GFA’s First Division League for a number of years, it was only in the year 2015 that the club entered in Goa’s top tier league the Goa Professional League.
It was then Alex Fernandes, former club president and the present president Alirio Lobo, then club secretary who with the consent of its club members decided to venture into the GPL, where former Calangute Sarpanch Joseph Sequeira was the backbone in bringing finance to the club. From then, the club has come a long way ever since they started the GPL campaign.
Speaking to Felipe Dias, General Secretary and Marcelino Fernandes, Sports Secretary said that it was not any easy task to maintain a decent position in the league as they had to rub shoulders with some of the best teams in Goa such as Sporting Clube de Goa, Churchill Brothers, Dempo SC, Salgaocar FC, Sesa FA and others.
The Club will miss their 12th men dearly as the beach-side club used to attract large crowds, who used to buzz the Duler Stadium, as the team will now play their matches in empty stands due to the pandemic.
