DULER: Panjim Dolphins edged pass SCC Cavelossim Sows 4-3 on penalties to clinch the inaugural edition of the Vedanta Women’s League organised by Goa Football Association at Duler Stadium, Mapusa, on Sunday.
Michel Castanha, Linda Calada, Karishma Shirvoikar and Remediana Noronha scored for the Panjim side from the spot while Sushmita Jadhav, Cynthia Lobo and Nevilla Colaço converted for The Sows.
Panjim Dolphins got off to a strong start as they created the first chance in the 2nd minute itself as Chelsea Crasto lobbed the ball to Karishma Shirvoikar, who eased pass Nevilla at the back but found her run cut short by the Sows defence.
Sushmita Jadhav and Sujita Murgaokar of SCC Sows displayed good passing in the midfield area but later found their run cut short by Vega Fernandes of Panjim. Nevilla’s free kick in the 22nd minute for Sows tipped off Kushboo’s head but it failed in power.
Panjim Dolphins had the best chance to open the scoring as Michel’s pass inside the box was found by Karishma who tapped it to Linda but her low strike was cleared just in time by Cynthia Lobo of SCC Sows.
Post resumption, Michel’s shot off a free kick from outside the 18-yard went above the target. On the other side, Sows created two chances both through Sushmita. First her shot from the edge of the box was straight to the keeper and later, her strike off the corner post was well caught by the Panjim keeper Candice Fernandes.
Remediana Noronha of Panjim Dolphins came with two back to back chances. First, she shot on target which the Sows keeper tapped it away and then she saw her shot go high both off a free kick in the 65th minute leaving the Panjim side frustrated.
The ending minutes saw the Sows defence drop low as the Panjim side came out with stringent attacks. But nothing changed the final score as the game headed into penalties and the Panjim side proved to be the better shooters.
In the third place game, Cuncolim Warriors edged pass Goa Velha Saints 1-0 to clinch the bronze silverware. The lone goal was scored by Valanka D’Souza.
The prizes were distributed by chief guest Sr Maria Araujo, Principal of Carmel College, Nuvem, in the presence of Glen Ticlo, MLA of Aldona Constituency; Elvis Gomes, GFA President; Adithi Chawhan, Indian ace footballer, officials from the Vedanta football and other GFA dignitaries.
Earlier in the evening, there was an exhibition game between differently abled men from Bihar and Tamil Nadu wherein Bihar won 2-1. The players on field caught the attention of the audience with their performance.
President of Goa Football Association Elvis Gomes said, “This is a historic moment for Goan football. May this league be the start of a galore of opportunities our talented women players have always deserved.”
Annanya Agarwal, president of Sesa Football Academy quoted, “It is a moment of great pride and celebration today. The girls displayed a splendid performance on field and may this league be an inspiration to channelise and nurture women’s football.”
