MARGAO: Salgaocar FC went down to SAI Guwahati 2-0 in their U-15 I-league final round fixture at Nagoa ground, on Tuesday.
A brace from Bishnu Bordoloi which included a penalty in the 73rd minute and another goal netted in the 80th minute outdid a valiant Greens side.
The first half kicked off with both sides on the front foot. The Salgaocar lads gained momentum via Ribhav Sardessai on multiple occasions but failed to capitalize. SAI had their closest attempt in the 14th minute as striker Bishnu’s effort almost entered the net, however Salgaocar custodian Antonio D’Silva did well to keep it out.
The Greens came close to open the proceedings on two occasions. In the 33rd minute, Ribhav stood over a free-kick which he sent into the opponent box but was headed just wide of the far post. The midfielder made another attempt as he took possession of the ball and got past the Guwahati defence to enter the box and back passed it to Levy Pereira, who shot wide.
The second half saw the Greens run out of steam as the SAI players were able to get the better of their defensive line on multiple occasions and mounted pressure. As a result Salgaocar conceded a penalty which was taken by Bishnu, who sent in a powerful strike leaving custodian Antonio disappointed who although dived in the right direction was not able to keep out the ball.
The SAI striker’s second goal of the evening came as a result of a well-timed pass from Subham Chetry which the former made no mistake of as he sent it to the back of the net. The game came to an end as worn out Green’s side held the Guwahati outfit to 2-0.
At Navelim ground, Ozone Football Academy defeated Mumbai Football Club 4-1 in the Group C match.
The match started on an attacking note with Mumbai FC’s left-winger Nikhil Prabhu coming close to scoring but was only denied by the upright in the very third minute.
At the other end, striker RK Chiranjan Singh tried to give the lead to Ozone FA but his powerful grounder was blocked by Mumbai FC custodian, Harshal Tandel.
In the 26th minute, Ajay Alex put Ozone FA ahead as he took full advantage of a free-kick which left rival keeper Harshal Tandel stunned.
Subsequently, substitute Imran Khan doubled the advantage for Ozone FA in the 43rd minute with a deft placement.
Crossing over, Ozone FA continued in the same rhythm as Ajay Alex made it 3-0 in the 50th minute and then secured his hat-trick at the hour mark.
However, in the 76th minute, Mumbai FC pulled one goal back through Ranson Patel. In another match at Nagoa ground, MDSP defeated PFC 2-1.
