Salcete rally to hold Signals
HERALD CORRESPONDENT
MARGAO, FEB 6
Salcete Football Club came from behind to hold Corps of Signals 1-1 in GFA First Division League at 3MTR ground, Navelim on Sunday. Salcete were trailing 0-1 at half time.
Signals went into the attacking mode right from the start with Pankaj Gurkha and Roshan Singh combining well with the midfielders to put the rival citadel under pressure.
At the other end, Salcete looked lethargic in building up their moves and when chances came their way they stumbled to find the target with strikers Joshuah Vaz and Valente Silva being guilty of spurning opportunities.
Signals went into the lead in the very first minute when striker Pankaj Gurka beat the Salcete goalkeeper hands down off a pass from V. L. Nghara.
Stung by the early setback, Salcete tried their best to neutralise the lead and made valiant attempts but failed to get the desired result. They came close in levelling the score but striker Valente Silva ballooned over from close range.
Signals had scoring opportunities but Vikas Kale and Roshan Singh squandered easy chances to inflate their tally.
Salcete had a chance to level the score soon after resumption but striker Joshuah was the culprit as he failed to beat Signals goalkeeper Nibu Koshy.
Even as Salcete made a desperate bid to score, Signals continued to make incursions into their rivals half and came close in consolidating the lead when Pankaj Gotkha unleashed a left footer which missed the mark narrowly. Later, Roshan Singh’s shot went wide from close range.
Salcete’s equaliser came in the 84th minute when Ronnie Monteiro picked up the ball from his own half and unleashed a snap shot which beat the Signals goalkeeper.
With this draw, both Signals and Salcete collected eight points each from seven matches.
