Sinquerim Sports Club kicked off their campaign with a commanding 4–2 victory over DBO Fatorda in the opening match of the 24th Vagator Soccer Tournament, organised by the Vagator Parish Youth Sports Club at the Vagator Football Ground.
The match got off to an energetic start with Sinquerim’s Saimesh Gaonkar testing Fatorda goalkeeper Glen Fernandes as early as the 5th minute. Gaonkar made no mistake eight minutes later, cutting in from the left and slotting a low shot past Fernandes to give Sinquerim a 1–0 lead.
DBO Fatorda responded in the 19th minute when Velito coolly converted a penalty after Aiyan Shaikh committed a foul inside the box, levelling the score at 1–1. Sinquerim regained the advantage in the 28th minute as Pratik Tirodkar latched onto a lofted pass from Zaid Khan and made it 2–1.
Fatorda nearly found an equaliser just before the break, but Sinquerim goalkeeper Aniketh Naik pulled off a stunning save to deny Francis Andrade’s long-range effort. The first half ended with Sinquerim holding a narrow lead.
After the interval, Gaonkar continued to press and came close in the 43rd minute. His teammate Tirodkar, however, found the net again in the 48th minute with a composed finish, extending Sinquerim’s lead to 3–1.
Fatorda reduced the deficit in the 68th minute through Richie Vaz and nearly equalised just minutes later, but Alfred Noronha’s miss from close range proved costly. In stoppage time, substitute Krish Naroji tapped in Sinquerim’s fourth goal to seal the win.
Pratik Tirodkar was named Man of the Match for his decisive brace and overall performance.