MAPUSA: Sporting Clube de Goa put up a stiff challenge and managed to hold Salgaocar Football Club to a 1-1 draw in the GFA’s Pro League match played at Duler stadium, here on Friday.
After Friday’s match, Salgaocar stand with ten points from four matches while Sporting have four points from two matches.
The heavy showers dampened the normal flow of the match restricting play generally to the midfield in the first session.
Sporting keeper Ravi Kumar displayed some breathtaking antics under the horizontal bar to frustrate the efforts of the Salgaocar strikers.
In the 25th minute, Mackroy Peixoto on getting hold of a loose ball unleashed a powerful right footer which travelled just past the Sporting goal.
Minutes later, Ganesh Thakur sent a pinpoint pass to Victorino Fernandes inside the 18-yard box, who to the dismay of his teammates and supporters blasted the ball wide.
After some midfield action, Salgaocar’s Brian Mascarenhas saw his curling free-kick from 25-yards been pushed away by Ravi Kumar.
Minutes before the breather, Ravi once again affected a brilliant diving save to deny Brian from scoring.
Crossing over, Salgaocar started off on an attacking note and shot into the lead with three minutes when Brian Mascarenhas charged into the Sporting danger zone and set the ball on platter to Aslon Oliviera, who wasted no time in firing the ball home, 1-0
The introduction of Marcus Mascarenhas into the squad in place of Akeraj Martins boosted the morale of the Sporting squad who thereon went all out in search of the equalizer.
Salgaocar keeper Bruno Colaco did well to keep away Alber Gonsalves and Harpreet Singh’s strikes at the goal in the 51st and 55th minutes.
Minutes later, Bruno once again came to his sides rescue when he managed to get his hands to Marcus Mascarenhas’s powerful goalbound header.
The constant pressure piled on by Sporting finally paid off in the injury minutes of the match when Victorino managed to get his way past the Green Brigade defenders and sent the ball towards Marcus Mascarenhas who drilled in the ball to the far corner of the goal, 1-1.
