PANJIM: Sporting Clube de Goa condemned the conduct of the match referee Tejas Nagvekar during the Thursday’s TACA Goa U-20 League final match between Sporting Clube de Goa and Goan FC and called for the official’s suspension.
“We condemn the unprofessional and unethical conduct of the match referee Tejas and to call for his suspension pending further inquiry,” said Sporting Clube de Goa CEO Victor Vaz. “We will be writing to the GFA conveying our views on this matter and offering our full co-operation in conducting a fair inquiry so that justice is given to our player Trijoy Dias,” stated Victor.
It can be recalled that Sporting Clube de Goa player was involved in a physical altercation with the match official Tejas Narvekar during the TACA Goa U-20 final match played at Duler.
The remarks followed after the incident wherein there were reports stating Tejas was punched by Sporting Clube’s Trijoy after being sent off in the 21st minute following his tackle on Goan FC’s Serenio.
However, Sporting officials defended the lad saying, “The foul committed by Trijoy was on the ball and while trying to snatch the ball from the defender near the opponents goal line. But referee Tejas hurriedly and without application of mind flashed the red card to our player.”
The Club further stated that it was Tejas who instigated the brawl as he first hit the player before playing the victim. “We can state with full conviction and we have clinching evidence and eyewitness accounts from both players and spectators, that it was referee Tejas who struck the first blow on Trijoy and that Trijoy’s was only a reflex spur of the moment reaction to him being struck first,” added Victor.
“Nobody is saying that this boy (Trijoy) didn’t do anything wrong. He was provoked to do that as it was the referee who struck first,” explained Victor.
Sporting Clube de Goa officials stated that they have video evidence and spectators, who witnessed the incidents.
When questioned Trijoy about the incident, who is also part of the Sporting Clube de Goa senior team said, “After I was shown the red card, I did protest and went to the referee but the referee hit me first on my face and then I followed up,” added Trijoy, who accepted his actions weren’t right.
The club official highlighted that section of referee always target few Sporting Clube de Goa’s player with the likes of Micky Fernandes, Mathew Gonsalves which happened to be ‘stumbling block to their career’.
“On several occasions in the last 15 years we have written to GFA not to post members of the Nagvekar group for matches featuring Sporting,” explained Victor.
“A match official hitting a player is a new first and also a new low for a GFA conducted competition. While strongly condemning this act of referee Tejas Nagvekar we call upon the Goa Football Association to immediately suspend this official for this dastardly act and to conduct an impartial inquiry and mete out exemplary punishment if deemed,” concluded Victor.
