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The FCBEscola Andheri Venue in Andheri East had been wrapped under the gloomy weather of the rains until last weekend due to the relentless rains which had caused the Conscient World Cup finale to be delayed by two weeks. However, last weekend the rain gods finally relented and the gloom and doom that had enveloped the tournament were washed away by the cries and shouts of the winning teams as the tournament concluded under a jubilant atmosphere.
Day 1 (June 30)
The first day of the Finale saw the final matches of Under-8, U-10 and U-12 teams.
The U-8 Finals were an exhilarating affair as Boca Juniors and FCBEscola Blau had an intense clash of wills with constant back and forth action on both the goals. FCBEscola Blau took a lead in the first half and looked to be heading for a win until a late goal from Boca Juniors turned the tide of the game. The game looked to be heading towards penalties as Boca proved resilient and showed no signs of relinquishing the lead. However, FCBEscola Blau scored a very late goal to secure the title and become the champions of Mumbai in the U-8 Category.
FCBEscola Blau team continued their winning formula in the U-10 category and won the Conscient World Cup 2018. However, they were in for a shock in the U-12 Category, FCBEscola Blau took an early 3-0 lead in the first half and looked to be cruising in the game. However, CFCI U-12 showed heart and passion to mount an improbable comeback to win the game 4-3 in the final minutes of the game.
The U-14 Girls finals was a nervewracking experience as Bravehearts Girls won the game after the match ended in a stalemate in regular time. The game looked to be dead and over as Bravehearts had the lead for the most part of the game until CFCI equalized late in the second half. The penalties were decided quickly as CFCI missed two consecutive shots.
Day 2 (July 1)
The Second day of the Finale July 1 started with the U-14 Boys semifinal where FCBEscola Blau and Samuel Football Academy played out a draw in the regular time and had to settle the game in penalties where the game was won by FCBEscola Blau. The other semifinal was settled in regular time as CJ Academy won the game convincingly against CFCI 4-0.
The Final of the U-14 took place on the same day and started on an extremely positive note for FCBEscola Blau who took an early lead through a beautifully made goal. However, the game stayed equal throughout the match until CJ Academy scored an equalizer in the second half. The game continued to be an end to end affair, however, both the teams could not make any more dents after that. The penalty shootouts were another test of nerves as the penalties went into sudden death until an extremely well made save from the Golden Glove winner CJ Academy goalkeeper Tejas broke the deadlock finally.
The U-19 Girls Final also took place on the next pitch and the coaches of KNFC and GIFA played out an extremely tactical game with both teams putting an extreme effort sticking to their tactical assignments. The game and the title was however won by GIFA U-19 girls team who scored a goal in the second half through a well-executed set piece. The U16 final between Iron Born and FC Mumbaikar’s team contained end to end action, however, it did not yield any results and the match went into penalties. Ironborn won the game after FCM missed two of their penalties in the shootout. The U19 Final was a much simpler affair as CFCI U-19 team beat the Valiente FC U-19 team by a considerable margin.
The tournament ended on a very positive note with the top class competition played against each other in a very amicable and friendly atmosphere. Conscient World Cup has created a start which must be emulated by others to establish a buzzing and lively Grassroots circuit in India.
