Sub-Junior Nationals: Goa trash Tamil Nadu 5-1!

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Goa hammered Tamil Nadu 5-1 in their third match of the Sub-Junior National Football Championship (Final Round) played at the Dr. Ambedkar Stadium, New Delhi.

Goa were in a good rhythm right from the opening whistle. In the 8^th minute of play, Aman Bhore made a nice through pass that beat two defenders to Kenneth Da Costa who missed an easy goal scoring opportunity with only the goalkeeper to beat. Goa got a free-kick in the 18^th minute of play. Anthony Fernandes stepped up to take the free-kick and his nice curling shot found an open Stewart Demello whose powerful header hit the upright. For a large portion of the 1^st half, the game was confined to the midfield and Goa was finding it difficult to break the deadlock.

The deadlock was finally broken in the 42^nd minute, when Goa was awarded a penalty for bringing down Anthony Fernandes in the danger zone. Captain Harsh Patre took the penalty and made no mistake in converting and giving Goa a 1-0 lead. The first goal settled some nerves and motivated the entire Goa squad which resulted in two quick fire goals in the next 5 minutes of play. In the 44^th minute Stewart Demello gave a beautiful cross to Kenneth Da Costa who unleashed a powerful shot from just outside the box that sailed into the net. In the 46^th minute, Aman Bhore made it 3-0 in favour of Goa with a deft placement of the ball off a Frazer Viegas rebound shot. Goa went into the half-time break leading 3-0.

The second half saw a different Tamil Nadu side determined to pull a goal back but Goa always looked dangerous on counter attacks. Goa could have increased the margin in the 53^rd minute when Movin Gauncar shot wide from just a few yards in front of goal off a Harsh Patre corner kick. In the 61^st minute, Tamil Nadu scored a goal to make it an interesting contest with a nice shot from outside the box that gave Goa goalkeeper Merrytone Fernandes no chance to save. Any chance of a Tamil Nadu comeback was settled when Kenneth Da Costa scored the fourth goal for Goa in the 71^st minute with a curling shot that found the far corner of the net. The assist was made by Aman Bhore with a fine through ball pass. Stewart Demello made it 5-1 for Goa with a nice goal in the 79^th minute of play with a long air borne pass from Movin Gauncar.

The final score was 5-1 in favour of Goa and Goa has collected 7 points from their 3 matches. Goa next play hosts Delhi on April 18.

In the days other match, Odisha defeated hosts Delhi 2-0.