PANAJI
Dempo SC and SCC Cavelossim played out a 0-0 draw in the GFA U-20 TACA League at Cavelossim ground on
Thursday.
The initial exchanges witnessed both teams play possession football. Dempo's Boris De Mello created the first chance, but his shot from the penalty area, missed
the target. At the other end, Cavelossim came up with two chances - first through Kevin Almeida, who failed to connect to Ralph Fernandes' pass and then, Ralph shot wide off Allwyn's corner-kick in the 15th minute. The first shot on target, came from Perryson Fernandes of Cavelossim in the 26th minute, but the Dempo goalkeeper saved it.
The Dempo side had a golden opportunity as Boris De Mello lobbed the ball over to Aaron Alvares, but the off-side foul negated the opportunity. Aaron then found his low shot go right into the goalkeeper's arms as both teams headed into half-time goalless.
Post resumption, the first chance was created by Rayan Pinto of Dempo, whose shot off a free-kick from the edge of the box, was well collected by the home side goalkeeper. On the other side, Kevin passed the ball to Cayven Araujo, but his attempt was thwarted by Larryl Mascarenhas at the back for Dempo.
Dempo skipper Desmon Pereira played well in the central area but he failed to find support from Aaron and Baggio Fernandes. For the home team, Allwyn Vaz played an instrumental role in midfield but he lacked finishing. In the 73rd minute, Rayan of Dempo crossed to Aaron but he failed to connect with the header.
The best chance for Cavelossim to score came in the 86th minute as Allwyn's curling shot from the edge of the box was cleared away for a corner by Dempo's custodian. The Dempo goalkeeper was tested on numerous attempts as Allwyn and Xavier came up with impressive shots but it was an alert goalkeeper that saved the day for Dempo.
The game witnessed some ugly scenes in the dying minutes as Dempo were denied a penalty when the ball hit the hand of a Cavelossim defender. In the additional time, Aaron Alvares was in an one-on-one situation with just the goalkeeper to beat but he failed to control the ball and the game ended with both teams sharing the points.
