CHARLES D’SOUZA
MARGAO
Goa head coach Armando Colaco is confident of putting up a good show at the 72nd edition of the National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy which kicks off in Kolkata on March 19.
“We are prepared. We had a good preparatory camp and we are looking for a good start,” Colaco said after a practice session at Rosary ground, Navelim on Thursday.
Goa, who are clubbed with Mizoram, Odisha, Punjab and Karnataka in Group B, play their first match against Mizoram on March 20. The team will leave for Kolkata on Saturday.
“The team has a good mixture of youth and experience. Everybody is ready to give their best. But we need to execute our plans. We respect all our opponents and our focus will play to our strength,” Colaco added. “Our efforts are solely aimed at regaining the Santosh Trophy, which is eluding us for quite some time now. We are working hard and the players are determined to give their best so that Goa reclaims the much deserved glory in Indian football.
“These players need to be more disciplined than the past teams. We also concentrated on our tactical and technical abilities in the preparatory camp. Most of the boys come from professional clubs and there are no fitness problems,” Colaco said.
Colaco believes the short preparatory camp has given the squad enough time to gel with one another. “The team is combining well. We played two freindlies against Sporting Clube de Goa and FC Bardez, wherein we lost 2-1 in the first match and beat FC Bardez 5-1,” the former India and Dempo SC coach informed.
Even as the Santosh Trophy continues to lose its popularity in Indian football with the advent of Indian Super League, Colaco feels the tournament played among the States gives players a sense of pride to play for their native State. “Personally, I think winning the Santosh Trophy gives a great sense of pride as the players play for their State,” Colaco opined.
Meanwhile, Goa Football Association offered a thanksgiving mass at Rosary Church, Navelim on Thursday morning before the team’s
departure.
