MARGAO: Navelim Villagers Union secured a place in the semifinals of the 27th All Goa Our Lady of Merces Inter-Village Football Tournament with a convincing 2-0 win over FC Siolim.
The opening half ended in a stalemate, with both sides creating scoring opportunities but failing to convert as the defences held firm.
Navelim returned with greater purpose after the interval and broke the deadlock in the 45th minute through Travis D'Souza. The lead was doubled just two minutes later when Richard Costa finished off a well-worked move after being set up by Sam Pereira.
FC Siolim responded with a series of attacking moves in search of a comeback, but Navelim goalkeeper Jeet Gupta produced a string of impressive saves to keep out powerful strikes from Vishant Dhargalkar and Akash Mandrekar.
Navelim had opportunities to increase their lead, with Richard Costa heading wide from a promising position and Sam Pereira missing a gilt-edged chance.
