the goan I network
PANAJI
Sporting Clube de Goa did their favourites reputation no harm as they demolished Vasco Sports Club 5-1 in their opening Group D clash of the 1st AWES Cup 2017 at Duler stadium, Mapusa, on Monday.
Sporting Clube led 1-0 at half time with a goal from captain Victorino Fernandes. Sporting Clube had their star striker to thank for the big victory as Victorino scored a hat-trick, while other goals were scored by Marcus Mascarenhas and George D'Souza.
Vasco SC briefly tied the match when Beneston Barreto scored a gem of a goal from a superb build-up in the 53rd minute. The goal kept the match alive and Vasco supporters in the stands went into raptures. But Vasco could not eventually match their superior rivals and caved in to sustained pressure from Sporting Clube.
Even though Vasco tried to match their rivals, it was clear that Sporting Clube were the better of the lot as their fluent passing was a treat for the eye. Victorino started the damage in the 27th minute as he tapped the ball into the goal after Ganesh Thakur had done well to cross the ball inside the danger zone. Vasco could have immediately restored parity but a cross from the right flank by Anil Gaonkar hit the top of the crossbar and sailed agonisingly wide.
In the second session, Sporting Clube continued to dominate with George D'Souza's freekick being kept away by goalkeeper Suresh Lamani. Vasco got a whiff of goal almost immediately as substitute Steven Colaco sent a defence-splitting pass to Franky Oliveira whose strike from a one-on-one situation was brilliantly blocked by Sporting goalkeeper Ozen Silva.
Vasco, though, had better luck in the 53rd minute as Beneston Barreto equalised with a peach of a goal. It was Franky Oliveira who did all the hard work as he cut past a Sporting defender and then relayed the ball for Beneston who finished brilliantly from close range.
Despite conceding the equaliser, Sporting Clube kept their shape and were rewarded for their dominance. In the 70th minute, Victorino collected a defence-splitting pass from Avhristo Fernandes, darted inside the penalty box and finished with a firm grounder. Vitorino completed his hat-trick with a superb solo effort in the 80th minute and Marcus Mascarenhas made it 4-1 with eight minutes left on the clock. Just when it seemed it would end that way, George D'Souza capped a fine evening for the Flaming Oranje with a blazing freekick to give his team a 5-1 victory.
