PANAJI
Cuncolim Educational Society’s College of Arts & Commerce (CES), Cuncolim defeated St. Xavier’s College, Mapusa 5“2, while Rosary College of Commerce & Arts, Navelim outclassed Fr. Agnel College of Arts & Commerce, Pilar 5“0 in the semi-finals of the Goa University Inter-Collegiate Football Championship 2025“26 (Men) held at the Athletic Stadium, Bambolim on Monday.
In a fiercely contested encounter, CES Cuncolim emerged victorious thanks to a sensational hat-trick by Saish Gaonkar, who was named the Best Performer of the match.
After a goalless opening stretch, Gaonkar broke the deadlock in the 38th minute with a brilliant solo effort from outside the box. St. Xavier’s responded with two quick goals early in the second half”Delwin Coelho (54') and Brandon Pereira (56')”to momentarily take the lead.
However, CES equalised through Gaonkar again in the 65th minute. The turning point came in the 87th minute when an own goal by Manohar Matkar handed CES the advantage. Gaonkar completed his hat-trick with a composed penalty in the 91st minute before assisting Swavel Furtado for the final goal in stoppage time, sealing a comprehensive 5“2 win.
Rosary College dominated from start to finish in a one-sided contest. Garrison Fernandes starred with a hat-trick (17', 57', 70') and was awarded Best Performer.
Rosary’s offensive dominance paid off early with Fernandes scoring from a stunning long-range effort. The team continued to apply pressure in the second half, with Ashnoy Gomes (50') adding to the tally before Fernandes struck twice more. Joshua Corriera put the icing on the cake with a goal in the 90th minute to complete the rout.
