Pax of Nagoa Sports Club eased past Vasco Sports Club 2-0

Goa Khabar : Pax of Nagoa Sports Club eased past Vasco Sports Club 2-0 in the Goa Professional League at the Nagoa Panchayat Ground on Friday.

The hosts took control from the start pushing forward in search of an opener. Beneston Barretto was a constant threat to the Vasco defence using his pace and sharp movement to keep the visitors on the back foot. Midway through the first half Mohamed Musharaf delivered a teasing long ball from a free kick that found Beneston at the edge of the box. The forward controlled well and fired a powerful shot but a Vasco defender managed to block his effort. Vasco struggled to settle into rhythm and failed to create clear chances as both sides went into halftime goalless.

After the restart Nagoa coach Mateus Costa made an inspired substitution introducing Velroy Fernandes to add stability and creativity in midfield. The change paid off almost immediately when Velroy sent in a perfect cross from the left that found Rorelliana timing his header to perfection at the near post to put Nagoa in front. The home side sealed the win deep into stoppage time. Minesh Kunkolkar launched a long throw down the left flank for Beneston who brought it under control drove into the box and curled a brilliant finish into the far-right corner to wrap up all three points for Nagoa.

In another fixture Churchill Brothers and Sesa Football Academy played out a 1-1 draw at the Sesa Academy Ground in Sirsaim.

Sesa drew first blood in the 11th minute through Likson Rebello after a well-worked move that began with a goal kick from Mahadev Gawade. His long clearance found Rohith who flicked a clever header behind the Churchill defence. Rebello reacted fastest darting between the centre-backs and calmly slotting past the advancing keeper to give Sesa the lead.

Churchill responded strongly after the early setback and continued to press for an equalizer. Their persistence paid off just before halftime when Dinesh Aribam’s curling corner caused chaos inside the Sesa box. Richard Costa’s flick failed to clear the danger and the loose ball fell to Clive Miranda at the far post who powered his header into the net to bring his team level. The second half was evenly contested with both sides pushing for a winner. Sesa showed more urgency going forward but Clive Miranda stood out in defence for Churchill making crucial clearances and intercepting crosses. Despite late efforts neither team managed to break the deadlock and the game ended 1-1.

At Duler Stadium Cortalim Villagers and Geno FC shared the points in a 2-2 draw.

Cortalim took the lead early on through Delmon Rebello who finished clinically to open the scoring. Geno fought back and equalized in the 40th minute when Zaid Khan latched onto a loose ball inside the box and drilled it home. Riding that momentum Geno took the lead just before halftime through Sankalp Kankonkar who smashed in a powerful strike to make it 2-1.

The second half saw more drama when Geno’s Liston Cardozo received a second yellow card for a foul on Clifton Rebello leaving his team with ten men. Cortalim made full use of the advantage and Shario Gomes found the equalizer soon after. Both teams pushed for a winner in the closing stages but neither could find the breakthrough and the game ended 2-2 at full time.