Long wait is over
By Rufus Vedanayagam
Bombay Scottish win first-ever MSSA U-10 boys’ Division I title after beating St Stanislaus in tie-break.
For many years now, Bombay Scottish have been the proverbial bridesmaid but never the bride, coming tantalisingly close to winning tourneys but somehow never getting their hands on the trophies. Yesterday was special in many ways. Bombay Scottish ‘A’ (Mahim) clinched their maiden U-10 boys’ Division I title with 4-3 win (in the tie-break) over St Stanislaus High School (Bandra) in the Mumbai Schools Sports Association interschool football tournament at Azad Maidan.
It was St Stanislaus who were in the lead, courtesy Atharva Bhandare’s brilliant strike in the 14th minute — he beat a diving goalkeeper Kush Gathani to his right. Was it going to be a familiar story for Bombay Scottish? Instead of despairing, the Mahim school drew level two minutes later as Arhaan Bhat cashed in on a wonderful pass from Adam Araujo from the left flank. St Stanislaus continued to attack in the second half with their usual 4-2-2 combination, but Bombay Scottish, buoyed by the equaliser, were no less resilient, not for once allowing defence lapses.
St Stanislaus started poorly in the tie-breaker, with Clint Fernandes hitting wide of the post. Kahann Menda, Aadiv Das, Adam and Arhaan were all on target for Bombay Scottish. Calvin D’Souza, Vivaan Sanghvi and Keon Barnes hit the mark for St Stanislaus.
It all came down to the point when Bombay Scottish was one save away from the title with one shot in hand.
St Stanislaus’s Branch Mathew, obviously feeling the pressure, hit the post only to see the entire Bombay Scottish squad wrap their goalkeeper Gathani in a warm embrace.
“I have no words,” said a beaming Bombay Scottish coach Padam Dansingh. “We wanted a title anyhow and I’m happy these boys have got it. Dhwanit’s presence was an added motivation for the boys to strive harder.”
Bombay Scottish captain Kahaan Menda said, “We were surprised with his (Dhwanit’s) appearance. His chat with us before the game and during the half-time break helped us enormously.”
Bombay Scottish win first-ever MSSA U-10 boys’ Division I title after beating St Stanislaus in tie-break.
For many years now, Bombay Scottish have been the proverbial bridesmaid but never the bride, coming tantalisingly close to winning tourneys but somehow never getting their hands on the trophies. Yesterday was special in many ways. Bombay Scottish ‘A’ (Mahim) clinched their maiden U-10 boys’ Division I title with 4-3 win (in the tie-break) over St Stanislaus High School (Bandra) in the Mumbai Schools Sports Association interschool football tournament at Azad Maidan.
The jubilant boys dedicated the win to teammate Dhwanit Gogri who missed the entire tournament owing to a shin injury in a practice match.
It was St Stanislaus who were in the lead, courtesy Atharva Bhandare’s brilliant strike in the 14th minute — he beat a diving goalkeeper Kush Gathani to his right. Was it going to be a familiar story for Bombay Scottish? Instead of despairing, the Mahim school drew level two minutes later as Arhaan Bhat cashed in on a wonderful pass from Adam Araujo from the left flank. St Stanislaus continued to attack in the second half with their usual 4-2-2 combination, but Bombay Scottish, buoyed by the equaliser, were no less resilient, not for once allowing defence lapses.
St Stanislaus started poorly in the tie-breaker, with Clint Fernandes hitting wide of the post. Kahann Menda, Aadiv Das, Adam and Arhaan were all on target for Bombay Scottish. Calvin D’Souza, Vivaan Sanghvi and Keon Barnes hit the mark for St Stanislaus.
It all came down to the point when Bombay Scottish was one save away from the title with one shot in hand.
St Stanislaus’s Branch Mathew, obviously feeling the pressure, hit the post only to see the entire Bombay Scottish squad wrap their goalkeeper Gathani in a warm embrace.
“I have no words,” said a beaming Bombay Scottish coach Padam Dansingh. “We wanted a title anyhow and I’m happy these boys have got it. Dhwanit’s presence was an added motivation for the boys to strive harder.”
Bombay Scottish captain Kahaan Menda said, “We were surprised with his (Dhwanit’s) appearance. His chat with us before the game and during the half-time break helped us enormously.”
