Guardian Angel hold 10-men Sporting Goa

Victorino Fernandes scored for the Flaming Orange in the 90th minute, while Perryson Rebello cancelled it in added time for the Angels.

Sporting Clube de Goa and Guardian Angel Sports Club played out a dramatic 1-1 draw in the Goa Professional League match played at Duler Stadium earlier today.

With this draw, Sporting wasted an easy chance to overlap Dempo SC at the top as both the teams have 15 points from seven encounters, while Angels stands fourth with 11 points from the same number of matches 

Sporting were in fantastic form as they were the only unbeaten team in the league, while they had recently defeated Calangute Association in the previous round. On the other hand, Angels had a mixed form, winning three, losing two and drawing against Salgaocar FC in their previous match.

Angels stated without their foreign striker Abel Hammond as Perryson Rebello replaced the striker, while Aniston Fernandes and Louie Noronha were the new faces in the coach Riston Rodrigues’ starting XI. Whereas, Sporting gaffer Mateus Costa made no changes from the last match as their star striker Victorino Fernandes continued to start from the bench.

After some possession football from both the sides in the first 20 minutes,  it was Sporting who came close to scoring when Marcus Mascarenhas found unmarked Quan Gomes with a fine cross but the winger shot wide from inside the box. Two minutes later, Sporting were reduced to ten men when their keeper Melroy Fernandes made a dangerous tackle on Angels striker Perryson just outside the box. The referee Tejas Nagvenkar quickly showed him the straight red card for his harsh tackle.

From the resulting free-kick, substitute keeper Ozen Silva who replaced Myron Fernandes made a diving save to deny Angels skipper Nicholas Rodrigues’s goalbound free-kick.

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Despite a man down, Sporting were the dominant side in the later part of the session but could not come out with a goal before the halftime whistle.

The dying minutes of the session witnessed, Sporting wasting two more attempts as first Cajetan Fernandes failed to connect from close off George D’Souza’s long-distance free-kick. Later, Nigerian striker Abiola Afuwape made a darting run and brilliantly placed the ball towards the top corner but keeper Ram Sroop came with diving efforts to keep the clean sheet at the halftime.

On crossing over, Sporting skipper Glan Martins sent a cross in the box which was nicely intercepted by keeper Ram but the ball flew to Brandon Gomes in the box but he failed to control his header with an empty goal. Two minutes later, Sporting came with another attack on the rival when Marcus tried his luck from outside the box but his powerful shot was palmed for a corner by Angels keeper.

With their forwards failing to convert chances, Sporting coach Mateus brought in Victorino replacing Nigerian striker Abiola in the 64th minutes, and with just coming in, he could have assist to his name when he made a brilliant cross to Marcus in the box but the striker failed to convert from close.

At the other end, Perryson dangerously moved inside the box but failed to put power in his shot from close as keeper Ozen comfortably collected the same.

Sporting had another chance in the 72nd minutes when Angels defender Benzu Clemente brought down Marcus just outside the box to give away free-kick in the danger area but Keeper Ram once again came with diving efforts to push Cajetan’s powerful shot for a corner.

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When it was looking like the match will end goalless, super-sub Victorino smartly headed in off Cajetan’s well-taken free-kick to put his side ahead in the 90th minutes. However, the drama did not end here, as Angels striker intercepted Glan’s back pass who later cut past keeper Ozen and finished the ball in the net making it 1-1 for the Angels in the added time.