Wanted  Goan  strikers... 
-by ARMSTRONG VAZ

Goals are the ultimate test of superiority in
football. Ultimately the goals count. How you play on
a day or how you dominate the entire ninety minutes
duration of the match are inconsequential in
comparison to the final result. So the focus is on the
strikers to deliver the goods, goods in the form of
goals.  The strikers will be in focus as the Goa
Professional Football League kicks from 18th 
September 2005 at two venues - Duler Grounds Mapusa
and Tilak Maidan Vasco. 

The strikers take the blame for missing one or many
chance and get the attention when they create chances
out of thin air. Breaking through the heart of the
defense of rival teams is an art and technique which
is improved to perfection through sheer practice.

 A striker is one who has to get a hang of when to
release the ball and when to hold on. The class of a
player is writ large on his football frame in his
releasing the ball at an appropriate time. Selling a
dummy, the quick body feints the turning and twisting
to beat the defenders is all part of the strikers
armory. 

The Andrews, Bernard, Barettos, Coutinhos, Crastos,
Cataos and Domnics have all been part of household
names as one reel of Goan strikers who set the fire
going on the goal on the football scene. 

Goan football, by and large, Indian football has been
struggling to get a hold of quality strikers in the
last five years. The net result - Goan clubs have been
looking up to foreign players and resources from
outside the state to fortify the loose ends in the
strike force.

After the exit of Bruno Coutinho, none of the Goan
strikers have been able to make a impact on the
national scene. East Bengal medio Alvito D’Cunha, who
started as a striker, has since shifted to midfield
and none of the Goans have been able to rise to
command the respect and instill a fear in the
opposition defense and goalkeepers.

Gone are the days when a Bruno Coutinho, Roy Baretto,
Gasper Crasto, Sarto Baptista, Ignatius Dias, Bento
Andrew, Catao Fernandes, Domnic D’Souza, Andrew
D’Souza, Bernard D’Souza ruled the roost in Goan
Football. Now the Singhs and other players are the
ones found dangerous when it comes to enjoying
positions up front in the strike force. 

In the current season Dempo Sports Club have in their
ranks a promising striker Joaquim Abranches.
Abranches, who started as an under-20 player with
Churchill Bros last season has the built and gifted
qualities of a class striker. The lanky striker who
has turned twenty this season is one player Dempo
coach Armando Colaco has taken utmost care to groom
for the future challenges. 

Abranches has showed enough glimpses of his attacking
qualities this season and his brace against Sporting
Clube de Goa is a grim reminder to the opposition and
his fans that he has come of age. 

Sebestian Endro is another dangerous customer in the
Dempo camp. He will be one of the strikers to watch
out for in the Goa professional league. Endowed with
speed, Endro will take full benefit of any slack in
speed on the part of rival defenders. 

Dempo strike work-load will also be shared between
Isfaq Ahmed. The Kashmiri born lad, who, along with
ex-Mohan Bagan Meher Ur Din started the practice of
Kashmiris moving out of the state and playing in other
parts of India. They will look forward in scoring more
goals against their names.

In the Salgaocar camp, Jyothi Kumar looks the live
wire upfront along with Samson Singh. Talented
under-20 player Bevan D’Mello will get his chance
in-between to prove his worth, and so will Agnelo
Baretto. Aseem will shoulder the additional
responsibility of delivering goals for Salgaocar coach
Shabbir Ali.

In the Fransa camp, seasoned campaigner Alex Ambrose
will carry the workload. Alex, a Tata Football Academy
product, after showing the initial promise has seen
himself faded into (almost) oblivion with his
inconsistent performance. 

At Sporting Club de Goa, Mohd Nizam, the recruit from
Delhi will try to have a go at the competition but it
remains to be seen how he copes up to the pressure.
Agnelo Gomes will hopefully deliver the knock-out
punch to the opposition with his speedy runs. Another
young striker who will go under the scanner will be
Sesa Goa Football Academy product Lector Caido.

At Vasco Sports Club Anthony Perieira was the cynosure
of all eyes in last year’s Goa Professional League but
could not come up with the same level of consistent
goal scoring in the National Football League. The
Navelim based striker  would have to repeat the same
feat under a new coach and under an entire bunch of
young players to maintain his rating as one of the
emerging strikers in the state.

In the Churchill camp, Freddy Mascarenhas showed
enough recovery after a major road accident which even
forced his way into the selection camp of the National
football team. The former Salgoacar striker could
maintain the same level of consistency after coming
into the latter stages of the league after missing
earlier matches through injury. With the focus
shifting on him to deliver, and with no foreign
players to accompany in the striking department,
Freddy will have his vision set on scoring more and
more goals or strike the bull’s eye.

At Raia Sporting, twenty year old Wesley Coutinho
playing in the Professional league will be having a
feel of the high standards and he would have to carry
on his inter-village form and his consistent goal
scoring feats of Salcete Football Club. The six foot
striker would have to improve on his sublime skills
and not entirely rely on his getting goals through
headers.  Rehman Cardozo will be another striker who
will try to bulldoze his way through rival defense
playing for Raia sporting club.

At MPT, striker Marcus Carvalho, who started as a
teenager for Churchill Bros, promised much, but could
not fulfill his early promise. He is still around to
lend MPT strike force the much needed depth. Another
old horse, Vishant Pednekar - short stature and
talented like Marcus – who could not get a bigger
opportunity to play except for a short stint with
Salgaocars, is still around to score.

Great players are the ones who make the most of the
opportunities that come their way. Among the young lot
Beevan D’Mello, Wesley Countinho, Joaquim Abranches
and Anthony Perieira hold a lot of promise as the
league unfolds. Will they be the ones Goa has been
looking for?..
- Gomantak Times

Secret of my shot:
http://gaspercrasto.tripod.com/id81.html

Links to articles on Goa football and footballers: 
www.goa-world.com/goa/sports/saviomedeira.htm
taylorandfrancis.metapress.com/
index/L8AK8LPDYCRMDLHH.pdf
www.sports-india.com/viewtopic.php?t=877&
view=next&sid=945bf6f885367dfac8fc5e2f82db70c4 
gaspercrasto.tripod.com/id95.html 
www.goanobserver.com/archive/10-7-2004/SPORTS-TRACK.htm
oheraldo.in/node/
1410?PHPSESSID=4aabe31b340e7c7532f4ae60b29f6dbb
www.telegraphindia.com/1010727/editoria.htm
www.soccernetindia.com/modules.
php?name=News&file=print&sid=825
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gulf-goans/message/21 
www.indiafootball.com 
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050525/asp/sports/story_4784434.asp

http://www.indianfootball.de/article/article028.html


List of Goa League Champions: 
1951-52   Clube Desportivo Chinchinim
1952-53   Sporting Clube de Goa
1953-54   Clube de Desportos de Vasco da Gama
1954-55   Associacao Desportiva de Velha Goa
1955-56   Clube de Desportos de Vasco da Gama
1956-57   Associacao Desportiva de Velha Goa
1957-58   Grupo Desportivo da Policia
1958-59   Clube de Desportos de Vasco da Gama
1959-60   Clube Independente de Margao
1960-61   Clube Desportivo Salgaocar
1962-63   Salgaocar Sports Club
1963-64   Salgaocar Sports Club
1964-65   Vasco Sports Club
1965-66   Salgaocar Sports Club
1966-67   Vasco Sports Club
1967-68   Sesa Goa Sports Club
1968-69   Vasco Sports Club
1969-70   League Unfinished
1970-71   League Unfinished
1971-72   Dempo Sports Club
1972-73   Sesa Goa Sports Club
1973-74   Dempo Sports Club
1974-75   Salgaocar Sports Club
1975-76     not held due to national emergency
1976-77     not held due to national emergency
1977-78   Salgaocar Sports Club
1978-79   Dempo Sports Club
1979-80   Dempo Sports Club
1980-81   Dempo Sports Club
1981-82   Salgaocar Sports Club
1982-83   Salgaocar Sports Club
1983-84   Dempo Sports Club
1984-85   Salgaocar Sports Club
1985-86   Salgaocar Sports Club
1986-87   Dempo Sports Club
1987-88   Dempo Sports Club
1988-89   Salgaocar Sports Club
1989-90   MRF Sports Foundation
1990-91   Salgaocar Sports Club
1991-92   MRF Sports Foundation
1992-93   Salgaocar Sports Club
1993-94   Dempo Sports Club
1994-95   Salgaocar Sports Club
1995-96   Churchill Brothers SC
1996-97   Churchill Brothers SC
1997-98   Churchill Brothers SC
Goa Professional League
1998      Salgaocar Sports Club
1999      Churchill Brothers SC
2000      Churchill Brothers SC
2001      Churchill Brothers SC
2002      Salgaocar Sports Club
2003      Salgaocar Sports Club
2004      Salgaocar Sports Club
(The above list prepared and maintained by Arunava
Chaudhuri for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics
Foundation )

- Forwarded by www.goa-world.com 
__________________                                    
 
Comedian Philip's Konkani Musical Show "Tum Vhoir Aum
Sokol" this weekend (Thursday 22nd Sept. 2005) in
DUBAI at Al-Nasr Leisureland at 8:30 p.m. 
Remember it's a P.V. Production's 2nd Musical Show !  
Promoted by www.goa-world.com !



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