Matunga Mauraders

Don Bosco overcame pressure, exhaustion and injuries and defended their MSSA inter-school title. The Matunga school emerged champions for the third consecutive year in the under-16 category. At Azad Maidan here on Wednesday, they beat St Francis D’Assisi, who finished second, by scoring a last minute goal and won 1-0.

It was a do-or-die match for both teams. Bosco could have won the title with ease had they beat Campion in their previous game. But a draw in that match put them under immense pressure making it a must win situation in their final match against D’Assisi. It was a repetition of the previous year, just the opponents were different.

Just when it looked that the match would end in a draw, Bosco’s forward Merick Fernandes scored a stunner by tactically kicking the ball to the left of the keeper. “At the start of the tournament, we didn’t play up to the mark. But our game improved in the super league as we played a more physical and skillful game,” Merick added.

Bosco coach Leslie Machado was ecstatic. “Our boys have always played under a lot of pressure. They have been playing matches non-stop for the past few days without rest but they didn’t let the fatigue get the better of them. I am very proud of their achievements,” he said.

On the other hand, D’Assisi’s coach Thomas Barretto was taken aback by the progress shown by his team. “I never expected that my team would reach to the top level after the bad start we had,” he concluded.

On the Podium
Winners: Don Bosco ‘A’ (Matunga); Runners-up: St Francis D’Assisi (Borivli); Third place:  Bombay Scottish (Mahim)
Awards
Best striker: Sunny Thakur (St Francis D’Assisi); Best midfielder: Siddarth Nayak (St Francis D’Assisi); Best defender: Byrian Corriea (Don Bosco); Best goalkeeper: Mahir Singh (Don Bosco)