ISL 2015: FC Goa thrash Delhi Dynamos 3-0 in semi-final second leg, advance to final

December 16, 2015

Margao, Dec 16: A scintillating offensive display enabled a buoyant FC Goa to a 3-1 aggregate victory over Delhi Dynamos in a two-legged semi-final and enter the title round of the Indian Super League (ISL) in Margaon on Tuesday.

ISLSpanish midfielder Joffre Mateu scored in the 11th minute, followed by Brazilian forward Rafael Coelho on 27 minutes that helped Goa lead 2-0 at half-time in the second leg match. Man-of-the-Match Nigerian striker Dudu Omagbemi put the finishing touches to the lop-sided 3-0 scoreline in the 84th minute as the hosts overturned a 0-1 deficit they conceded in the first leg at New Delhi on December 11 to enter the final.

They await the winner of defending champions Atletico de Kolkata and Chennaiyin FC whose second legged match will be played in Kolkata on Wednesday. Chennaiyin lead the tie 3-0.

Goa were the semi-finalists in the inaugural edition of the tournament last year. The final of the competition will be played here on December 20.

Goa were determined to hit the ground running at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in their aim of plucking up an early goal that would have nullified Dynamos' deficit.

They were egged on by their animated coach Zico who entered into an argument with the referee at the very beginning of the game that displayed his eagerness as well as nervousness.

They got what they yearned in the 11th minute. Spanish midfielder Joffre Mateu capped off his superb solo run from the right with a fierce low left-footed shot that crashed into the near post of goalkeeper Toni Doblas.

Dynamos were subjected to intense pressure, which reflected on their coach Roberto carlos' face. He was seen in an enthusiastic discussion with his defensive spearhead John Arne Riise after the goal with both visibly disagreeing with each other.

They were in serious trouble and were disintegrating spectacularly under the consistently impressive combined attacking display of Goa's frontmen.

Dynamos survived going behind on 23 minutes when the sparkling home-grown talent Romeo Fernandes' attempt went inches wide after latching onto a feeble clearance from Doblas.

Goa deservedly took an aggregate lead four minutes later with a similar strike as the first goal amidst sporadic, hopeful attempts by Dynamos.

Coelho dangerously danced his way towards the box from the vulnerable right side and let loose a low grounder, this time towards the far post of Doblas. The ball landed into the net after thundering off the inside of the post as a diving Doblas clutched thin air.

By this time, the hosts were all over Carlos' side and the disapproving Brazilian reacted by replacing the non-functioning Riise with Dutch midfielder Hans Mulder at the half hour mark hoping to provide support to lonely Frenchman Florent Malouda.

Dynamos hoped the change of ends would facilitate a change of fortunes but Goa creditably didn't let their foot off the pedal and continued to expose the bungling right-back Robert Lalthlamuana by creating two golden opportunities.

A conversion of any one of them would have killed off the contest considering the sustained domination of the hosts.

But Doblas rose to the occasion producing smart saves, blocking shots of Fernandes and Brazilian Leo Moura, to keep his team in the hunt though the clock unfailingly ticked away.

The frenetic nature of action evoked some bruising physical display from both sides prompting the referee to show several yellow cards.

As the match entered its finals stretch, hope of Dynamos evaporated rapidly as a marauding Goa looked likelier to score.

They duly obliged when Fernandes laid it for Dudu to finish off another free-flowing coordinated attack from close range, much to the dejection of the Dynamos camp whose English striker Adil Nabi, substituted in the 58th minute, was red-carded for showing dissent at a linesman.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
April 8,2020

London, Apr 8: England wicketkeeper Jos Buttler has raised more than 65,000 pound (USD 80,000) to help fight the coronavirus by auctioning off his World Cup final shirt.

Buttler's shirt, which he wore when completing the last-ball run-out that saw England beat New Zealand at Lord's last year, was sold to raise money for specialist heart and lung centres provided by the Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals in London.

Buttler, who earlier in the showpiece match had hit a fifty and batted in the Super Over, put his long-sleeve keeping jersey up for sale on eBay a week ago.

By the time the auction closed on Tuesday, the shirt had attracted 82 bids with the winner paying 65,100 pound.

Buttler, speaking on Monday, said: "It's a very special shirt but I think it takes on extra meaning with it being able to hopefully go to the emergency cause.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 12,2020

Miami, Mar 12: The NBA has suspended its season "until further notice" after a Utah Jazz player tested positive Wednesday for the coronavirus, a move that came only hours after the majority of the league's owners were leaning toward playing games without fans in arenas.

Now there will be no games at all, at least for the time being. A person with knowledge of the situation said the Jazz player who tested positive was center Rudy Gobert. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither the league nor the team confirmed the test.

"The NBA is suspending game play following the conclusion of tonight's schedule of games until further notice,'' the league said in a statement sent shortly after 9:30 p.m. EDT. "The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic.''

The test result, the NBA said, was reported shortly before the scheduled tip-off time for the Utah at Oklahoma City game on Wednesday night was called off. Players were on the floor for warmups and tip-off was moments away when they were told to return to their locker rooms. About 30 minutes later, fans were told the game was postponed ``due to unforeseen circumstances."

Shutdown for two weeks?

Those circumstances were the league's worst-case scenario for now -- a player testing positive. A second person who spoke to AP on condition of anonymity said the league expects the shutdown to last a minimum of two weeks, but cautioned that time-frame is very fluid.

"It's a very serious time right now," Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "I think the league moved appropriately and prudently and we'll all just have to monitor the situation and see where it goes from here."

The Jazz released a statement saying a player -- they did not identify Gobert -- tested negative earlier Wednesday for flu, strep throat and an upper respiratory infection. That player's symptoms diminished as the day went along, but the decision was made to test for COVID-19 anyway. That test came back with a preliminary positive result.

"The individual is currently in the care of health officials in Oklahoma City," the Jazz said, adding that updates would come as appropriate.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
Agencies
February 12,2020

Mumbai, Feb 12: Former Indian greats Kapil Dev and Mohammad Azharuddin have been left disappointed by the behaviour of the Under-19 team after the World Cup final where they were involved in an altercation with their Bangladeshi counterparts.

After Bangladesh won the final beating India by three wickets (via DLS) at the Senwes Park on Sunday, the players of the two teams were seen engaging in an exchange of words and even some pushing and shoving on the field.

"I would like to see the board (BCCI) take some strict action against the players to set an example. Cricket is not about abusing the opponent. I am sure there is enough reason for these youngsters to be dealt with firmly by BCCI," Kapil was quoted as saying by The Hindu.

"I welcome aggression, nothing wrong in it. But it has to be controlled aggression. You can't cross the line of decency in the name of being competitive. I would say it was unacceptable that youngsters put up such an obnoxious display on the cricket field," he added.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has sanctioned five players, including three from Bangladesh -- Towhid Hridoy, Shamim Hossain and Rakibul Hasan --and two from India --Akash Singh and Ravi Bishnoi for the scuffle.

Azharuddin also reiterated what Kapil said, insisting that players need to be disciplined.

"I would take action against the errant Under 19 players, but I also want to know what role has the support staff played in educating these youngsters. Act now before it is too late. The players have to be disciplined," Azharuddin said.

Earlier, Bishan Singh Bedi has lashed out at the Priyam Garg-led team, saying their behaviour was disgusting and disgraceful.

"You bat, bowl and field badly�happens, but there's no excuse for behaving badly. The behaviour was disgusting and most disgraceful. The innocence of that age was not visible at all," Bedi told Mid Day.

Bedi, who represented India in 67 Tests and 10 ODIs, said the behaviour of the Bangladesh cricketers is not our problem.

"Look, what Bangladesh do is their problem, what our boys do is our problem. You could see that there was abusive language used," he said.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.