PANAJI
Geno FC sailed past Churchill Brothers FC 4-0 in the Goa Professional League at Duler Stadium Mapusa on Friday.
Geno drew first blood in the first half through Niraj Parekh, who curled a free-kick into the top-right corner. The second half saw the Red Machines reduced to ten men after Jolly Singh was sent off for bringing down a Geno striker. Geno capitalized on the advantage, with Franky Oliveira unleashing a powerful strike to double their lead.
Substitute Suraj Gurung added a third with a header from a Saideep Pomburphekar corner, and Sheldon Pereira sealed the victory by slotting home a late goal to complete the rout.
In the first half, Churchill Brothers pressed hard for an opener, with their best chance coming in the 23rd minute. Jobern Cardozo slipped a pass to Sagar Panwar, who fired a shot on target, but the Geno FC goalkeeper was quick to deny him.
Moments later, Geno FC found themselves in a promising position on the edge of the box after Prajat Naik was brought down by the Churchill Brothers goalkeeper just outside the area.
Geno’s Niraj Parekh stepped up for the free-kick and curled a sublime effort into the top right corner, leaving the Churchill keeper completely stunned.
Minutes later, Geno's Franky took a chance with a strike from outside the box, but the Churchill Brothers goalkeeper was up to the task, parrying the effort away to deny Geno a second goal before the break.
In the second half, Churchill Brothers' Jolly Singh was sent off after bringing down a Geno FC striker at the edge of the box. Geno wasted no time in capitalizing on their numerical advantage.
Irakanth Singh skillfully weaved through the Churchill defense before laying off a square pass to Franky Oliveira at the edge of the box. Franky controlled the ball and unleashed a powerful strike that the goalkeeper initially saved, but the sheer force of the shot saw it eventually find the back of the net.
Minutes later, Geno's Saideep Pomburphekar delivered a curling corner to the near post, where Suraj Gurung rose high to powerfully head it home, extending the lead to 3-0.
Geno continued the onslaught as substitute Sheldon made his mark in the 80th minute. Krishna Gawas whipped in a low cross from the left flank, finding Sheldon, who took a sharp first touch, dribbled past the goalkeeper, and calmly slotted it home to seal them a 4-0 win.
