By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: Royal Wahingdoh FC’s hopes of qualifying into the prestigious I-League came to an end after the 1-2 loss to Goa Vasco SC in a crucial final round match of the Second Division I-League in Gangtok on Tuesday.
The result also comes as a major disappointment to the thousand of football fans from the State who hoped to see the Royals in the I-League.
Two goals in either half of the match took the Goan side to victory. For Wahingdoh, striker Perry S Kolie netted the solitary goal in the 90th minute.
With just one tie left, Wahingdoh are at 16 points from 11 matches, behind ONGC (20 points from nine matches) and Mohammedan SC (19 points from 10 matches). Even if Mohammedan SC lose the remaining matches, they could still go throuh on better goal difference.
“It is really disappointing for the team to end its campaign this way,” RWFC general manager Anoop Abraham told The Shillong Times.
“We are all upset for not being able to live up to the expectations of the thousands of fans who have been praying for the team to qualify,” he added.
However, despite the disappointment, the team is looking forward to qualify for the Federation Cup.
“Being a young side, we still have a lot to offer and there is room for continuous improvement,” Abraham said.
Earlier, Wahingdoh started the match in an electrifying manner creating at least two golden opportunities to score in the initial stages of the first half. However, great goalkeeping on part of the Vasco custodian denied RWFC the lead.
RWFC had to pay for the missed opportunities which allowed the Goan side to come back strongly and
Andrew Jgado scored a stunner in the 25th minute to make it 1-0 up for Vasco.
Buoyed by the goal, the opposition maintained the pressure on Royal’s defense. Vasco created several openings towards the later part of the first half but failed to capitalize.
Crossing over, the Goans continued their attacking game keeping the RWFC defenders busy and it was only after the 60th minute that Wahingdoh midfielders started to control the ball better.
However, at a time when the side from Shillong was looking good to make a comeback, Vasco was awarded a free kick just outside the box.
Star midfielder Jose Colaco took a well crafted kick as the ball sailed into the nets after hitting the cross bar to guide Vasco to a 2-0 lead.
Wahingdoh managed to pull one back in the 90th minute through a Perry Kolie goal but it was too late to avoid the inevitable.
RWFC would play its last match of the tournament against Kalighat MS on April 13.