Sporting blank Minerva, close in on durand semis

Sporting Clube de Goa trounced Minerva FC, Chandigarh 5-0 in the 128th Durand Cup football tournament at Ambedkar Stadium here on Tuesday.

With the win in Pool A, Sporting Clube de Goa finished with seven points from five matches and a healthy seven-goal difference from the rest.

Sporting can progress to the semi-finals as the second team from Pool A if Gangtok Himalayan and Army Green draw their last match on Wednesday. If either win, they will move ahead of SCG on points. Minerva FC were eliminated as they finished with four points in five matches.

The Goan club forged ahead in the 20th minute when midfielder Glan Martins latched onto a loose ball and volleyed in from outside the 18-yard box. Five minutes later, defender Cajetan Fernandez converted as led 2-0 at half time. In the 73rd minute, George D’Souza converted another free kick from a long range before winger Alber Gonsalves added one more.