PANAJI: Young Strikers, Benaulim blanked Sirlim Sports Club 3-0 on Saturday to win the Coca-Cola Celebration Cup.

The under-16 inter-village tournament was organised by Goa Football Association and sponsored by Coca Cola India to promote football and identify promising talent at the grassroots level. The 7-a-side tournament involving 48 village teams, which started on April 21, staged matches at four grounds — St Cruz, Candolim, Navelim and Raia.
Young Strikers, who were  captained by Bran-don Fernandes, were awarded a cash prize of Rs 50,000 while the runners-up Sirlim, captained by Turna Fernandes, fetched Rs 25,000. The winning team was felicitated by PWD Minister Mr Churchill Alemao, GFA secretary Savio Messias, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd (HCCBPL) CEO Mr T Krishna Kumar and other HCCBPL officials. Also present at the event was India football captain Baichung Bhutia, along with the under-16 Indian football team players.
Congratulating the winning team, Mr Savio Messias said, “Coca Cola Celebration Cup is an initiative that aims to scout best football talent from the grassroots level in the state of Goa. I would like to thank Coca Cola India for their support in making this initiative a big success and helping us identify young promising football talent. I would also like to congratulate the Young Strikers from Benaulim for winning the finals”.
Excited at winning the finals, Brandon Fernandes, captain of the winning team said, “It is a proud moment for us to have won the finals of Coca Cola Celebration Cup. It is our perseverance and team work that has helped us win the finals. On behalf of the entire team, I would like to thank our coach Cajetan Fernandes for guiding us to this win. A big thank you to GFA and Coca-Cola India for organising such a wonderful tournament. It truly gives young footballers like us a platform to showcase our talent.”