Maldives were crowned the new South Asian soccer champions after they edged out much fancied India by one goal to nil in Saturday’s flood-lit final at Sugathadasa Stadium. In contrast, it was a sad story for the host Sri Lanka who were eliminated in the semi-finals.
Sri Lanka and India headed the respective groups at the end of qualifying rounds and all bets were on the two regional heavyweights for a meeting in the much looked forward to final. But at the end, neither team could kiss that glittering trophy as minnows Maldives put up a Lilliputian performance to make the impossible possible.
It was so close but yet to far for Sri Lankans who have been dreaming of winning the South Asian soccer title after 13 long years. Sri Lanka’s one and the only success was way back in 1995 when they edged out India by a solitary goal in the final of the South Asian tournament, which was then known SAARC Gold Cup.
Many home fans, who were present in their numbers to cheer the Lankan team dreamt of a similar show, expecting an Indo-Lanka final. But Maldives fought their way to the final with a spectacular 1-0 win over Sri Lanka in semi finals.
Maldives proved that their path to the final was not by mistake or a shock win as they made much fancied India eat humble pie at the end. It was a big occasion for Maldives to enter the final alone and for the final, they were ‘armed’ with a 10,000-strong spectator force from Male.
It was a good lesson for both India and Sri Lanka. It was the willpower and determination that took the Maldivians to the South Asian soccer pinnacle. They strongly believed in themselves and were not too bothered about the ‘big names’. They had a good game plan for each game and they just concentrated on that.
Instead, the ‘big names’ took things somewhat lightly. They lacked understanding between the forwards and the backs at crucial stages. Fancied teams such as India and Sri Lanka failed to handle tense situations with courage. They lacked options when they were under pressure.
Source: Dailynews.lk