Stanislaus beat GEA 3-2, set up title clash with Don Bosco

St Stanislaus players (yellow) mount a resolute defence against a General Education Academy attacker. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

St Stanislaus High School (Bandra) edged out General Education Academy (GEA), Malad 3-2 in a dramatic penalty shootout and booked a spot in the final of the boys' U-14 MSSA Fr Donelly inter-school hockey knockout tournament played at Don Bosco Matunga ground on Friday.

The match ended in a goalless stalemate at the end of regulation time, with both teams putting up a defensive masterclass. In the penalty shootout, St Stanislaus' goalkeeper Amaan Shaikh emerged as the hero, denying GEA skipper Dhairya Thakur under intense pressure. St Stanislaus secured victory after converting three penalties while GEA struggled to find the target, missing crucial attempts.

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Rudra Sarmalkar, Jaden Dias, and Joel Anandappa netted successfully for St Stanislaus. For GEA, Karithkeyan Pandey and Harshiv Gohil found the net, but Dhairya, Hitansh Kubada, and Rian Gada missed their shots, thus sealing their fate.

In the other semi-final at the same venue, Don Bosco High School (Matunga) cruised to a commanding 4-0 victory over Dr Antonio Da Silva High School (Dadar). Royden Koli's brace and goals from Daksh Khochare and Rugved Kotkar ensured their comfortable win. The final promises to be a classic between rivals Don Bosco and St Stanislaus, on February 2, at Don Bosco Matunga ground.