**Cathedral and John Connon Clinch Third Trophy at Mumbai School Sports Association Football Tournaments**
The Cathedral and John Connon school secured their third trophy this season at the Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) Football tournaments. The Fort School’s Under-12 Girls team outclassed Bombay Scottish 2-0 in the top division final held at the MSSA ground, Azad Maidan, on Saturday to lift the top honours.
Ivana Nahar starred for Cathedral, scoring both goals before and after halftime. The first goal came from a stunning curling left-footer from outside the box that found the right corner, leaving the Scottish goalkeeper with no chance despite a full-length dive.
After the break, Cathedral dominated possession. Anaya Patani nearly doubled the lead off a corner kick from Ivana, but after a couple of deflections, her powerful shot sailed over the bar. Ivana then sealed the victory with a close-range goal, assisted by Patani, as Cathedral maintained control throughout the match.
Nine-year-old forward Ivana impressed alongside Anaya, while her twin sister, Ariha Nahar, played a crucial defensive role, successfully repelling attacks from the Scottish forwards.
“I started playing football at the age of 3 after seeing my sister Anaya play. We have been playing together since,” Ivana shared after the match. The Ronaldo fan was thrilled by the victory, adding, “It was a good win; we played hard throughout the tournament.”
Cathedral’s coach, Daryl Samuel, praised the Nahar twins: “Both sisters have been training in my academy (SFA) and at school for many years. They know their game well and have been performing excellently for us together.”
Both teams had competed earlier that day in another tournament but displayed no signs of fatigue during the final. “We played in the Anglo tournament earlier and won there. Ivana was awarded the best player,” Samuel revealed.
Previously, Cathedral had also won the Under-16 titles in the boys’ and girls’ categories at Wings Sports Centre, continuing their dominant season.
In the third-place playoff, Don Bosco Matunga edged past JBCN International Parel after a goalless draw. Bosco’s skipper Kyra Hulyalkar excelled as goalkeeper, making two crucial saves and allowing one shot to go wide. She also converted her penalty in the shootout, helping her team prevail 2-1.
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### Girls Under-12 Division 1 Final Results:
– **Champion:** Cathedral and John Connon Fort (Ivana Nahar 2) – 2
– **Runner-up:** Bombay Scottish Mahim – 0
– **Third Place:** Don Bosco International Matunga 0, drew with JBCN International Parel 0 (Tie-break score: Don Bosco won 2-1)
– Goal scorers in tie-break: Kyra Hulyalkar, Michelle Mathew (Don Bosco); Shanaya Jhaveri (JBCN)
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### Boys Under-12 Division 3 Results:
– G D Somani Cuffe Parade 0 drew Hill Spring Tardeo 0
– Christ Church ICSE Byculla (Zidaan Shaikh) 1 beat St. Lawrence Borivali 0
– St. Aloysius Bandra (Rudra Phatak, Tanmay Mane) 2 beat St. Xavier Fort 0
– Sharda Mandir Gamdevi received a walkover against Gokuldham Goregaon
– St. Dominic Savio Andheri (Jaden Mendonca) 1 beat Podar IB & Cambridge Santa Cruz 0
– Rustomjee International Dahisar (Avneesh Kelaskar) 1 beat Cambridge Kandivali 0
– Somaiya Vidyavihar (Dhyan Mavani, Chaitang Madhukar) 3 beat Parle Tilak ICSE Vile Parle 0
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Cathedral and John Connon continue to set high standards in Mumbai’s school football circuit with their impressive performances this season. The young talent from the school looks set for a bright future ahead.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/sports/ivanas-brace-secures-mssa-u-12-crown