Maharashtra proved too strong for minnows Daman & Diu as they coasted to a thumping 9-0 victory in a West Zone qualifying round match of the 70th National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy, and played at the Tilak Maidan, Vasco, Goa, on Tuesday.
Striker Mervin Stephen spearheading the Maharashtra attack notched up a fine hat-trick and Harlod Fernandes got a brace of goals while Abhishek Ambekar, Wayne Vaz, Shrikant Veeramallu and Raynier Fernandes chipped in with one each to seal the big win.
Result – Maharashtra 9 (Mervin Stephen 10th, 23rd, 63rd, Abhishek Ambekar 26th, Wayne Vaz 40th, Shrikant Veeramallu 50th, Harold Fernandes 70th, 75th, Raynier Fernandes 89th) beat Daman & Diu 0.