By Mr Shannon Nogueira for BISMumbai

The youth of Don Bosco Youth Services (DBYS), Mumbai, hosted the first edition of Maschio Cup 2022. The previous year’s ‘Salesian Youth Cup’ was renamed ‘Maschio Cup’ in honour of the memory of the Late Fr Aurelius Maschio SDB.

This football tournament was hosted for youth belonging to the Salesian Institutions of the Province of Bombay. A total of 13 teams participated in this tournament.

The host for the occasion, Mr Savio Aguiar, welcomed the participating teams and kickstarted the event. The opening prayer was in the form of a melodious prayer song sung by Mr Chris Lobo, a music teacher at Don Bosco International School. Fr Edwin D’Souza, the Chief Guest for the occasion, spoke about Fr Maschio and his contribution to the Don Bosco Institutions across the Salesian Province of Bombay. Soon after, the sportsman’s prayer and pledge were recited by the youth of DBYS. A momentous occasion was when the torch was carried by four representatives of the DBYS.

After the opening ceremony, the pool stages of the tournament began, where teams in four pools played against each other in order to claim the top two spots. Only the top two teams in every pool qualified for the knockout stages.

After a set of tense matches, 8 teams out of the 13 participating teams qualified for the playoffs. An exhibition match was played between the Salesians and the DBYS Youth. This was yet another exciting game in the tournament which was enjoyed by all.

Both finalists were from Dominic Savio, Andheri: Golden Savions and Origen Savions. A spectacular final ended with Origen Savions claiming the victory over Golden Savions by a one goal margin. The tournament ended with Fr D’Souza handing over the individual achievement trophies, while Fr Savio Silveira, the Provincial, handed the trophies to the Winners and the Runners Up.

It is to be noted that to make this event a success, the youth of DBYS spent days in meticulous planning: from logistics to the games, it was the fruit of dedicated hard work and excellent teamwork.

Long Live, Fr Maschio! Long live, Don Bosco!