Crowd support can be an important factor between a team winning and losing. With Campion School (Colaba) located just a stone's throw away from the Cooperage Stadium, it wasn't surprising to see a host of red shirts turn up in scores to support their school against Don Bosco (Matunga) in the final of the boys U-16 Division I on Tuesday.
The Campion faithful weren't left disappointed as they saw their side pip the Matunga school 4-3 in the penalty shootout after the schools were locked goalless after regulation time.
Parents, teachers, alumni and students from the Colaba school may have been constantly asked by the referees to stay on the other side of the fence during play. But there was no stopping some from jumping over and running to the pitch the moment Campion 'keeper Aryan Jhaveri dived right to save Atharva Jagtap's spot kick.
The Campion supporters clearly outnumbered Don Bosco's as chants of 'Campion Champions' rendered the air soon after the match ended.
Leading from the front with the post-match celebrations on the pitch was none other than their principal Paul Machado. Air-lifted by his students, a jubilant Machado said that he might just give the school a holiday on Wednesday.
"The day after we beat St Lawrence (Kandivli) in the semifinal, I had sent a circular asking the students and parents to attend Tuesday's final and support the school team," said Machado. "Besides, you can see the power of WhatsApp. Just look at the number of red shirts here. Have you ever seen such a turnout for an MSSA game?"
With nothing to separate the two sides in an hour of normal time, spot kicks were to decide the winner of Mumbai school's best football team. The shootout saw the match go into sudden death with both sides locked at 3-3. Campion's Jay Maliye shot the ball into the right corner to leave everyone watching at the edge of their seats. Jhaveri saw two of Don Bosco's penalties hit the post, his only save, keeping Jagtap out, in the shootout would be the one to be remembered.
Joshua Machado, no relation to the school principal, may be boasting amongst his friends that he is the first captain of a Campion side to win the Division One title. It was his mother Trinida, who was more delighted than any of the players.
"You saw some parents praying with the rosary hoping that we win the shootout. We know what such situations mean to our kids. Don't forget, I'm the mother of the first winning captain from Campion," she said. "The parents seem more excited than us. Our selfies have stopped, but it seems we know who are the real kids today. But it really makes a lot of difference to see so many people rooting for you," said Joshua.
Stopwatch: Div I: Campion School (Colaba) 0 drew with Don Bosco (Matunga) 0. Campion win 4-3 on penalties
