The Go Fry sponsored Nasinu side won the heart of many football fans with their sterling performance during 2020 Punjas Battle of the Giants Tournament at Churchill Park in Lautoka.
Despite going down 3-7 to Priceline Pharmacy Ba in the opening match but bounced back to beat Flow Valves/ Island Accommodations Suva and then hold Sharma’s Investment (USA) Labasa to a 1-1 draw and send the defending champions out of the tournament.
Nasinu coach Tagi Vonolagi was suspended from bench for using abusive language to the match officials but despite the setback the Giants Killers of Fiji Football kept its tag.
Nasinu president Onel Lal Chand says they bowed out of the tournament with pride despite facing so many setbacks.
“We are bowing out gallantly and with pride. We lost our coach and captain on the first day and nobody gave us any chance.”
“But we did not lose hope and believed in each other. We are thankful to the Almighty for blessing us with the strength and courage to fight back in the remaining matches.”
“We have not qualified for the semis but definitely we have won many hearts and have stuck to our giant killers tag very well as we defeated Suva which has all the stars and we went on to send champions Labasa out of the tournament.”
“We do not have star players but we have players and officials who believe in each other and play with pride and are always out there to give their best for the district,” said Chand.
Chand praised his players for the gallant performance.
“Iam so proud that despite some odds my boy’s gave their heart out for Naisinu. They played for pride and they are pride for Nasinu,”said Chand.
Chand said the boys made everyone proud.
“They have sacrificed a lot and I salute them and hats off to them.”
Chand thanked his sponsors Go Fry and all those who supported in any way during the tournament,
He added that they will now aim to create more upsets in the Vodafone Premier League as their ultimate aim is to remain in the Premier Division for another season.
