Bermuda 0 Santos 3

The flicks, tricks and samba magic may not have been truly effective until the final minutes, but the boys from Brazil lived up to their billing with a magnificent 3-0 victory over Bermuda at the National Sports Centre yesterday.

So too did Shaun Goater, whose solid, hard-working performance was the antithesis of his young opponents but a no less effective way of playing The Beautiful Game.

The scoreline was not a fair representation of the afternoon's play - the final two goals came mostly due to Bermuda's loss of shape after a late flurry of substitutions - as the home team gallantly battled against the next generation of Peles.

For the first hour, Kyle Lightbourne's troops matched - and often bettered - the fluid, short, skilful game of the visitors but the black and white wave of talented young Brazilians proved eventually to be too much.

But certainly the ethos behind this tour - improve local football by exposure to top foreign sides - seems a step in the right direction and more games like this will eventually yield victories.

The opening minutes were all about Goater, a man desperate to put behind him an increasingly disappointing season at Reading and prove to his countrymen he is still committed to the national cause.

Four minutes in, he beat his man and only a poor-timed run from Khano Smith - and an offside flag - stopped Bermuda from having the perfect start to the sun-drenched match and giving the 4,000 crowd something to really blow their airhorns about.

Five minutes after that, Goater held the ball up in his trademark manner before bringing Domico Coddington into the game down the right. However, the former Man City legend was just beaten to the cross by keeper Saulo.

A minute later, a long ball from Stanton Lewis put Goater through, but with defender Nadson climbing over his back, he couldn't find the finish - one wonders what part a season of reserve and substitute football has played in taking away some of his sharpness.

After his opening solo work, the Brazilians began following him more closely, limiting the experienced striker to a game of hard work for little reward - although he was able to wow the crowd with some Brazilian trickery on the half hour, flicking the ball over a would-be tackler with the aplomb of any South American. He was also unlucky with a first half lob and second half 20-yard strike which whistled past the post.

At the other end, blue-booted Geilson was tormenting Lewis at left back as the fast, young Santos side pushed forward.

Their best chance fell to Junior, who ballooned over unmarked from eight yards from a Ze Leandro pinpoint cross and was unlucky just before the break when his spectacular scissor kick whistled past the post after good work from Cadu.

There was little to choose between the sides before the break, although Khano Smith came close with a low drive that needed tipping round the post, but it was Santos who came out strongest after the interval.

Two minutes in and Timmy Figureido could only punch away a long shot leaving the ever-alert Cadu to fire home an ugly, unBrazilian scuffed shot from the edge of the box through a forest of legs - the unsighted keeper left stranded and wrong-footed on the far side of the goal.

The second stanza was punctuated by ten substitutions and the game lost a lot of its flow as a result.

Robert Wilson forced Saulo to tip over from a cross-shot and Geilson's header glanced off the bar as both teams battled forward.

But it all finally unravelled for Lightbourne in the final four minutes as a mixture of tiredness - juxtaposed with Santos' full-time pro fitness - and substitutes perhaps out of their depth consigned Bermuda to a bigger loss than was representative.

Kwame Steede was dispossessed by Vinicious, who took two steps forward and drilled home from 25 yards with a swerving drive that left Jay Smith floundering.

And four minutes into injury time, with Wilson bent over with an Achilles problem, Geilson sneaked into the hole after a neat one-two to fire home for a goal that he thoroughly deserved after an afternoon spent showing the large crowd why Brazilian football is such a delight to watch.

Without a doubt, Clyde Best deserves a giant pat on the back for helping organise a match which allowed Santos and Bermuda's favourite son to show exactly why they have such a lofty reputation in the game.

Bermuda: T. Figureido (J. Smith, 74 mins), R. Wilson, M. Lowe, K. Dill, D. Coddington (C. Moulder, 70 mins), L. Furbert (K. Steede, 70 mins), S. Goater, K. Smith, S. Lewis, B. Bean (T. Wilkinson, 63 mins), J. Jennings (R. Simons, 78 mins).

Santos: Saulo (Roni, 88 mins), Helio, Thiago (Diego, 88 mins), Ze Leandro, Lucas, Nadson, Geilson, Vinicious, Junior (Felipe, 63 mins), Cadu (Tuxa, 64 mins), Renato (Edmilson, 64 mins).

Yellow cards: C. Moulder, K. Dill (Bermuda)

Men of the match: S. Goater (Bermuda) Geilson (Santos)

Referee: Stuart Crockwell (Bermuda)