Annandale, President’s College advance to semi-final

Milo Schools Football Tournament

The Milo Schools Football tournament intensified on Saturday afternoon as four schools battled for their chance to enter the semifinal stage.
While Beepats’, under their Nestle Milo brand, is the chief sponsor of the tournament, the competition sees a collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health under their ‘Stop Gender Based Violence’ campaign, and as such, statements advocating for the end of abuse preluded the first two quarterfinal games.
The first two teams to take the field under blistering sunshine were Annandale Secondary and Charlestown Secondary, who were both looking to be the first to enter next week’s semifinal. However, this dream was not to be for Charlestown, as their fight was not tough enough to withstand the dominance of Annandale Secondary.
Charlestown exhibited good form and great defense tactics, which held the Annandale strikers off for much of the first half. Both sides had their share of missed opportunities, until Collin Hendricks broke the spell in the 32nd to give Annandale the lead. The remainder of the half expired quietly.
Annandale returned stronger in the second half, with Omari Glasgow commanding the left wing. The East Coast team had many scoring opportunities, until Glasgow himself connected in the 50th and 59th to take the score to 3-0.
Jemar Harrigon, amidst a set of dribbles, glided through Charlestown’s defense in the 90th to connect his team’s fourth goal.
Later on, President’s College inserted themselves into the semifinal script after they edged past The Bishops’ High School 2-1. The high-paced encounter saw both teams avidly hunting an early goal, but neither side could capitalise on their opportunities, missing the mark throughout the first half.
However, fireworks went off in the 41st minute when Malachi Richards of Bishops’ and Jesse Thomas of President’s College both scored.
Backed by a boisterous crowd of fellow students and supporters, President’s College capitalized on a corner in the second half to drive the nail in Bishops’ coffin. The tall and lanky Edron Stephens could be seen heading balls at every chance he got in the encounter, and did so successfully when the corner kick came in the 56th to seal PC’s second and winning goal.
The Milo action will continue today as Christianburg-Wismar Secondary do battle with Vergenoegen Secondary, and later Lodge Secondary go head to head with St. John’s College.