NSC Magnum Mash Cup
…Sophia, Tiger Bay, Gold is Money, Sparta Boss follow suit
Eight teams on Tuesday evening booked their spot in the quarter-final of the National Sports Commission (NSC) Magnum Mash Cup, following a night of exhilarating futsal action at the National Gymnasium.
The excitement heightened last evening, as droves of expectant fans showed up to witness what turned out to be eight electrifying games. There were no hiccups experienced on Tuesday, thanks to the full attendance of referee officials.
Each encounter had its fair share of thrills, beginning with defending champions Bent Street, whose encounter with Stabroek Ballers went down to the wire.
An own goal from Stabroek Ballers put Bent Street in the lead in the first half and the challengers were only able to equalise in the 23rd minute, thanks to Sean Taylor. Regulation time eventually expired with the scores locked and the need for a winner pushed the game into penalties. On this front, the defending champions proved to be the better team, with three goals to two.
Sophia brought determination to their match against Broad Street and left with the
best possible result, a win. Dwayne McLennon got the scoring started early with two goals in the 1st and 3rd to put Sophia in the lead. While he completed his hat trick in the 17th, goals from Sherwin Charles and Shem Arthur sealed Sophia’s five. Broad Street’s lone reply came from Joel McGarrell in the 23rd.
Tiger Bay also tasted victory after they drilled six scintillating goals into front runners Showstoppers. Dexroy Adams from Showstoppers and Trayon Bobb netted early goals in the 1st and 3rd but it could not measure up to a hat trick from Tiger Bay’s Deon Alfred, two from Alpha Fletchman and one from Keoma Gravesande.
Gold is Money and Sparta Boss both enjoyed 3-1 wins over their opponents Melanie and North East La Penitence respectively, while Future Stars and ANSA McAL All Stars only needed one goal to secure their entry into the quarter-final.
In the Gold is Money encounter, Randolph Wagner opened the scoring in the 4th, but Melanie’s Rondell Assanah found the back of the goal two minutes later to level the scores. Colin Nelson and Hubert Pedro with one o goal each, managed to crush Melanie’s hopes of advancing.
Sparta Boss’ Ryan Hackett netted a double while his teammate Jermain Junior contributed one for their three. Keifer Brady scored the lone goal on behalf of North East La Penitence in the 16th.
The action will continue this evening at the National Gymnasium, where ANSA McAL will battle Back Circle; Gold is Money takes on Tiger Bay; Bent Street faces off with Sophia; and Sparta Boss tackles Future Stars.
