Glory for Annandale! Christianburg-Wismar end as runners-up

After eleven weeks of displaying scintillating football skills, Annandale Secondary have finally reaped the fruit of their hard work as they emerged the champions of the inaugural Guyoil/ Tradewind Tankers Under 18 football tournament.
The like any other reputable tournament the result could only be known until the final whistle of the last game was sounded, as such, Sunday saw two exhilarating games from the young talents as the top three teams battled to finish on top.
Knowing that the fate of their final place lay in their goal difference, Annandale Secondary came to the field with a vengeance against their opponents Queen’s College. Annandale’s dominance rested in their ability to play a composed game, executing clean passes rather than hunting the goal. They champions took a little while before the got the scoring started, but when they did, there was no stopping the rain of goals. The team’s captain Jamar Harrigon led from the front netting the first goal in the 9th minute. Then in the twelfth Collin Hendricks extended the lead. Two back to back goals in the 14th and 15th from Omari Glasgow saw Annandale reaching 4. However, Queen’s College’s Diarra Thomas had the grit to fight back, finding the back of the net twice before the half expired for the 4-2 score.
Contrary to their previous games, Annandale was stronger in the second half, thus carry out a full onslaught on Queen’s College. The first goal came from Markel Matheson and he was followed by Deon Haywood in the subsequent minutes. Omari Glasgow was brilliant, snatching 4 more goals back to back. Royden Maxwelll and Anyika Headley then joined the scoring party before Collin Hendricks pushed his tally to two. Captain Harrigon was the one to send the final shot home to the goal just two minutes before the game ended. Annandale’s 13-2 win put them in the perfect position to take the championship, but they were still unsure as their fate rested in the hands of Christianburg- Wismar who were scheduled to take on the front runners Lodge Secondary in the final game of the league.
Lodge Secondary had occupied the top spot on the points table for weeks before Annandale ended their winning streak last weekend, however, the Georgetown team still had a chance of winning the cup, if they defeated their Linden rivals. But that was not the way it went at the Ministry of Education Ground on Sunday evening.
Christianburg- Wismar, despite not being able to win the league, were aware that a win would cement their place in the upcoming KFC Goodwill tournament, and as such the Lindeners played as though they were deserving of the opportunity.
They wasted no time in revealing their intentions, as they had a near miss at the goal within the first minute. Christianburg- Wismar maintained their energy and attack thus frustrating the Lodge team early on. When it seemed like the game would be a dead locked one, Felix Innis emerged from outside the box to slip a goal right past the goalkeeper’s ankle.
As it should have, the goal made Lodge more determined to play a better game but their attempts were constantly stopped cold by the Linden defense. The second half saw the Georgetown team returning with fresh momentum but the inability to connect with the goal was still lingering. Christianburg- Wismar had different luck as Tyrese Lewis maintained his ability to score in every game with a beautiful attempt soaring over the goalkeepers outstretched hands. When the whistle went, Lodge went down 2-0 and Annandale Secondary knew that the championship was officially theirs.
Annandale and Christianburg- Wismar Seconadry will not take a break from their practice sessions this week as they will be preparing to compete in the Petra organized KFC Goodwill tournament which kicks off on Saturday December 15.
The tournament will see three days of action (December 15th, 18th and 22nd) between Shiva Boys Hindu College out of Trinidad and Tobago, Annai Secondary, Annandale and Christianburg Wismar.