BFA/GT Beer/Candy Boss/Antics 8-a-side football tournament…
The sharpshooters in the Paradise Football Club of West Coast Berbice (Region 5) have this year prevailed over stiff competition is the BFA/ GT Beer/Candy Boss/Antics 8-a -side Inter-Club Invitational Football tournament, to emerge champions thereof and take the coveted title along with undisputed bragging rights, plus $600,000 prize money, a trophy, and medals for each player.
Paradise FC are the tournament’s new champions
In the tournament’s grand finale, played under lights on Saturday evening at the All Saints Presbyterian Church Ground in New Amsterdam, the football wizards of Monedderlust could not conjure up three goals to match the tally of their arch-rivals, last year’s losing finalists, Paradise — who were led by a double from the sharpshooting Jamal Fraser — and so, disappointingly, had to concede defeat at 3-2.
It is true that Monedderlust dominated the first half of the game, sending ten shots at the goal as against five from Paradise. And it is also true that the wizard Nerd McDonald scored in the 30th + 3rd minute; and four minutes after the resumption, another wizard, Raynand Frank, put Monedderlust two up when he also scored.
But the sharpshooters of Paradise began responding to those challenges when Nigel Reynolds scored their first goal in the 40th minute. He scored from the penalty spot after the referee had ruled that Monedderlust were guilty of handling the ball inside the 30-yard box.
Then the Paradise equalizer came in the 55th minute, when the sharpshooting Jamal Fraser made no mistake after he had found the Monedderlust goalkeeper out of place.
With the scores equalized at 2-all, the battle for supremacy was truly on; thus, when Referee Colin Bowery blew his whistle against Monedderlust in the 59th minute for a handled-ball infraction, Paradise supporters, anticipating accuracy, went into a frenzy of celebration.
The sharpshooting Fraser took the shot, and made no mistake in giving Paradise their first lead in the game. The scores then read: Paradise 3, Monedderlust 2, and remained thus until the end of the game.
Several hundred fans had turned out to witness these two West Berbice teams battle for supremacy; and although an age-old rivalry exists between Paradise FC and Monedderlust FC, they had never previously met in a major final.
As for the third-place play-off between Cougars FC and Hopetown United, an Atwell McDonald goal scored in the 47th minute was all that was needed for the Cougars of East Berbice to claim the third spot.
That game was playing at a very fast pace, and the Cougars completely dominated the first half, sending 10 shots at goal as against 5 from Hopetown FC; but when Referee Micha Erskine blew his whistle to end the first half, neither team had scored.
Before play in the grand finale commenced, members of both teams were introduced to the Brand Manager of GT Beer, Jeff Clements, and to the Regional Executive Officer of Region Six (East Berbice/ Corentyne), Kim Stephens.
The finalists in this tournament were determined after Paradise had defeated Hopetown 4-0 and Monedderlust had got past Cougars 1-0 in semifinal action.
This tournament, sponsored by beverage giants Banks DIH under their GT Beer brand, commenced on December 6th with two-time champions Police FC being knocked out by Hopetown United. (Andrew Carmichael)
