Another season of scintillating football at the Under 18 level will come to a close when the Milo Schools Football tournament concludes today, and a fiery final match is anticipated.
Lodge had a strong defense, but it was still penetrated in their last meeting.The battle was intense between Lodge and Christianburg in their last game
Bagging wins in last week’s semi-final matches, Lodge Secondary and Christiansburg-Wismar Secondary have scripted what is arguably the best possible finale for the seventh edition of the tournament, especially since both teams have maintained a spotless winning streak throughout this year’s tournament.
Tonight, however, one side will have to accept defeat while the other would celebrate their victory.
But this is not a rivalry that has not been played out before. In fact, it was only in December 2018 when Christianburg-Wismar and Lodge Secondary met in a final-like atmosphere in the inaugural Guyoil/ Tradewind Tankers league. While Christianburg-Wismar were battling for a chance to enter the KFC Goodwill tournament, Lodge were battling to stay at the top of the league table. As fate would have it, the Lindeners emerged victorious with a 2-0 win over the Georgetown team.
Today it will be up to either side to repeat or change history. Expectedly, Lodge will be entering the final with a vengeance and determination to upend their rivals, but the Lindeners are confident in their ability to repeat the past.
“We just have to work on our togetherness and we will win this tournament,” the Christianburg-Wismar captain Andre Mayers has said.
If the two teams continue to play the way they have been playing throughout the competition, there will surely be a rain of goals, as both sides are capable of hitting the target well and often.
The likes of Andre Mayers and Tyrese Lewis will be looking to fire for Christianburg-Wismar, while the agile Dorwin George and Shemroy Meyer will be putting in the work for Lodge.
But more than just the effort of the forwards will be needed to win this game. While the Lodge goalkeeper has not been tested often during the tournament, owing to a steely defense, the Christianburg keeper — especially in their semifinal match against Annandale Secondary — has proven that his small stature is no hindrance to his great ability to hold on to the ball.
Despite losing to the Lindeners in their last encounter, coach of this Georgetown team, Leon Bishop, is of the opinion that his team can pull off the championship.
“If you were here, you would have seen that it was a competitive match right down to the end. It was two basic errors that caused us the two free kicks that they scored. So we know that once we play to our potential and we are focused, keep the possession of the ball, we can do well against them,” Bishop has confidently declared.
While football fans and students alike are eagerly awaiting this monumental clash, the organisers, Petra, are of the belief that they have arrived at a fiery final.
“I think Linden, over the years, has demonstrated a certain level of consistency; likewise Lodge. I think Linden is a more rounded team, but in any final, on the day in question, it’s about who wants it more. I’m not ruling out Lodge. So we anticipate a very, very good finale, and also the third place playoff,”
The third place playoff, between Annandale Secondary and President’s College, is expected to begin at 17:00hrs at the Ministry of Education Ground on Carifesta Avenue, while the final between Lodge and Christianburg-Wismar Secondary will kick off at 19:00hrs.
