The dictionary defines ‘rivalry’ as “competition for the same objective or for superiority in the same field”; and that, in essence, is exactly what will take place this evening at the Ministry of Education Ground on Carifesta Avenue when the Limacol Football final is contested between Fruta Conquerors FC and Santos FC.
To have reached the final of the fourth annual Limacol Tournament is already an achievement for these under-20 teams, given that this competition is dominated by seniors, but this final is considered “unfinished business” between the two best junior teams in the nation, and following excellent preliminary round runs from both teams, each squad will now put it all on the line in a figurative no-holds-barred dogfight for the Limacol championship trophy and concomitant bragging rights.
Santos have promised not to take their opponents lightly
Rivalry
Rivalry between these two teams was spawned earlier this year when the Guyana Football Federation used an opportunity to collaborate with KFC Guyana to host the Under-20 Championships. It is important to note that many club competitions are not played at that level, but the competition got the nation’s youngsters going.
In June 2019, Fruta Conquerors pulled off a 3-1 victory over Santos to bag the KFC Independence Cup Georgetown final. Nicholas Mc Arthur (16th minute), Nicholai Andrews (56th) and Rayvon Bailey (90+2) netted one each for Fruta, while Ronaldo Rodrigues scored Santos’ consolation goal in the 20th.
However, when the two met again in the National KFC Semifinal match, Santos exacted revenge with a 2-0 victory over Fruta. Stephan Reynolds removed the possibility of extra time play by netting a brace (80th and 88th minutes) to propel his team to a win.
Fruta Conquerors will bring their A game tonight
With scores at 1-1 since June in what can be considered a tribal war, each of these two under-20 teams now has a chance to establish superiority when they go head-to-head in this highly charged football final.
Expectations abound
Having had an extra week to prepare for their Armageddon after this final was initially postponed, the time has finally come for these youths to put ‘niceties’ aside as they settle their differences on the football pitch.
Fruta Conquerors have been lethal this year, raking in five consecutive wins by resounding victories, their largest being an 8-1 annihilation of Buxton Stars. Following a tough semifinal against Riddim Squad, wherein they were tested in every aspect of the game and pushed to the limits of their skills set, this Tucville team is now “looking to bring it home”, according to captain Nicholas Mc Arthur.
“This is a different team, and we want to play a different style of football. But we cannot take these guys any easier, we just need to go out and train. All the players know their abilities and what they have to do,” Mc Arthur explained.
Famous for their come-from-behind victories this year, the Santos team, while not registering wins that are as impacting as their opponents’, have consistently been lurking and threatening, especially in the second half of the game.
Perennially clad in all white, the Santos boys must never be taken for granted or be under-rated, especially since Captain Marcus Wilson disclosed that his team will not take any opponent lightly.
“We just want to come focused on the game, and don’t be too over- confident because we won the last battle against Conquerors. We have to play as a team, and concentrate on what we have to do, and try to come out successful,” Wilson revealed.
While each coach has a different expectation of who the eventual winner of this final match-up will be, one thing that Wayne St. Jules from Fruta Conquerors and Earl Paul from Santos can agree on is that the final will be a great game to witness.
“As a champion, everybody comes at you. You got to train hard. The first three games were easy for us, but the last three we went ‘deep down in the bag’ to show that we are champions.
“Fruta is not an easy team, so we’re not taking them lightly; and this is history: first time two youth team reach a senior team final,” Paul explained.
“To see two young teams meeting in a final, I expect a good final. I won’t say it’s a ‘walk in the park’ for us. We won one final and Santos won the most important one that we wanted to win, but kudos to them. I’m just looking forward to a victory,” St Jules declared.
The X-Factor
With young talents such as Ryan Hackett, Nicholas Mc Arthur and Joel Yhap on show for Fruta Conquerors, and big guns such as Stephan Reynolds, Raymond Bandhu and Marcus Wilson coming out for Santos, this final match will definitely be explosive stuff.
When the starting whistle is blown, each team is expected to play to their strengths in order to bring home the cheque.
In Fruta Conquerors’ case, the boys in orange will look to score early in order to put their opponents under pressure. The Santos side favours a come- from-behind’ tactic with a much stronger second half of play.
One player who should steal the spotlight is young Joel Yhap, who knows both sides well. Back in June, Yap was the Santos under-20 goal-keeper who fended off a fiery Fruta Conquerors’ strike force to keep his team in the game. Now the tables have turned for Yhap, and he has found himself in the nets for the Tucville team. This agile youngster is expected to be the variable that has the most significant impact on tonight’s game.
Another thing for certain is that each team will have a few tricks up its sleeves in order to blindside the opposition.
The grand prize is $400,000 and bragging rights; the second place team will have to settle for $200,000.
The third place playoff between Pele FC and Riddim Squad involves a figurative head-to-head collision for $100,000, while fourth place team pockets $50,000. The third place playoff will precede the final, with game time set for 19:00hrs.
The fourth annual Limacol Tournament is sponsored by New GPC and is also supported by WJ Enterprise.
