Trash Sandy Point 7-1
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE more fancied Conaree FC showed why they are the kings of street football in St. Kitts when they hammered an ill-tempered Sandy Point team 7-1 to retain their Guinness Street Football Challenge Title.
The much-anticipated Carib Brewery-sponsored Guinness Street Football Challenge Competition was played last evening (May 16) at the Sandy Point Hard Court.
Receiving a bye into the Semi-Final round, defending champions Conaree FC showed true class and regional experience as they opened their account with a commanding 6-nil thumping of a lackluster Police team.
From the blast of the first whistle, the Conaree team, clad in their usual green and gold, played structured football for a club team transitioning to the shorter form of the sports discipline and whose players would have had major experiences.
In a very one-sided Final, the Sandy Pointers were no match for the faster, structured and tactical Conaree FC which kept frustrating them and their supporters.
Tempers flared deep into the first half with the scores at 1-1 when a Sandy Point player rudely inquired why the Conaree team was seated on the bench.
The team member approached the female referee in an abusive manner and, knowing what her Rule Book states, she told him it was a timeout, which was much to the amazement of the player who continued with his abusive behaviour.
However, when play resumed, the defending champions wasted no time in applying pressure on their opponents and quickly had the small goal rocking, as they found the back of the net three more times, which left the Sandy Point team dejected and frustrated.
Another round of abuse was hurled at the referee, who seemed to have lost concentration heading into the latter part of the first half, as she called the score 3-1 when one of her assistants had declared it 4-1.
Tempers flared again deep into the second half, where the referee was once again put to the test when a contentious header found the back of the net to seal a comprehensive 7-1 drubbing of Sandy Point and Conaree FC booking a return ticket to Guinness Regional Street Challenge in the twin-Island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
Captain of the Conaree FC Darwin Charleswell was elated with his team’s victory and a return to the regional tournament, adding that it was the team’s primary goal to redeem itsself on the regional stage after a disappointing debut last year.
“Our strategy was just to come out tonight, posses the ball and close up space. Coming into this tournament, we had the experience and we are going to represent St. Kitts proudly.
“We learned a lot from out there in St. Vincent last year… the courts were much smoother and much harder. We came back with that experience and we motivated ourselves to get back there, Charleswell said”
With that victory, Conaree FC walked away with EC$1 500 and have progressed to Trinidad for next month’s competition.
Result from last evening games at the Sandy Point Hard Court are as follow:
Cayon defeated Strikers 2-3;
Sandy Point defeated Newton Ground 4-3;
Police defeated Carib Brewery via walkover;
Conaree whipped Police 6-nil;
Sandy Point trounced Strikers 4-1; and
Conaree hammered Sandy Point 6-1.
