BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - A goal in both halves by S.L. Horsford St. Paul’s United have caused Harris Paint St. Peter’s FC to be eliminated from the St. Kitts-Nevis Football Association (SKNFA) Premier Division Final Four Playoffs.
The game was played last evening (May 21) at Warner Park, and St. Peter’s badly needed to win that encounter to remain in the competition following a 2-nil defeat in their last game against league leaders RAM’S Village Superstars.
The first half saw St. Paul’s, while in pursuit of an early advantage, forced an excellent save by Kaiyan Benjamin with just seconds on the clock.
The early goal they sought however came from Josh Leader in the 16th minute when he capped off a beautiful move by his team mates to make St. Paul’s draw first blood.
It was St. Peter's team however that looked the more dangerous in the first half. They created many scoring opportunities but lacked potency in front of St. Paul’s goal to really make them pay for the early lead.
St. Paul’s ended the first half just as the game began, forcing Benjamin into another good save, and going into the break with just a 1-nil advantage.
The second half started with both teams struggling to create any real opportunity on each other’s goal, but a breakaway by St. Paul’s in the 67th minute left St. Peter’s defence reeling.
The breakaway resulted from a poor clearance by St. Peter’s, which gave Josh Leader the opportunity to present Terrance Ward the simplest of chances to double the lead. He accepted and the ball found the back of the net, putting smiles on the faces of St. Paul’s supporters while at the same time dampening the spirits of the St. Peter’s players and their supporters.
As the minutes ticked away, St. Peter’s launched an all-out attack but was unsuccessful as they found the defence of team St. Paul’s an impregnable wall, which seemed to have made them lose the will to fight in the dying minutes of the game.
The loss eliminates St. Peter’s from contention for a spot in the Final after two losses in two games. But St. Paul’s, on the other hand, are now on four points following their first two games and are poised for a final spot with one game to play.
The action resumes today with a rival match-up between the Hobson Enterprises Garden Hotspurs FC and RAM’S Village Superstars FC.
