By Treiston Joseph
A brilliant day of Pee Wee football ended with Marian Academy and West Ruimveldt Primary booking their places in the final of Courts sponsored Under-11 tournament on Saturday at Thirst Park ground.
West Ruimveldt Primary handed Sophia their first loss of the tournament and it was a heart-wrenching one for the Sophia team that was playing really good football. The match ended 2-1 in thrilling fashion.
With a goal-less first half providing glimpses of both sides attacking ability, there was no doubt that the game was going to be tough as nails.
The second half seemed to be going Sophia’s way as has been the case the entire tournament when David Weeks, who is one of the top scorers in tournament, notched his sixth goal with a firm right footer in the 25th minute to put Sophia ahead.
However, Ian Daniels continued to be the striker in form and showcased his powerful right foot with a booming strike that rocked the net in the 32nd minute to level the scoring at 1-1 for his ninth goal of the tournament.
The first half of extra time saw West putting Sophia on the back foot with constant attacks with the team clad in red, yellow and green, defending for their lives.
Nevertheless, Daniels broke free and released another powerful strike into the bottom right of the net in the 46th minute to give West Ruimveldt the lead and a berth into the 2017 edition of the Courts Pee Wee final.
Meanwhile, Marian Academy continued their stellar showing, underlining their status as the best systematic team in the competition. They needled Enterprise Primary 1-0, earning the chance to capture their second championship in tournament history after lifting the inaugural title.
The Carifesta Avenue based school, decked out in deep sea blue, came out attacking and it paid dividends early as Malik Barker latched onto a sweet pass to whistle it past the out stretched hands of Enterprise’s custodian.
While Marian had a few more chances to extend their lead, they simply parked the bus for the win and never looked like losing the encounter. Barker called the win a “team victory”, praising his squad for the day’s effort and the teamwork they showcased on the pitch.
The final of the tournament will be played on November 11 at the Thirst Park ground with the third place game kicking off proceedings from 11:00h.
