… Waterton’s late goal gets Topp XX past GDF 2-1
A LAST-GASP strike by Travis Waterton on the stroke of 90 minutes was enough to break a 1-1 stalemate and send the five-time champions Bakewell Topp XX into the Kashif and Shanghai  semifinals. They now face the formidable Alpha United, who, led by a double from Bithson Bain, crushed Net Rockers 5-1 when the first set of quarter-final matches in this year’s 21st Kashiuf and Shanghai Christmas football’s lucrative championship continued Boxing Night at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground, Linden.
On a night when the chauvinistic Linden football fans watched their home teams lose then win, Topp XX are yet again the one club who have carried this mining town’s chances of glory with distinction on countless occasions, and who are qualified by the fact that they have reached the final seven times and have claimed the most titles. They have once again emerged to enter yet another final-four stage while Net Rockers failed to challenge City side Alpha United’s potent lineup.
The first game was between Alpha United, seeking their second championship, and Net Rockers as they squared up for the first quarterfinal of the night’s double-header.
As early as the 15th minute Alpha United had assumed control which was demonstrated when forward Kithson Bain planted a header from the  corner which sailed to the right side deep in the six-yard box to the back of the nets for the his first goal of the game.
Three minutes later the defence of Net Rockers were scattered when a through ball was taken by Alpha United but the Rockers goalkeeper Odel Allicock came off his line to brilliantly block that advance.
However the ball was moved inside left down the line on top the 18 yards box where Bain was in position to lash with a left-foot volley that gave Odel Allicock no chance of saving as the City side took a 2-0 lead.
A spirited response was evident by Net Rockers, yet their tactics were inept. They however challenged their opponents and, pressing forward, they got their reward when a penalty was awarded for an infringement in the box by referee Junior Inniss.
Matthew ‘Assassin’ Pollard the big forward was brought down by a defender and he took the spot kick and fired it past the flailing hands of the Alpha United goalkeeper Ronson Williams who luckily did not get a hand to the thunderous shot in the 39th minute as the scores read 2-1 for Alpha United.
But this did not stop Alpha United from playing their superior brand of soccer, moving into position and finishing. And as the first half neared its end, from a free kick on top the 18 yards box to the edge of the six yards box, captain Howard Lowe reached in to score Alpha United’s third goal, against a startled Rockers defence, to end the first session 3-1 ahead.
Just after the second half began another corner was awarded to Alpha United as the pressure bore down on Net Rockers and from the corner taken on the left side the ball moved to the right inside of the box, where the lithe Alpha forward Anthony ‘Awo’ Abrams got his name onto the score sheet in the 47th minute.
Abrams also had a shot taken which crashed onto the crossbar as well as Dwight Peters, whose shot was guided out by the crossbar also, and Pollard was too slow  on a run-in after getting past the defenders and by the time he released his shot the half-chance was negated by the advancing Alpha United goalkeeper.
Alpha United then gained another goal in the 88th minute when Dwight Peters was able to score from on top the 18-yard box with a neat shot to goal.
Peters was then denied another goal as his shot hit the crossbar just before the final whistle ended the match for a comfortable 5-1 win for Alpha United, who now face Bakewell Topp XX in one of two semifinals set for tomorrow at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence, where the other semifinal will also be played.
In the second game both teams went after each other early as chances went a-begging in the exchanges first with Topp XX and then the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).
However, it was the hometown crowd favourites Bakewell Topp XX who secured the lead from a strring of passes.
This web began with defender Javin Crawford  sending the ball to Travis Waterton  who relayed it to Kayode McKinnon  in a one-two feed for striker Sear to slide through the middle and bang home the first goal in he 24th minute to score a beauty past Akel Clark in the GDF citadel.
In the 49th minute Nigel Price’s shot was powerful but too wide of the mark to trouble the Topp XX custodian and the first half ended with Topp XX leading 1-0.
The pace stepped up a bit in the second half and Delroy Dean was able to move inside the left side to collect a cross near the goal-line following a free kick taken to boot home the equaliser past Topp XX’s goalkeeper Richard Reynolds for the GDF side in the 49th minute.
This deflated the rising hopes of the partisan crowd who sensed that Topp XX were somewhat in danger of their perennial showing of brilliance in advancing past this stage of the competition.
In the 85th minute the veteran schemer Kayode McKinnon was able to thrust forward into the goalmouth but his release was barely collected by the GDF goalkeeper to stave off the go-ahead goal. McKinnon was again in the mix of things as he probed forward but he was unable to find the back of the net as the GDF defenders defended stoutly against his pressing forward.
Still, not to be outdone, Topp XX, as the fourth official was about to notify all that there was four minutes injury time added on ,was able to get the tie breaker through the clinical finishing of Travis Waterton.
Play began on the left side and the ball was passed to the middle and ended up on the right side flank where Ryan Noel sent the ball for the overlapping Waterton shot home a scorching, rifling shot to send Topp XX through just inside the 18 yards box in the 90th minute.
Soon after, injury time ended and so were the hopes of the GDF as Topp XX once again are through to yet another semifinal berth  where their opponents are the Alpha United Club.
The officiating was very poor, the referees cannot come to decide the outcome of the match, they have to come and do a game on neutral grounds and protect the players.
The referee allowed the game to get out of hand and he wasn’t controlling it and administering cards as he should. You can see clearly that men were coming at men’s body and he just allowed it to continue over the entire 90 minutes. He was very sentimental in many decisions that he made.
Player/coach Collie Hercules, who was missing due to injury for this game, when asked if he was worried about the outcome stated, “I wasn’t worried because I know that the guys could have pulled it off. I feel even though they had scored back, we had control of the game and I wasn’t worried at any point in time.”
Speaking on Kayode McKinnon’s performance Hercules noted: “Tonight he was just overanxious.  He had been in good form as he scored in every game thus far, so he had to be a little bit more patient tonight. But it comes naturally and he will get it right next time.”
Asked if he would be playing in the semifinal Hercules said, “I am hopeful to play but I am not sure.”