GOALKEEPER Tevin Crawford was the hero for Christiansburg/Wismar Secondary School (CWSS), pulling off two crucial saves to pilot the defending champions into the quarter-finals of this year’s Digicel Schools Football tournament after beating Uitvlugt 3-1 Secondary on penalty kicks.A vociferous crowd at the Wisburg Secondary School ground yesterday witnessed an intense contest; so intriguing that neither team could have found the net in regulation time, forcing the game into penalties, and it was there where Crawford capped his brilliant day between the uprights.
Uitvlugt Secondary were first to the penalty spot but were denied by Crawford, who read his man well enough to choose the right side to make the save and put the champs in the advantage.
Duquan Hercules, who enjoyed a brilliant game in the midfield, buried his right-footed effort to up ‘Multi’ 1-0.
Uitvlugt Secondary were again disappointed when their next attempt rolled wide of the goal while the champions saw Omar Brewley put them up 2-0 after the 14-year-old striker hammered in his effort.
Multi missed their next penalty kick thanks to good glove work by Uitvlugt custodian and the score remained at 2-0 in favour of the three-time defending champions.
Shomal Smith’s goal brought the Uitvlugt team and their supporters some hope but not to be outdone, Multi showed why they have had a stranglehold on the trophy over the past three years.
Nifty striker Jovon ‘Ronaldo’ Bobb stepped up and sealed the emphatic win with a tricky shot from the penalty spot, much to the delight of their supporters who flocked the players in the field to celebrate what they felt was a much deserved win.
The trip to the quarter-finals puts the defending champions closer to making it five finals in a row while chasing their fourth consecutive title.
In the earlier exchanges, the school from the ‘West Side’ came out looking hungry and were more forceful to the ball than their Linden counterparts, but it didn’t take long for ‘Multi’ to stamp their authority on the game.
Amar Jones had the best chance of putting the home side up an early goal but he failed to fire into the wide open net and allowed the Uitvlugt defenders to regroup, based on his blunder to clear the ball from within the danger zone.
The second stanza was more energetic than the first, but it was ‘Multi’ who literally controlled the game.
Uitvlugt were forced to mostly defend throughout the remainder of the game as the championship, fuelled by the cheers from the huge crowd at the venue, pressed the men from Region 3 in search of a winning goal.
Bobb probably came close to putting the game away but his Cristiano Ronaldo-inspired acrobatic right-footed shot slammed into the upright after hitting the ball from point-blank range.