FRUTA Conquerors and Pele Football Club played to an exciting, scoreless draw while Delon Lanferman and Daniel Wilson impressed to lead Alpha United to a 3-0 win over the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) when the STAG Elite League continued on Sunday at the Tucville Community ground. Pele FC extended their reign at the top of the points standing with 18 points while Fruta Conquerors moved to fourth on the table with 12 points.
The win for Alpha United puts them in second place (16 points) and above rivals Slingerz FC (15 points) and was a bounce back following their devastating 3-0 defeat to Pele FC in their last game.
Meanwhile, watched by another large crowd, the game lived up to the hype of two clubs having a score to settle.
Their first meeting in the league ended in a 2-1 win in favour of Pele after their ‘star’ Gregory ‘Jackie Chan’ Richardson scored the game winner late in the contest, but on Saturday, it was an entirely different story.
Richardson was his usual dominant self; virtually unstoppable in the game, but head coach Calvin Allen ensured that Pele’s talisman would have to work extra hard on the night.
Despite the team’s defensive brilliance, Pele almost conceded the night’s only goal in the 31st minute when Dennis Edwards collected a sweetly crossed ball from Eon Alleyne but the lanky player’s header went crashing into the woodwork.
The ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ were echoed around the ground but on the other end, Richardson’s shot also beat the keeper to come off the post.
Nothing much changed in the second half with the teams creating an equal number of chances that didn’t materialise into goals.
In the 56th minute, Edwards was once again culpable of missing Conquerors chance, but he was this time denied by Pele FC’s Devon Charles in goal.
Pele came close to scoring through John ‘Brown Boy’ Waldron whose shot from just over the half had beaten the Fruta Conquerors custodian but the ball came off the crossbar.
Meanwhile, Lanferman continued his exceptional form in the STAG Elite League when he netted in the 11th and 56th minute to take his goal tally to seven; the same as Pele FC’s Richardson and the most in the league.
Wilson scored in the 75th minute for Alpha United who remained in contention to play in the playoff of the top four teams starting on November 27.
The result, however, was the GDF’s fourth loss of the league and though being gifted an additional three points after Slingerz FC had forfeited their clash, the military men continue to struggle.

By Rawle Toney