By Alva Solomon

NORTH West Secondary School (NWSS) upstaged crowd-favourites Hosororo Primary in penalties to book a place against defending champions Christianburg Wismar Secondary as action in the Digicel Football Championship continued at the Santa Rosa Community Centre ground in Moruca.Backed by a large crowd at the Region One ground, Hosororo went ahead from a Damian Cedeno volley which slipped through the gloves of the NWSS goalkeeper early in the first half.
However, the secondary school team pulled one back in the 22nd minute when Leonardo Emmanuel fired one in from the edge of the 18-yeard box.
From the outset the NWSS team retained most of the possession but their opponents were not to be underestimated as they coordinated their passes as the first half elapsed.
When play resumed in the second half, a lull in scoring opportunities brought more excitement to the boisterous crowd as the Hosororo Primary went ahead on a penalty kick 36 minutes into the second half. The infringement resulted from an infraction within the 18-yard box.
With Hosororo now one goal ahead, the team seemed confident of pulling off a win but the NWSS boys were unfazed and some amount of confusion in front of the Hosororo goal saw Daniel Bazilio fire off his left boot past a hapless Hosororo goalie. The crowd was now silenced as the NWSS players attacked their opponents’ goal on several occasions; Hosororo goalkeeper was now working overtime.
When the referee called an end to regulation time in the 90th minute, the crowd went silent.
NWSS goalkeeper, who was substituted in the second half, pulled off two saves, and a few misses and saves sent the Hosororo team packing as their opponents celebrated the win which eluded them for the past two years.
The win by NWSS will see the Region One champions take on the 2015 champions Christianburg/Wismar Secondary on July 20 at the Mabaruma Settlement ground. The winner will move into the semi-final stage of the championships.
Moruca residents were upset at the change in venue, as the game on July20 was originally set for Santa Rosa. NWSS will now have home advantage against their Region 10 opponents when the two clash in four days time.