REIGNING Kashif and Shanghai champions BK International Western Tigers coaching staff have no other than their custodian Travis Bess to thank as he came up trumps on Sunday night to take them into the final of the third annual Mackeson Stout/Digicel-sponsored Sweet 16 football tournament. Penalty kicks were the order of the day at the Plaisance/Industry Community Centre ground, as both semifinal matches failed to produce a winner after 120 minutes of exciting and at times lackadaisical football, especially in the feature match between Tigers and Santos.
In the first match of the evening, Fruta Conquerors (FC) found themselves in another penalty shootout against BV/Triumph United (BVTU), having had to undergo the same test in their very own NAMILCO Football Festival 48 hours ago against Seawall United.
According to many gathered at the venue, the FC/BVTU match-up should have been the feature game, as it provided football fans with thrills and exciting plays in comparison to the BK Tigers/Santos affair which was a dull one at times.
BVTU’s Shawn Daniels must have had a sleepless night after the match, since he missed several goal-scoring opportunities. However, he was presented with a ‘Golden One’ in the 70th minute when his team was awarded a penalty, which he kicked over the bar.
It came down to penalty kicks, with the crowd cheering on both custodians in FC”s Oswald Cornette and BTVU’s Devon Wilson, with the latter failing to stop any of FC’s penalty shot, while Cornette did well to stop one of five, as FC moved to the finals with a 5-4 victory.
The first half of the main match was an enthralling encounter as both teams sought to snatch the initiative, with Santos attacking from both flanks while BK International Western Tigers responded through the middle.
Wendell St Hill signalled his team’s intentions with a shot that was wide of the mark for the Tigers, who watched as a Shemroy Arthur free kick, taken from just outside their 18 yard box, went over the bar.
The veteran Gerald Whittington, who had scored Pele’s lone goal that landed them their first and only Kashif and Shanghai title back in January of 2009, sent a long ball deep into Western Tigers’ 18-yard box, only to see Bess, who exhibited great judgment, plucked same out of the air with ease.
As the West Ruimveldt-based club tried their best to get the ball to their lone striker in Gavin Wilson, Santos’ stern defence led by Jermaine Fraser with worthy support from Lennox Charles and Mark Glasgow along with custodian O’Neil Heywood, ensured Wilson got no breathing space.
At the other end of the field, Arthur, Whittington and Quacy John were making numerous raids on the Tigers defence, forcing skipper Sherman David along with Vashile Cantzlaar, Jorel Tyrell and Maxwell Pellew to work harder than before to thwart their attacks.
David did find the back of the net, but the sound of referee Stanley Lancaster’s whistle nullified same as an infringement was committed on Heywood, bringing BK International Western Tigers’ celebration to a halt both on and off the field.
A dull affair ensued after, with Tigers being on the defensive for reasons unknown as Santos found it hard to penetrate their defence, during regulation and extra time, leaving penalty kicks to decide the winner.
David took the first kick for his team and sent same crashing into the crossbar, to which Kester Jacobs beat Bess with a well-placed shot to his right even though he got his fingers to the ball.
Tyrell was next to take the kick from the spot for the Tigers and when his shot was blocked by Heywood, pandemonium broke out within the team’s band of supporters.
Bess restored order by blocking the shots of Heywood and Charles, while Cantzlaar levelled the score with his shot.
Both Pellew and Devon Moseley scored for BK Tigers along with Glenorvan Edmonds and John for Santos which pushed the game into sudden death penalty kicks.
Bess took and scored the first shot for his team before stepping in between the uprights and emulated Argentina’s 1990 custodian Claudio Guycochea who pulled off three miraculous penalty kicks saves to steer his team into the final and at the same time, brought smiles back on the face of their supporters.
The final will be contested on Thursday at the same venue between FC and BK International Western Tigers and will kick off at 20:00 h, with Santos and BVTU meeting in the third-place clash from 18:00 h.