Seventeen-year-old Andrew Murray jnr., banged in a double to guide the national Under-20 side to a convincing 3-1 victory over Fruta Conquerors in an exhibition game yesterday at the National Park to signal the culmination of the Kick Start Clinic sponsored by Digicel and held by former England international John Barnes.
Murray received valuable support from midfielder Dwayne Blake who was responsible for delivering many of the precise passes to the strikers which led to many early attempts on Conquerors’ goal.
The U-20 side maintained an unyielding attack in the first half and reaped just rewards when superb ball movement combined with the quickness of Murray jnr. proved the perfect recipe for the first goal.
Since many of Conquerors’ defensive efforts were futile, the U-20 maintained possession for the majority of the first half, leaving Conquerors with very few attempts at goal.
Leonardo Adams tried to capitalize on one of these opportunities in the 39th minute, but his header was too soft and was easily saved by the goalie.
A few minutes after the interval, Rawle Scott, luckily positioned, capitalized on a loose ball deflected by the `keeper after Murray jnr. had blasted yet another shot at goal.
Conquerors only goal came in the 78th minute when Keanu Lagadou netted from up close to bring a shade of hope to his side.
After being sidelined for a bit, Murray jnr. returned to the field and managed to complete his double in the 86th minute despite the added attention he was receiving from the defenders.
After the game Murray could not contain his enthusiasm.
“Well, I’ve always trained hard and as soon as I got the chance I took it,” he told Stabroek Sport.
Murray’s performance will certainly cause him to be considered when Barnes selects the six Caribbean players to train with Sunderland’s football team.
Immediately after the game, players from the victorious side were awarded certificates of participation along with Digicel football jerseys and autographed photos of themselves with the legendary Barnes.
