Caribbean United of Barbados and Milerock secured similar 2-0 victories over Winners Connection and Seawall FC respectively when action in 22nd annual Kashif and Shanghai tournament continued at the Mackenzie Sports Club (MSC) Ground on Friday evening.
The result of these wins means that Caribbean United and Milerock will face each other in the quarterfinals on Boxing Day at the MSC Ground. In front of a fair size crowd that was very vocal about events on the field, goals in either half from Zidigipah Samuel and Marlon Sears aided the Bajans in securing a thoroughly convincing victory in the opening encounter of the night.
It was a very aggressive game which saw referee Miguel Vieira having to brandish five yellow cards and blow his whistle countless times for fouls from both sides. At the start Winners Connection (WC) created the majority of the chances within the first 20 minutes of play that saw WC Striker Charles Harvey (number 11) guilty of squandering some very good opportunities.
However the boys from the “Land of flying fish” scored first against the run of play when a free-kick in the 11th minute on the left-flank by Carlton Brutus (number 14) was headed home by Marlon Sears (number 6).
After this goal, the Bajans who boasted a few players in their national football side began to control the pace of the game for the remainder of the half.
They should have made it 2-0 in the 43rd minute, when Delroy Deen (number 13) beat the off-side trap running down the left-flank and with the WC defense totally exposed, he set a sharp cross into the box that Tellon Erskine (number 11) blasted wildly over the bar when he just had the keeper to beat.
That was the last significant action as the teams went into the first half with Caribbean United 1-0 ahead.
Almost immediately after the resumption WC had their best chance of the game, when via a free-kick some 20 yard out in the 51st minute taken by captain Elsid Miggins, it was fumbled by Caribbean United keeper Sherlock Adams and the arriving WC players in the box just managed to hit the ball wide of the post.
At this stage, the pace of the game slowed down and became a bit of a mid-field slugfest with both teams throwing in rough tackles in an effort to control possession.
But in what proved to be the last kick of the game in the 90th minute, Samuel cut in from the left-flank sending a hard shot from an acute angle that totally flummoxed WC keeper Jamal Gibbons to score a superb goal, which sent his teammates running onto the field in celebration.
In game two time tournament champions Milreock who possessed several established players, tamed Seawall FC who shocked five-time champions Bakewell Topp XX in the previous round.
Among those recruited by Milerock were guest players such as past/current Golden Jaguars players such a Charles “Lilly” Pollard, Andrew Durant, Carey Harris and Trinidad and Tobago striker Kendall Jagdeosing.
Playing a formation that fluctuated between 4-3-3/4-5-1 in attack/defense according to Coach Brian Joseph, the Linden side created enough chances throughout the 90- minutes to score more than five goals.
With a wasteful first half coming to an end, it took national defender Pollard to come forward unexpectedly to show his strikers how it is done, when he delivered a lovely weighted cross that Randolph Jerome finally converted in the 46th minute.
The second half was much like the first with regular Milerock raids on the Seawall FC goal, but lack of precision and composure in the box resulted in them capitalizing on these chances.
Their only reward came in the 71st minute with Jagdeosing flying down the right-flank to send in a cross, which after a mad scramble in the box between the groups of players, Alesta Johnson (number 10) eventually poked it into the net.
Action in the competition now moves to the Blairmont Ground in Berbice for a double header between opening day winner Mill Ballers and Rosignol United and then Trinidad side Caledonia AIA will face New Amsterdam United.
