Despite staring down a 0-2 deficit, home side Monedderlust FC fashioned the first upset win of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Stag Beer Elite League, downing the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) 3-2 on Saturday at the No. #5 ground in Berbice.
Trailing following conversions from siblings Delroy and Delwyn Fraser in the 11th and 22nd minutes respectively, the hosts initiated the comeback in the 29th minute, cutting the deficit to one under fortuitous circumstances as a left-side cross was inadvertently deflected into the right hand corner of the net the by the leg of a defender.
The score was then levelled in the 52nd minute, igniting loud celebrations from the medium-sized crowd as Kevin Cottoi scored, lashing his effort into the net after pouncing on a botched clearance at the top of the box from a cross into the area.
They were to be given a further reason to rejoice as Travis Henry grabbed what proved to be the go-ahead winner two minutes onward, finishing into the back of the net after latching onto a cross from the right side of the field.
With the win, Monedderlust secured three points while GDF remain without a point. The visitors began the matchup on a positive note in the seventh minute as a Glenorvan Edmonds volley from 26 yards out in the centre of the park was denied by the ‘keeper low to his left.
The army unit quickly built on this momentum, taking the lead four minutes onward as Delroy Fraser netted, turning and smashing his right footed effort from within the right side of the penalty box into the top left hand corner of the net.
It quickly became 2-0 as Delwyn Fraser scored, skipping past his marker after cutting in from the right side of the field into the top of box, before unleashing a powerful effort into the roof of the left corner.
Nonetheless, the home side would reverse their early fortunes, netting three unanswered goals on either side of half time. The opening fixture of the evening witnessed Fruta Conquerors squeaking past Buxton United by a 1-0 margin.
Winner of the round will pocket $4,000,000 while the second, third and fourth place teams will collect $2,000,000, $1,000,000 and $500,000 respectively. Similarly, the point’s leader prior to the knockout stage in the League Genesis round will pocket an additional $1,000,000.
The action will resume on Wednesday with a doubleheader matchups. At the GFC ground, Bourda, the hosts will lock horns with Slingerz FC at 18:00hrs while Alpha United will tackle Pele in the feature contest at 20:00hrs.
