Pele FC maintained their unbeaten run in the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Stag Beer Elite League, downing fierce rivals Fruta Conquerors 2-1 Friday at the Tucville Community Centre ground to climb atop the points standings.
The veteran duo of Travis Grant and Gregory Richardson ensured Pele walked away with the three points as they netted in the 18th and 67th minutes respectively during the hard-fought contest. On target in the loss was Dennis Edwards in the 57th minute.
With the win, Pele leapfrogged Alpha United to claim the top spot with 11 points while Fruta Conquerors remain in the third position with seven points.
Witnessed by a very large crowd, the home side almost got off to the perfect start in the sixth minute but Daniel Favourite was denied from within the top of the box by the outstretched leg of a defender.
Anthony ‘Sugar; Abrams then wasted a good chance to break the deadlock for the home side in the 10th minute, placing his effort over the crossbar from within the right side of the six yard box, after pouncing on a loose ball.
Fruta Conquerors’ failure to capitalize on their opportunities came back to haunt them eight minutes onward as Grant scored with a simple slot home down the centre of the net.
Racing into the centre of the six yard box, Grant placed his effort past the grounded custodian, after a lobbed shot from Richardson over the advancing ‘keeper came off the woodwork and fell into the path of Ronel Gordon, whose header was parried by the recovering ‘keeper into the path of Grant.
Pele almost doubled their lead in the 29th minute but Omallo Williams fired his first time effort wide of the lower left hand corner, after collecting a flat left side cross from Richardson within the centre of the box.
A curling free kick from Richardson 22 yards out on the left side of the field was parried onto the left upright by the goalkeeper as Pele began to seize further control of the matchup.
Richardson continued to be a thorn in the side of the hosts, rifling his effort wide of the lower right hand corner, after racing into the left side of the penalty box in the 41st minute as the scores remained unchallenged at the end of the first period.
It then became a game of two halves as Jermin Junior almost snatched the equaliser in the 50th minute, flashing his effort side of the right hand corner, from within the left side of the penalty area.
The home side then grabbed the dramatic equaliser seven minutes onward as Edwards netted a first time right foot finish into the left hand corner.
While the strike was nothing short of clinical, the cross was a thing of beauty as Eon Alleyne, after skipping past two challenges on the right side of the field, delivered a gem of a cross into the path of the onrushing Edwards who finished with aplomb, sending the crowd into a frenzy.
Nevertheless, their celebrations would be short-lived as Richardson netted 10 minutes onward.
Racing onto a lobbed through-pass in the centre of the field, Richardson, upon cutting across the right side of the box, hammered a right foot shot which flew under the outstretched hand of the diving goalkeeper and into the left hand corner, stunning the home crowd.
Similarly the home side should have equalized in the 76th minute as Junior wasted a glorious chance, blasting his effort wide of the lower right corner with only the ‘keeper in his path after controlling a lobbed pass within the left side of the box.
The offside flag then denied the home side from snatching a dramatic equaliser in the 86th minute as Alleyne volleyed his effort into the top right hand corner, after collecting a left side cross within the right side of the box, only to be judged correctly offside.
In the opening fixture, Alpha United and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) battled to a 1-1 draw.
