‘Bend it like Beckham’ Futsal Championship
Back Circle and Sparta Boss will add another chapter to their fierce rivalry when they face off in the inaugural final of the ‘Bend it like Beckham’ Futsal Championship on Saturday following semifinal wins on Wednesday evening.
Back Circle bested Bent Street 4-2. Stephon McLean handed Back Circle the initial advantage with a fourth-minute strike.
This proved to be the only conversion of the first stanza. Bent Street would eventually restore parity to proceedings in the form of Samuel Garnett, who scored in the 32nd minute. The match would then require the extra time interval to decide the outcome, as the score remained unaltered in the second period.
An own goal, which resulted from a deflection off Daniel Wilson, handed Back Circle a 2-1 advantage in the 40th minute. However, their lead proved to be short-lived, as Bent Street equalised from the penalty mark one minute later off the boot of Wilson.
Nevertheless, Simeon Moore pushed Back Circle back into the ascendancy in the 45th minute, lashing the ball into the lower right corner. The win was then sealed three minutes later as recent recruit Bevney Marks thumped his effort into the roof of the net from the right side of the penalty area after receiving a left-sided pass.
On the other hand, Sparta Boss dismissed North East La Penitence 6-3. Darron Niles opened the scoring for the Sparta Boss unit in the eighth minute before Simeon Hackett doubled their advantage two minutes later.
The score ballooned once more in the 18th minute as Curtez Kellman found the back of the net. The score remained unchanged at 3-0 entering the halftime interval.
A 4-0 advantage was quickly established as Niles sealed his double in the 22nd minute. Hackett then completed his brace in the 25th to push the score to 5-0.
North East La Penitence would eventually get onto the score-sheet in the 28th minute via a Carl Griffith conversion. Griffith then made his presence felt once more as he netted in the 32nd minute to reduce the deficit to 2-5.
However, Hackett etched his name on the score-sheet in the 34th minute to restore his team’s four-goal lead. Griffith would net another consolation goal two minutes onwards to complete his second half hat-trick.
Meanwhile, the losing semifinalists will contest the third-place playoff. The winner of the event will pocket $1,000,000 and the championship trophy, while the second, third, and fourth-place finishers will receive $500,000, $300,000, and $200,000, respectively, and the corresponding accolade.
Complete Results
Semifinals
Game-1
Sparta Boss-6 vs. North East La Penitence-3
Sparta scorers
Simeon Hackett-10th, 25th, and 34th
Darron Niles-8th and 22nd
Curtez Kellman-18th
North East scorer
Carl Griffith-28th, 32nd, and 36th
Game-2
Bent Street-2 vs. Back Circle-4
Back Circle scorers
Stephon McLean-4th
Own Goal-40th
Simeon Moore-45th
Bevney Marks-48th
Bent St. scorers
Samuel Garnett-32nd
Daniel Wilson-41st
