Foundation had an opportunity to create a piece of Guinness Street Football history by becoming the first team to win three consecutive zonal titles, but in the end they fell agonisingly short in the Central Zone competition at the Edinburgh 500 Basketball Court in Chaguanas on Friday night.
The two-time defending champions came up against Chelsea, who had defeated them 2-1 on penalties in their final Group A round robin fixture, in a final that was expected to be a very close affair.
In a tense battle for supremacy, Foundation enjoyed the better of the exchanges in the first session, controlling most of the possession and having three opportunities on goal, but Chelsea were resolute in defence and refused to wilt under the pressure.
Second half action saw Chelsea in a more attacking mode while Foundation calmly dealt with any threatening moves that came their way. Both teams were so solid defensively that attempts on goal were now being made from a distance.
And when the whistle went to signal the end of regulation, it meant that the winners would be decided by a sudden death penalty shootout as neither team had scored during the course of the match.
Chelsea’s captain Dwayne Ramasray stepped up and nonchalantly buried his spot kick to give his team the upper hand, with the reliable John Belgrave set to kick for the opposition.
Foundation’s fans were ripping with confidence as Belgrave has been one of the team’s stalwart over the years and an outstanding taker of spot kicks, as he showed earlier when he converted from the spot in their 1-0 semifinal win over Touches.
But this time around it was not to be, as his effort would crash into the upright and rebound in his direction to hand victory and the Guinness Street Football Central Zone title to a deserving Chelsea.
Both teams advanced to the final after strong showings in their Group A fixtures.
Chelsea topped the group after 3-0 whippings of South Boys, Innocent Fun and Young Gunners, as well as a 2-1 penalty win over Foundation. The eventual champions then defeated Group B runners-up, Have Ah Time 2-1 on penalties in their semifinal match-up, after a 1-1 stalemate during regulation time.
Foundation’s road to the final saw them record 4-1 wins over South Boys and Young Gunners, as well as a 3-0 shutout of Innocent Fun, before losing to Chelsea on penalties. In the semis, Foundation faced Group B winners, Touches. Belgrave got the winning item for Foundation in a sudden death shootout after regulation time failed to produce any goals.