Defending zonal and national league champions St Augustine Secondary and their arch rivals El Dorado Secondary Comprehensive played to an entertaining 2-2 draw as Championship Division action in the East Zone of the British Gas Secondary Schools Football League kicked off at the Larry Gomes Stadium yesterday in Malabar.
In the second game of a doubleheader, ElDo were made to hang on for the draw as a fast-finishing Green Machine side pushed for the decisive goal in the last 20 minutes.
The "Blue Thunder," El Dorado, led the game 2-1 at the half before the 'Green Machine' equalised in the 69th minute through Emmanuel Alexander.
In the first game between last-year's East Zone runners-up San Juan Secondary and Hillview College, the Bourg Mulatresse squad managed a comfortable 3-0 win in a game not distinguished by high quality play and great entertainment.
San Juan were rewarded, though, for their more attack-minded tactics.
Especially in the first half, strikers Jonathan Romain and Kadeem Gibbs always got strong support from their midfield in the persons of captain Elijah Manners, Imiliano Joseph and Joel Russell. It meant that the Hillview back four were sometimes out-numbered and that situation created scoring opportunities for the side in green.
In a ten-minute period in the first half, Hillview keeper Akel Baig, easily the more busy of the two custodians, was forced to make four good saves. First, Gibbs drove hard from 25 metres, forcing Baig to dive into line to get the shot under control. Then Hillview skipper Curt Austin cleared off the line after Baig had deflected a close-range shot from Manners before stopping a Romain header from the ensuing left side corner. And Baig got down low to smother another Manners drive from close-up after some careless dribbling by Kevon Knights opened a path for him from the left side of the penalty area.
But that pressure eventually yielded results.
On the half hour mark, San Juan's Romain diverted a header from a right-side corner to open up the scoring before Gibbs made it 2-0 three minutes before the half.
But those were the highlights of a game that lacked fluent football and enterprising play.
The second half saw a more determined effort by Hillview, spearheaded by their sturdy striker Stefon George. But their failure to spread the ball wide more often made for easy work for Akil Harley and company in the San Juan defence.
The quality of the game was summed up by the game's last goal when Kerron Lambert ill-advisedly attempted to dribble past two San Juan players deep in his own half. He only managed to surrender possession to Manners who rounded another defender and sprinted hard into the Hillview penalty area before side-footing past Baig two minutes from regulation time.
Luckily, the patrons had the second game to look forward to.
SSFL results
EL Dorado ( L.St Hillaire 19, Hyacinth 36.) 2 St Augustine (S.Spencer 9, Alexander 69) 2
San Juan 3 (J.Romain 30, K.Gibbs 42, E.Manners 88) Hillview 0
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