Mayor’s Cup Football Championship...Alpha United needles Slingerz FC to cart off one million dollars and trophy

Mayor’s Cup Football Championship…Alpha United needles Slingerz FC to cart off one million dollars and trophy

Apr 09, 2013 Sports

A clever bit of dribbling by Gregory ‘Jackie Chan’ Richardson followed by a sharp right foot shot that flew past Slingerz FC custodian, Ronson Williams, in the 9th minute, earned Alpha ‘The Hammer’ United FC the championship trophy and one million dollars when the two teams battled for the premiere prize in the Mayor’s Cup Football Championship at the Georgetown Football Club ground Sunday evening last.

Gregory Richardson

Slingerz FC has been touted as the underdogs but has created quite a few upsets, the most significant, a 4-0 defeat over Camptown FC at the quarterfinals stage. The pundits were assured that Slingerz could have replicated the feat against Alpha and clearly the largest crowd of the tournament thronged the venue in anticipation of the duel.
Alpha started positively with crisp passes that saw them occupying the opposition’s half during the early exchanges. Slingerz eventually seized possession and kept the ball in Alpha’s half but without success. In the meantime, Slingerz’ point man, Dwayne Jacobs patrolling the left flank, latched onto a pass from one of his teammates and opted for a long shot to his right. His efforts amounted to naught as Alpha’s defence averted any danger by clearing the ball to the centre of the field.
The battle for possession was fierce and during one such session Richardson was left unmarked when he received a pin point offering. He sprinted to the opposition’s goal, dexterously evading two of Slingerz defenders, and plastered their custodian, Ronson Williams.
Dwayne Jacob immediately responded when he tore down the left wing in pursuit of the equalizer. He attempted a powerful left foot shot but failed to get past Dwight Peters who intercepted the ball which eventually went into touch.
The ferocious battle continued with first one team and then the other enjoying great moments; these did not translate into success, including a header from Jacobs which was the closest Slingerz came to equalizing.
In the meantime, Richardson continued to work hard and featured once again with his trademark dribbles. The oppositions’ defence team were prepared for him, checking him in mid stride. It was around then that Abrams featured after being fed a dolly of a pass. He struck with a mighty kick that slammed into the crossbars for Ronson Williams to retrieve. Shortly afterwards the whistle sounded to end the first session but not before Richardson received a yellow card for a dangerous tackle.
Slingerz kept up the competitive spirit into the second half but it was soon apparent that Alpha was the superior team. Despite the obvious chasm in skill and experience, with Alpha being the superior, Slingerz held their own and even though they failed to equalize, must have felt heartened by the fact that they were able to hold ‘The Hammer’ to that one goal advantage. The general consensus is that Slingerz, a relatively new kid on the block, if given time, will rise to be a fierce competitor of Alpha, undoubtedly the best football squad locally.
Alpha will receive a cheque for one million dollars, while Slingerz wins $500,000. The GDF would have already been assured of the third prize of $300,000 following their truncated game against Den Amstel FC. Giftland Office Max has put up a special prize for the Most Valuable Player but the organizers are still to disclose this player’s name, while each Alpha player will while receive a hamper donated by Ricks and Sari. The player scoring the most goals will receive a microwave oven from Keishars and a mattress from AH&L Kissoon Ltd.
Though he has not scored in Sunday’s game, Abrams is in line for this prize after entering the finals with 5 goals to his name.
Patrons were also treated to two exhibition games featuring the GDF against Rhythm Squad and GFC against New Amsterdam United FC, while Mayor Hamilton Green greeted the teams just before the start of the match. GFF Presidential hopeful, Ivan Persaud and football administrator, Faizul Khan also accompanied the Mayor.
Meanwhile, organizer, Lennox Arthur lauded the quality of the tournament. He said that the competition was intense and many of the top teams were booted out by their less fancied foes. Mr. Arthur said that he is especially grateful for the corporate entities that supported the tournament including Digicel, Ansa McAl and Two Brothers Gas Station. He said that they came on board after the tournament commenced but nonetheless, their input is valued. He also extended gratitude to several other entities for their support including General Equipment Ltd, MaCorp, Guyana Beverages Inc, CIDI, Mohammad’s Enterprise (Nazar Mohammad), Bakewell, Beepat & Sons, CBR Mining, Guyana Lottery, Digicel, GT&T, Ansa McAl, Ricks and Sari and Giftland Office Max.
The prize giving ceremony will be held at City Hall Chamber today at 10:30hrs.