Latest update November 5th, 2024 1:00 AM
Busta Soft Shoe Football Competition…Sparta Boss prove too good for West Front Road
– Queen Street finish third
By Rawle Welch
Even before General Manager of Guyana Beverages Inc. Robert Selman expressed his Company’s satisfaction on the success of the inaugural Busta Soft Shoe Football Competition, the large outpouring of fans had already
Guyana Beverages Inc General manager Robert Selman (right) hands over the winning trophy to Sparta Boss Captain in the presence of teammates and Petra Organisation Co-Director Troy Mendonca Tuesday night at the GFC ground.
left a positive legacy on the event.
The final which was played on Tuesday night, at the GFC ground, saw Sparta Boss led by the irrepressible pair of sharpshooters Gregory ‘Jackie Chan’ Richardson and Devon Millington cruise to a comfortable 4-2 triumph over a too defensive minded West Front Road ‘Gold is Money’ unit to capture the winning trophy and first prize worth $600,000.
Richardson, whose earlier performances had fallen just short of his usually high standard, was in lethal form as he fired in a trifecta in the 11th, 26th and 35th minutes and combined nicely with strike partner Devon Millington, who got things started with the opening goal after six minutes of play to give his team the early lead.
National player Colin Nelson, who had joined West Front Road from the semi-final stages due to national duty, was once again the one leading the fight back after netting in the 22nd minute, before Michael Pedro added another on the stroke of full time mainly for consolation purposes.
However, West Front Road for their outstanding efforts throughout the competition went away with the runner-up prize of $300,000 and a trophy.Sparta Boss signaled their intention as early as the fourth minute when Millington unleashed a fierce right-footer that crashed on to the crossbar and rebounded into play.
However, two minutes later Millington made no mistake this time lashing home an errant
Tournament MVP Sheldon Shepherd collects his monetary award from Petra Organisation Troy Mendonca on Tuesday night.
pass from Michael Pedro into the back of the goal to evoke wild celebrations from their band of supporters.
That goal seemed to ignite Richardson and he showed flashes of his brilliance which had earned him the reputation of being one of the most dangerous strikers in a national uniform.
The skilful Richardson received a pass delivered from a freekick and fired into the lower left corner in one motion to double their advantage after eleven minutes.
West Front Road looked shell-shocked and seemed unable to conjure up the nerve to go forward as Sparta Boss attacked with increasing menace.
Michael Oie came close on one occasion, but fired just outside the left upright and the half came with Sparta Boss holding a solid 2-0 lead.
Two minutes into the final period, Nelson breathed some life into his team when he finished clinically a buildup that was created from centrefield.
However, Richardson’s wizardry put paid to any hope that West Front Road harboured of making it a game when he left central defender Hubert Pedro in his wake with a mesmerising dribble, before firing a powerful strike into the goal.
Not finished as yet, Richardson completed his treble to crown a good night after rifling in a screamer five minutes from full time to seal the deal.
West Front Road rallied briefly and Michael Pedro etched his name on the scoresheet with a simple finish past the goalkeeper, but it was just too late to scare the opposition who just maintained possession until the final whistle sounded.
In the third place playoff, Queen Street Tiger Bay outlasted Kitty Weavers to win 3-2 with Darren Harris netting a hat-trick that came in the 6th, 20th and 31st minutes.
Nigel Denny and Sherwin Vincent in the 12th and 26th minutes respectively responded for Kitty Weavers.
Queen Street took home $200,000 while Kitty Weavers collected $100,000. Both teams received trophies.
Sheldon Shepherd of Sparta Boss was adjudged the tournament’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) and was awarded $50,000 compliments of 2J’s General Store.
Sophia’s Dwayne Lowe copped the highest goal scorer accolade with nine goals in five matches. And he is set to collect one gold chain from Junior’s Jewellery.
The Most Disciplined Team award went to West Front Road and they received $25,000 compliments of Guyana Beverage Company.
The night’s full results are seen below:
Sparta Boss-4 vs West Front Road-2
Sparta Scorers
Gregory Richardson-11th, 26th and 35th
Devon Millington-6th
West Front Road Scorers
Colin Nelson-22nd
Michael Pedro-40th
3rd Place Playoff
Queen Street Tigerbay-3 vs Kitty Weavers-2
Queen Street Scorer
Darren Harris-6th, 20th and 31st
Kitty Scorers
Nigel Denny-12th
Sherwin Vincent-26th
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