Benjamin, Wilson pilot Region 4 to One Guyana President’s Cup title

Jan 03, 2023 Sports

Leo ‘fantastic’ Lovell named MVP

By Rawle Toney

Kaieteur News – It was a fitting finale for the inaugural One Guyana President’s Cup tournament, as a near capacity-filled National Track and Field Centre witnessed Region 4 coming from behind to defeat Region 3, 2 – 1, to cart off the trophy and $2M.

Prime Minister Mark Phillips, Minister of Sports Charles Ramson Jr, and Director of Sport Steve Ninvalle, along with other members of Government and sponsors were on hand at the Edinburgh facility.

Many pundits predicted the two sides colliding in the final, taking into account their well-rounded roster. And they delivered.

The starting line-up remained the same for both sides from their respective semi-final win, and in the opening stages of their encounter, Region 3 had the upper hand.

Prime Minister Mark Phillips presenting the One Guyana President’s Cup trophy to Region 4 Captain, Daniel Wilson, in the presence of Minister Charles Ramson and other officials. (Rawle Toney Photo)

Thirteen minutes into the contest, Trayon Bobb worked his way around Jeremy Garrett and Colin Nelson to find an open Leo Lovell, who nicely curled his right-footed volley out of Akel Clarke’s reach to give Region 3 the 1 – 0 advantage.

Both teams came close to scoring in the first half, but neither connected on their chances.

The half ended with Region 3 holding a 1 – 0 cushion.

Kobi Alexander was red-carded in the 55th minute, reducing Region 3 to 10 men. That, along with several changes by Coach Dover resulted in Region 4 upping the ante, which paid off in the 75th minute.

Captain Daniel Wilson stepped up to take a free kick just outside of the penalty area, and his shot was timed to perfection, beating the Region 3 custodian to level the score 1 – 1.

Kelsey Benjamin, one minute later, slotted home what turned out to be the winning goal of the game and the shot that earned his team $2M.

Benjamin scored his 10th goal of the tournament, tied with Abumchi Benjamin of Region 5.

In the third place game, Region 5 had a 6-3 win over Region 7, thanks to a hat-trick from Abumchi Benjamin (7’, 30’, 66’), Delroy Fraser (53’), Marc Galloway (58’) and Olvis Mitchell (88’).

Andrew Simmons (11’and 36’) and Whitney Welcome (90+2) were the goal scorers for Region 7.

The One Guyana President’s Cup tournament was conceptualized by President Irfaan Ali and administered by the Kashif and Shanghai Organisation and the Guyana Football Federation (GFF).

As much as the tournament is being used as part of the President’s One Guyana initiative, the Commander-in-Chief added, “It’s not only about football, but a mission and an aspiration of us getting into the next world cup.”

President Ali spoke at several public events, where he was vocal about seeing Guyana at the 2026 World Cup in Mexico, Canada and the USA.

The President said the Government of Guyana is committed to removing all barriers that will prevent the country from getting into the next world cup.

Leo ‘fantastic’ Lovell named MVP

As it relates to the One Guyana Football Tournament, President Ali thanked the players for their participation while noting that it was just the beginning of a legacy that he hopes forms part of the GFF’s plans to see Guyana qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Following the Inter-Ward tournament played throughout the country, the districts selected their best 25 players to play in the Regional Tournament.

In Group A, Region 4 (Demerara/Mahaica), ranked as the top seed, was joined by Region 6 (East Berbice/Corentyne), Region 7 (Cuyuni/Mazaruni), Region 9 (Upper Takutu/Upper Essequibo) and Region 8 (Potaro-Siparuni).

Region 10 (Upper Demerara/Upper Berbice) was placed as the top seed in Group B and joined by Region 5 (Mahaica/Berbice), Region 1 (Barima/Waini), Region 3 (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara) and Region 2 (Pomeroon-Supenaam).

The teams played in a round-robin format in the initial stage, where the top two teams from each group advanced to the semi-finals.

Matches were played at the National Track and Field Centre, the Buxton Community Centre Ground, the Bartica Community Centre Ground, #5 Ground and Albion Sports Complex.

The One Guyana President’s Cup was one of the most lucrative tournaments ever held in Guyana.

Apart from the $2M offered to the winning team, each player received $80,000 as a one-off payment. Team captains received $100,000.

The head coach of each team collected $100,000, while members of his coaching staff received $80,000.

For each win in the group stage, teams were rewarded $200,000, and each semi-finalist $400,000. Second place overall pocketed $1M.