M & M Tour of Belize set to start Saturday

Good Evening, I’m James Adderley and this is Sports Monday. The National Football Team is readying itself to participate in the 2007 UNCAF Nations Cup Tournament and will leave the Jewel for El Salvador tomorrow, by way of TACA.

After beating Inter Playa Del Carmen of Quintana Roo 1-0 at Chetumal, Team Belize concluded the two game friendly series at the People’s Stadium in Orange Walk yesterday to determine who makes the trip to the Nations Cup in a Belizean uniform.

Lennox Castillo seeks to impress Coach Antonio Viera with this foray into the danger zone, but his delivery leaves something to be desired.

This time downfield, the home team attacks off the set piece and maybe Elroy Smith should have put this one away.

It’s Lennox Castillo again on the move – this time he finds Harrison Tasher, who can’t find the pill.

The visitors finally look dangerous when Ascer Alvarez almost beat Charlie Slusher to find his man who bungles the shot. At the half it is a scoreless ballgame.

Folks, if you see a two different line ups in the second half it’s because both teams are allowed to field all twenty-eight players listed.

Of course people you already figured it out, highlights are hard to come by in this one and both coaches must be worried despite the numerical quantity of players.

Kello Leslie then tries to break the tie with this studied push, but Emmanuel Montano collects.

By the way folks, that man now in the Belize goal is Shane Orio of Punta Rienas, Costa Rica, but he will not be tested today. Until of course he has to punch out this long range missile out from the mid-field.

You make the call people. This shot by Ryan Simpson is fouled inside the area and the rule by the man in the middle is, well, penalty.

The National Team sends for Harrison “Kafu” Roches and he converts with the right foot.

This ballgame ends 1–zip, so Belize wins this particular series against Inter Playa Del Carmen of Quintana Roo 2-nil on aggregate. Of course, the level of competition will move up as we head into the UNCAF Tournament.

More importantly folks, the twenty players to travel tomorrow in a Belizean uniform emerged after yesterday’s conclusion.

They are: Ryan Simpson, Woodrow West, Andrew Allen, Elroy Smith, Victor Moralez, Cristobal Gilharry, Lennox Castillo, Shane Orio, Dalton Eiley, Harrison Roches, Mark Leslie, Derys Benavides, Carlos Slusher, Orlando Lyon, Ian Gaynair, Bernard Linares, Kareem Haylock, Deon McCauley, and David Trapp. The coach is Antonio Viera. He will be assisted by Marvin Ottley, Kent Gabourel, Ken Vasquez, and Luis Cabrera.

In other football news, Jenkins of Landivar fame converts the penalty as Southside All Stars prevailed against their Northern over forty counterparts 1-nil on yesterday’s U.N.I.A Dara Bob Marley tribute inside the M.C.C. Grounds. We say good show guys and we glad to see you old guys going strong.

We also want to mention, in other football news that the RFG Cup Tournament Pre-Season games kicks off this Sunday at the M.C.C. Grounds. F.C. Belize will face San Pedro Nairi’s. Wagiya will hold court against Revolutionary Conquerors inside the Carl Ramos Stadium, Dangriga. At the Norman Broaster Stadium, it’s Santels against Hankook Verdes. At the People’s Stadium, Alpha goes up against Suga Boys Juventus, and at the Toledo Union Field it’s Toledo United in action against Tex Mar Boys.

Turning to the cycling scene, the fifth edition of the M & M Tour of Belize will blast off on February tenth with stage one on the Northern Highway. We caught with race sponsor and originator, Roque Matos of M & M Engineering.

Roque Matos, Organizer, M & M Tour
“We are expecting one hundred and fifty riders. We have teams from Guatemala, from El Salvador, from the United States, from Canada, and from Mexico, and individuals from other countries like Sweden, Costa Rica, Columbia and Guyana.”

James Adderley
“You want to just take us quickly through the areas you’re gonna cover?”

Roque Matos
“We are covering the North on the first weekend, which is Orange Walk/Corozal area, and then we are coming west to Belmopan on the Sunday, the eleventh. Then we will be around Belize City area during the week until Friday when we leave to go to Benque. Saturday we have the most exciting stage, which will go from Benque to Stann Creek and then to the Gap. And I think a lot of people are excited to go to the Gap to see how the riders suffer up the hardest hill in Belize. We are going to have world class level athletes riding in Belize for the first time, a lot of professional riders, professional teams. It’s going to be a very exciting race and right now I can’t tell who will win – it’s gonna be very, very exciting.”

James Adderley
“Have all the traffic necessities been taken care of?”

Roque Matos
“Yes, we have been planning for months now. We have already had meetings with the police to deal with the traffic. We have met with the Belize Cycling Association. We have been having constant meetings with the U.C.I. commissars, which are coming to supervise the event. We have been having meetings with the team owners, so I think we are pretty much set for the event.”

James Adderley
“And we kick off on Saturday?”

Roque Matos
“Yes, we kick off on Saturday, but before Saturday we have a team presentation, a launching Friday, the ninth at Bruce Bike Shop where we will have all the teams presented; all the foreign teams, as well as local teams and the sponsors and speeches.”

Hey folks, we invite you to stay tuned as Channel 5 will cover every stage of this particular event.

That’s it for now, though. We invite you back same time, same place, next week. Jah over all, I’m James Adderley.