Belmopan and Calcutta fight to 1-1 draw
Good evening, I?m James Adderley and here?s the latest delivery of Sports Monday. In week nine of the RFG Cup Tournament found the Calcutta Bulls hosting Belmopan United yesterday up north. This is after the Capital City gang had wrestled three points from this very Calcutta Bulls via a successful protest in the B.P.F.L.
With bragging rights at stake, Belmopan looks to strike early off this spotkick from Edmund Pandy that allows Carl Smith to launch this header that inches outside the upright.
The visitors continue the offensive press with this impressive individual effort from Rogelio Batres that forces Venancio Sutherland into a big time save for the north.
The Bulls now figure it?s time for them to get rolling, so they go to the give and go, but Joseph Ingram in goal for Belmopan anticipates the finish.
The Bulls now look to usurp the role of protagonist and they should have done better with this particular opportunity.
On this press it?s Esteban Hall firing from the right side while Merlin Teck tries to capitalise off this miss shot from the left side, but both come away empty.
Then Augustine Mendez gets to show off this spotkicking ability but the left foot launch is swatted away by Ingram.
It?s all Bulls now, so Hall finds Merlin Teck, whose header needed a little change of direction to impress the scoreboard.
At the other end Derys Benavides works his brand of magic to get a shot at goal, only to find the side netting.
On this trip downfield, Benavides finds Gary Wiltshire who fires this left foot that presents no problems for Venancio Sutherland.
Folks, talk about looking a gift horse in the mouth. Merlin Tech certainly should have gotten the Bulls on the scoreboard right here; instead he applies for a pilot license.
So Sergio Gilharry decides to do it himself with this right foot punch, but it proves to be another high riser. At the half, neither team has done enough to move the scoreboard.
The Bulls come back with the same pressure in second half and maybe Walter Trejo would want this one back.
On this play, haste gets the better of Esteban Hall who gets nothing on this left foot punch from point-blank range.
In the meantime, the Belmopan keeper Joseph Ingram decides to live dangerously, but gets away with it.
We?re some sixty minutes into this ballgame when Gary Wiltshire finds Derys Benavides who squeezes the right foot past Venancio and the visitors take a 1-zip lead.
We must also give credit where credit is due, so respect Ingram who snuffs out this attempt by Peter Canul.
At the seventy-second minute of this centre finds the boots of Merlin Tech and his right away launch bounces past the Belmopan keeper for the 1-1 tie. And yes folks, and that?s the way it ended.
In other results from around the league, in Group A: Hankook Verdes bombed Benque Viejo 5-1, the Placencia Pirates blanked F.C. Belize 2-zip, while Kremandala got its first home win with a 6-zip rout over winless Cayo Avengers.
Over in Group B: Mango Creek beat BOCA 3-1, New Site Erei and the San Pedro Seahawks settled for a 1-1 tie, while Wagiya was the recipient of the Juventus freebie.
Thus after week nine in the RFG tournament the standings look like this. In Group A, Wagiya leads with twenty-three points, Verdes show twenty, FC Belize seventeen, Kremandala thirteen, Placencia Pirates eleven, Benque Viejo United three, while the Cayo Avengers, can you believe it, nine weeks into the season, still remains without a point.
Over in Group B, New Site Erei leads with twenty points, both San Pedro and the Bulls have amassed seventeen points apiece, BOCA has fourteen, Mango Creek thirteen, and Belmopan seven.
Turning to the volleyball scene, the National Secondary Schools Tournament was staged at the City Centre over the weekend with St. Catherine?s Academy and Mopan Technical High arriving at the female finals. We take you to the final set after both teams had recorded a win apiece in this championship series.
It?s a pressure packed situation when Christine Chang sets up Bianca McFadzean, who knows what to do with the pill to make it an 8-7 S.C.A. lead.
The Chang and Bianca Show comes up again with McFadzean providing the big bomb. And this is the final point in the match. It gives St. Catherine?s the 15-12 win and the 2005 female volleyball title at the secondary school level. We certainly send our congratulations.
On the male side it was St. John?s College and Toledo Community College in the championship rounds. T.C.C. would take this title in two straight sets 25-22 and 25-19 and we must give maximum respect to the guys from the south, they came to the city and took out the big boys.
At the end of this tournament Bianca McFadzean of St. Catherine?s emerged female MVP, while Garrick Ramclam of Toledo took that honour in the male division. To the secondary school volleyball community we say good show.
Turning to the basketball scene, the Belize Basketball Federation will be presenting two international matches on eleventh November at the City Centre. On the twelfth November this series moves to the U.B. campus in Belmopan at nine p.m. sharp is the designated time for start. The American Airlines Ruff Riders will be back in town, they will be challenging our best players, like Kirk ?Shabba? Smith, Keith ?Superman? Acosta, and of course A.C. Augustine. You don?t want to miss it people as the Belize Basketball Federation uses this opportunity to try to bring back basketball into the consciousness of the Belizean society.
Turning to the track and field scene, we must give maximum respect to Ezekiel Cordova Usher who won the New York Roadrunners Grand Prix at Staten Island. Last week he did this. We want to give him maximum respect for finishing first in this thirteen point one mile race. When you?re big you?re large. Respect is due.
That?s it for now though, we invite you back same time same place next week. Jah over all, I?m James Adderley.
