Golden Grove defeated Brusch Dam on penalty kicks to punch their semi-final place in the inaugural 592 Beer Inter-Village football championships Sunday at the Golden Grove Community Centre ground.
Tournament coordinator Eon Havercome during a brief comment said, “The knockout round has clearly lived up to its billing and has provided entertaining football. Both matches required penalty kicks to decide the outcome which indicates the competitiveness of the tournament. The fans were treated to the drama of the penalty shootouts which is always a sight to see and I anticipate much more drama and excitement as we no progress to Christmas Day for the second round of quarterfinals in Buxton.”
The hosts prevailed 3-0 from the penalty mark, after regulation time ended scoreless in a bruising affair. It was a brilliant showing from the home side who were perfect from the distance. Brusch Dam got off to the worst possible start as they missed the opening shot.
Golden Grove made no mistake in their opening kick, converting to the right corner. It went from bad to worse for the visitors, as their second effort from the distance was fired over the crossbar. Golden Grove capitalized once more, blasting down the center of the net to take command at 2-0.
Brusch Dam’s abject performance from the penalty spot continued as they once again failed to score, blasting high over the crossbar. The home side maintained their perfect record from the distance to seal the win with a shot into the left side.
Meanwhile, Beterverwagting [BV] battled past Ann’s Grove 3-1 via the penalty shoot-out route, after normal time ended 0-0. BV took first strike and scored. However, it was an unfortunate start for Ann’s Grove who missed from the distance.
BV’s one goal lead was maintained at 2-1, as both teams scored in the second round. The start of the third round witnessed BV missing from the distance. However, Ann’s Grove failed to capitalize as they also missed the target by firing wide of the right side.
BV then claimed a 3-1 advantage to start the fourth round as they converted. Needing to score to keep their hopes alive, Ann’s Grove sealed their exit as they failed to convert once again compliments of a goalkeeping save.
The event resumes tomorrow (Christmas Day) with another quarterfinal doubleheader. The first match on the card will pit Mahaica against Friendship from 20:00hrs. In the second fixture, hosts Buxton tackles Paradise at 22:00hrs. The winner of the competition will receive $500,000 and the championship trophy. Meanwhile, the second, third and fourth place finisher will receive $200,000, $150,000 and $100,000 respectively and the corresponding trophy.
Similarly, individual prizes will also be awarded for the Most Valuable Player [MVP] of the tournament, the MVP of the finale, the Best Goalkeeper of the tournament and the Best Goalkeeper of the final. Sponsors of the tournament include Bakewell Guyana Incorporated, ExxonMobil, the NSC, Flavours Boss BBQ Grill and the Colin Talbot Construction Services.
