Opening football League Games end all square
The first game, between VG United and Old Madrid, kicked off right on time and took just 15 minutes to burst into life, when Dion “Rugga” Clarke, stole a march on a static VG defense and shrugged of a despairing challenge, before slotting the ball home and giving Old Madrid the lead.
VG Utd, who started the game with just 10 men, had more than held their own before conceding the advantage. They battled back into the match and with the arrival of Andres Bailey and were back up to full strength and almost level inside 5 minutes.
Old Madrid’s Keeper, Hanif James had to be alert to pluck out a cross from the right with Bailey poised to head home.
As the first half wore on both James and his counterpart Jumaane Morton made several saves, although on the half hour mark VG’s Carlos Paradisi should have equalised from their first corner of the game when his header was off target with the goal at his mercy.
Troy Williams did finally get the ball in the Old Madrid net on 35 minutes, but was adjudged off side and the same player played in Bailey only for James to pull off another of many fine saves to keep his side ahead.
It would also prove to be Williams’ last meaningful action as following an earlier “yellow” he made another reckless tackle on Kelvin Eubanks with the ball going nowhere and received a second yellow and his marching orders.
As the half drew to a close VG mounted attack after attack on the Old Madrid goal with Timon Robinson and an acrobatic Camille Benjamin both seeing chances going begging.
The second half saw VG push Thomas Albert forward and the move paid off immediately with Albert firing home the equaliser.
Old Madrid, though, bounced back into the lead, following a surging run from Clarke which brought out a fine save from Morton, the resulting corner finding its way to Eubanks, who powered his header past the keeper to restore the lead.
In complete contrast to the first half both keepers had now been beaten within two minutes and to add to the goal frenzy Albert scored his second just two minutes later as he capitalised on a mistake from James to make it 2-2.
The game ebbed and flowed for another 20 minutes until Bailey put VG ahead for the first time in the game with a deliciously struck first time volley from 18 yards out.
Three fine saves by Morton from Clarke, Matthew Daly and Kenmore Simmonds kept the lead intact, but Simmonds would not be denied in the 84th minute, taking a through ball into his stride, shrugging off a challenge from Jackson Rigobert and sliding the ball pass the advancing Morton to give Old Madrid a deserved share of the points.
“It was a good pass and I did the right thing, controlled it and slid it home. We really should have won the game, but made two simple mistakes to let them back into the game”
Albert also thought they should have won.
“Pushing me upfront worked and I was able to score the goals, but we should have scored more in the first half and taken all three points,” said Albert.
The first game in the new look Premier Division featured the so far unbeaten Sugar Boys, winners of both the Virgin Gorda Cup and Wendoll Williams Cup, face the Ballstarz, who had welcomed back Carlos and Fladimir Septus to their ranks as well as adding Rondell Delfish.
Whilst the game was played at a frenetic pace, not in keeping with the uneven and bouncy surface, it didn’t take long for the Ballstarz to open the scoring.
In just the 7th minute Delfish made a surging run following a defensive mistake, deep into Sugar Boys territory and unleashed an unstoppable drive pass Leslie Ambrose to open the scoring and become the first player to score in the Premier League.
Again it was the goal keepers who got their teams in the contest with Maxcell Dabreo pulling off some fine saves. He was beaten by a sublime piece of skill from Javon Wallace, but the play was brought back for a handball as he looked to chest the ball down and fire home.
Deep into the first half Dabreo kept his team ahead, diving at the feet of Terrance Nanton to avert an almost guaranteed equalizer.
Possibly the best move of the match came early in the second half when the Ballstarz mounted a quick counter attack from deep inside their own half. The ball was fed to Carlos Septus, who ran at the Sugar Boys defense before slightly over weighting a pass to Delfish who forced wider than he would have liked and with just the goalkeeper to beat could only hit the side netting.
Dabreo pulled off another brace of saves from Michael Castillo and Javon Wallace, but even he could do nothing but stand and watch as in the 67th minute, from a throw in, the Ballstarz defense switched off and allowed the ball to bounce in the six yard box, where Wallace was waiting to head home the equaliser.
Both teams had chances to seal all three points as Troy Caesar headed over when he should have at least hit the target and Chris Telemaque did likewise and at the other end Wallace blasted high wide and handsome from just six yards out.
Wallace felt the Sugar Boys had done well to battle back, but said he just got to comfortable with his last gasp chance at a winner.
Coach Clint St Hilaire said it was a good game and was thankful to take a point. However Ballstarz Captain Troy Caesar was disappointed.
“We had many chances to score; we played well, but need a striker,” he said. His Coach, Vincent Samuel was happy with the team performance.
“We should have put the game away, couldn’t really play the way we wanted, but happy with a point,” he said.
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