Paul Island cop Westmoreland end-of-round final
FROME, Westmoreland — Shane Vanhorn slotted home his sixth goal of the 2009-2010 Captain’s Bakery Westmoreland Major League campaign on Thursday at the Frome Sports Complex, as Paul Island FC blanked Mt Grace 1-0 to take the first end-of-round final. The winners earned $10,000 and a trophy, while $5,000 went to the losers.
The 68th-minute strike came following Derrick Malcolm’s dribbling on the left-side away from Mt Grace defenders Christopher McEnnis and Saundrae Palmer, then swinging a cross into the penalty box that found the advancing Vanhorn, unmarked. The resulting right-footer from the League’s top goalscorer denied custodian Louie Hudson a chance of saving.
The entertaining encounter played in a stiff southerly breeze and brilliant sunshine before approximately three hundred fans, saw both teams showing good form in attack and defence, though Seymore Blake squandered two goalscoring opportunities for Mt Grace in the first half.
Jessie Meyler had two excellent opportunities following the goal to pull Mt Grace level and then in front, but in the 77th minute, chose to extend a dribble inside his opponents’ penalty area when a first-time shot could possibly have beaten goalkeeper Marvin Lawrence, who was at his mercy, but who easily collected the fumbled effort.
Two minutes later Dwayne Blake’s cross from the right beat Lawrence and with the empty goal looming, Meyler shot wide and high, much to the dismay of his team’s supporters.
The no-nonsense referee Ali McKenzie kept a tight rein on the match, issuing five necessary cautions; four to Paul Island.
The League, which began on December 3, 2009 among 12 teams playing in two zones, and with two rounds to go, plus semi-finals and final, is, according to league director Devon Maxwell, “expected to end early May”.
Winning coach Carl Palmer expressed “hope that the win can motivate the team to approach the next round positively”, while manager Howard Gayle of Mt Grace lamented “the missed chances that we created”.
Paul Island made the final gaining 13 points in Zone B and scoring 16 goals while conceding three, whereas Mt Grace topped Zone A with 11 points with nine goals for and four against.
