Cayman Prep to play in both championship finals

(CUC- PFL): Cayman Prep’s dominance in the Under 9 and Under 11 Champions Cups continued this past Saturday as both teams qualified for the 2012/2013 CUC Primary Football League (PFL) finals following convincing semi-final victories over St. Ignatius Prep. Savannah Primary also secured two final spots as they will represent their school in the Under 9 Champions Cup final and the Under 11 Consolation Cup final. Day five of the Playoffs marked the semi-final stage as four schools battled for the final two spots in each division. The Finals and third-placed games are scheduled for Saturday, February 9.

In the Under 9 Consolation Cup, Prospect Primary defeated George Town Primary 2-0 thanks to goals from Josiah Johnson in the 21st minute and Thomas Palmer in the 41st minute. Prospect Primary will face Bodden Town Primary in the final after Bodden Town defeated Truth For Youth 3-2 in overtime on Friday evening. The Under 9 Consolation Cup Final will be played at 9:00 am.

In the Under 9 Champions Cup, 4th seeded Savannah Primary surprised the previously undefeated number one seed South Sound Schools 1-0 with Jawan Wray blasting in the winner in the second half. In the second Under 9 Champions Cup semi-final, an undefeated Cayman Prep outfit ran out 2-0 winners over St. Ignatius Prep after goals from Joshua Small in the 20th minute and Gabriel Todd in the 29th minute settled this private school affair. Savannah Primary will face Cayman Prep for the Under 9 championship at 10:00 am while South Sound Schools will play St. Ignatius Prep in the third placed game at 9:00 am.

In the Under 11 Consolation Cup, Cayman International Schools secured their place in the final after defeating Prospect Primary 3-0 thanks to goals from Francisco Magno, Thomas Milne and Curtis Eldemire. The second semi-final was played on Monday, February 4 with Savannah Primary defeating Truth For Youth 2-0 as Caleb McFarlane scored twice. Cayman International School will face Savannah Primary in the final at 11:30 am.

In the Under 11 Champions Cup, Cayman Prep defeated St. Ignatius Prep 4-0 with goals from Aaron Jarvis (2), Tommy Kehoe and Jude Reynolds to secure their place in the final. In the second semi-final, Red Bay Primary and Sir John A. Cumber Primary played out a thriller as Red Bay Primary outlasted their rivals 2-1 in overtime and ended the Opening Rally champions shot at the double.

In the 6th minute, Red Bay’s Akili Talbert scored his second goal in two games against the West Bay outfit as he scored in last week’s draw with Sir John A. Cumber, which qualified them for the semi-finals. As the game wore on, it looked as though the boys in maroon would outlast their rival’s onslaught but Sir John A. Cumber’s Jeremy Manderson had other ideas. In the 58th minute, following an uncharacteristic fumble from Red Bay’s goalkeeper Revaughn Johnson, young Manderson pounced on the loose ball and rolled his shot into the empty net. The West Bay red wave erupted – they were back in the game.

On to overtime and a fresh 20 minutes for both teams to come up with a winner, unfortunately for Sir John A. Cumber, it only took one minute for Red Bay to grab that all-important goal. From what seemed to be an innocent Red Bay cross, Sir John A. Cumber’s Cameron Solomon redirected the ball into his own net trying to clear it away from danger. Red Bay had retained the lead and were not about to give it up. For the remainder of overtime, Red Bay repelled everything Sir John A. Cumber threw at them and secured the 2-1 victory and a place in the final.

In the Under 11 Champions Cup final, Cayman Prep will face Red Bay Primary for the championship at 12:30 pm and St. Ignatius Prep will play Sir John A. Cumber Primary for third place at 11:30 am. After 11 weeks of play, the 2012/2013 PFL season comes down to one final week. Fans of “the powerful game” are encouraged to come out to the Annex Field for one final Saturday to cheer on their favourite schools and all the brave players.