Scarborough Secondary and Bishop’s High School were crowned champions of their respective Tobago Zone Girls and Boys Tiger Tank Secondary Schools Football League Girls’ and Boys’ Championship Division at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet, Tobago, on Thursday.
In the day’s opener, Scarborough Secondary defeated long-time rivals Signal Hill Secondary 3-1 in the Girls’ final.
Scarborough went ahead as early as the 12th minute when a free-kick from J’Eleisha Alexander was fumbled over the line by the opposing goalkeeper, but within four minutes, Lei-Marie Balfour got Signal Hill back on level terms in the 80-minutes contest.
Four minutes before the half-time whistle, Shakira Charles restored Scarborough’s advantage with a right-footed effort from inside the 18-yard box while Kellecia Taylor added the third item with a long-range effort in the 78th.
With the win, Scarborough Secondary secured their spot in the National SSFL Girls Championship Division ‘Big-Five’ where they join Holy Name Convent (North Zone), and Five Rivers Secondary (East Zone) as the teams already qualified, with the Central Zone, and South Zone champions for the national league playoffs still to be decided.
Goalkeeper Mc Eachnie stars in Bishop’s High
Goalkeeper Kristeon Mc Eachnie was the hero for Bishop’s High School, pulling off three straight penalty-kicks shoot-out saves to earn his team a 3-2 shoot-out win over Mason Hall Secondary after both teams had battled to a 1-1 draw in the second match at Bacolet.
After a goalless first-half, Kaieem Lewis fired Bishop’s High ahead in the 54th and that goal looked like enough for his team to lift the coveted title, only for Rickeldi Williams to pounce in the 88th minute to get Mason Hall a deserved equaliser to send the match into extra-time.
Both teams then failed to find a winner in the two ten-minute halves before the drama unfolded in the penalty shoot-out with Mason Hall goalkeeper Neon Walker saving Bishop’s High first two attempts while his team-mates scored their first two, for a 2-0 lead.
It was then the turn of Mc Eachnie to come up trumps for the league round-robin table-toppers Bishop’s High as he then denied the next three efforts from Mason Hall while his compatriots scored to secure a 3-2 shootout triumph, and with it the zonal crown to join St Mary’s College (North), Arima North Secondary (East), Miracle Ministries (Central) and Siparia West Secondary (South) in the Big-Five round-robin series which began on Saturday last with the “Saints” beating Miracle Ministries 5-1.
At the end of the round-robin series, the top three schools will gain promotion back to the SSFL Premier Division where they will replace the already demoted duo of St Augustine Secondary and Moruga Secondary along with the loser of the playoff between the two seventh-placed teams from each Premier Division groups.
East Mucurpao is already assured of competing in the playoff as the seventh-placed finisher from Group B of the Premier Division and will come up against one from St Anthony’s College, Carapichaima East, and Pleasantville Secondary in their playoff with the loser being the third team to be demoted.
SOURCE: T&T Guardian