Pansula Boys shine in victory
In our featured game for the week, Athletico took on Pansula Boys with surprising results.
The brightest stars within the Newcastle Court Soccer Association (NCSA) Boston Premier League (BPL) are the young ones.
This is the general consensus of every participant in both the A and B League of the BPL.
A skeptic might disagree, but just watch a match from either division of the league and you will notice it.
On Monday, the very first game of the night proved this, as West-End Spartans took on Hungry Lions in the A League’s first fixture of the evening.
Hungry Lion’s proved to be impressive opponents, but ultimately could not push a goal past Spartan’s goalkeeper.
Young star, Elton “Sevens” Geduld once again put his name on the scoring board by cracking two in and earning himself a brace for his team contribution.
West-End Spartans took the lead and the game with Elton’s two goals.
In the second game of the evening, Tsotsi 7 challenged Sharks. The B League teams searched and probed each other for breaks in the defensive chain, but neither team managed to find the back of the net, resulting in a goalless draw. Shining performances from the 26-year-old Andre Burgess of Tsotsi 7 and Sharks’ key man, the 13-year-old Aadil Noorbhai, kept the spectators on their feet.
In our featured game for the week, Athletico took on Pansula Boys with surprising results.
While Pansula Boys is clearly not the strongest team in the league, the players’ passion, and determination on the field are undoubtedly an asset.
The game was tough on both teams, with Pansula Boys putting the pressure on Athletico from the first whistle. Athletico chose to bide their time, waiting for a countering opportunity, but the pace of the Pansula Boys’ attack kept them from exploiting this factor.
The injury of Kyle Daniels, a Pansula Boy striker during the first half, meant that Pansula Boys had to shift their team around.
Bursts of pace from Joey did little to beat the Athletico defence, as defenders Paruk and Sanele, proved to be stronger during head-to-head bouts.
A goalless first half put increasing pressure on both teams to perform, and Pansula Boys came into the second half with bolstered confidence as a bandaged Kyle Daniels returned to the field.
Although the brilliance of Athletico defender, Hasan Randeree’s double clearance during the team’s match against Real Santos last week, was still vivid in the team’s memory, it did little to stop Caelab Naidoo from scoring the opening goal.
The goal came at a time when the Athletico formation was in shambles, as substitutes came onto the field, and the Pansula Boys piled on the pressure.
The first goal seemed to break the Atlethico spirit and within minutes of the first goal, Pansula Boys central attack midfielder, Ebrahim Mathuli, cracked in a stunner of a goal with an acrobatic volley, earning him the title ‘Heartbreaker.’
Celebrating in style, he called the crowd to silence with a finger to his lips, as he took in the glorious moment.
Aside from the goal to secure the win, Ibrahim outpaces defenders and continuously proves to be instrumental in the build-up play and control in-game domination of Pansula Boys.
The mentality and determination exhibited by Pansula Boys on Monday, will secure their spot in the A League for years to come, if they can just show it in every game they play.
Pansula Boys is undoubtedly one of the fastest teams on the pitch, and this pace, coupled with fatigue and a lack of purpose from Athletico, was what led to their defeat.
There is no denying the strength of Athletico, but the team has consistently played players in the wrong positions and suffers with player fitness. The return of injury-prone striker, Moe Khan, may be the boost the team needs in attack but he will have to earn his place in the starting seven after his Monday night performance.
In other news, on March 13, Zamalek managed a four-nil victory over FET Majuba, while Al-Ahly continued its winning streak, with a one-nil victory over Spartans.
Juventus managed a two-two draw with Ababeel, as Cladwyn Jones managed to get his name on the scorecard once more, while Ababeel’s Muaadh Moola earned himself a brace.
Zenith succumbed to its first loss of the season, when Real Santos trumped them one-nil, and knocked them into second place.
The outcome of the match between Real Santos and Athletico was still under deliberation at the time of going to print.
