The “Green Machine” have shut down. For the first time in their 43-year history in the top flight of secondary schools football, St Augustine Secondary have been relegated and will not be playing in the Premier Division next season. But East Mucurapo Secondary will.
In a long and stressful afternoon for both schools, East Mucurapo, ‘Compre,’ rallied from behind twice to snatch a 3-2 victory in the Secondary Schools Football League relegation playoff yesterday.
At the final whistle on St Mary’s Ground, players on both sides dropped straight to the ground. In the St Augustine penalty area, goalkeeper Tyrese Sealy was stretched out, his face buried in the turf. There he remained, a lonely figure until a female supporter came to offer consolation.
The agony of the moment had consumed the youngster. And last night, he may have had nightmares about the three goals he conceded, two of which were put away by Maalik Jarvis.
“We always believe in the boys and we have seen the improvement,” and elated Mucurapo coach Dale Saunders said at the end. “We have Maalik Jarvis (who) now knows where the goal (is); he’s putting the ball in the net. Zion Harley who is dong a fantastic job and basically everybody understanding their role and function.”
Striker Jarvis took advantage of some straightforward opportunities gifted him by a St Augustine defence that just could not keep out the goals this season.
Keeper Sealy had a nervy time.
After his striker Jamell Cooper had got the better of the last Mucurapo defender and spanked a left-footer in off the crossbar against the run of play in the 34th minute, Sealy found himself in no man’s land five minutes later, following a right side cross which Jarvis had the simple task of heading into an empty net.
The teams went in level, at half-time.
Nine minutes after the break though, St Augustine with no wins in the league and just one in InterCol, found themselves ahead again through Elijah Gravesande, via the penalty spot after a foul by Al-Kaliipha Henry on a team-mate.
At that stage, it was a case of the Green Machine taking advantage of the few opportunities they had and Compre wasting most of theirs.
However, the match swung decisively the way of the boys in maroon in one three-minute spell, 14 minutes from full time.
A long ball from midfield to the centre of the penalty area was not dealt with decisively by the St Augustine defence and Jarvis was on spot again to stroke the ball under Sealy’s body.
Before the St Augustine keeper and his mates could process that setback, disaster struck.
Mucurapo won a free-kick which their captain Khidir Atiba lobbed straight to Sealy. It seemed a simple take for the custodian; but he failed to make a clean catch and the ball rebounded straight onto substitute Jemon Gulston who just tapped the ball into the net.
For the first time, Mucurapo were in front and the St Augustine boys just didn’t have a third goal in them.
The final whistle did not just bring the end to the match for Sealy and company, it also halted St Augustine’s four-decade long, trophy-winning presence in the top tier of schools football.
“It’s tough,” admitted their schoolteacher coach Tacuma Jones, who took over from Trevor Spicer this season. “The guys feel it; you can see it from their expressions.”
For the chanting Mucurapo players however, watched by former Compre star and current Fatima College coach Hutson Charles, this was a big test passed.
“A lot of pressure was on them,” noted coach Saunders, “but they had to mature early for this game and I think they have done a fine job.”
SOURCE: T&T Express
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