Ten leagues are down to compete in the SLFA Inc. Island Premier Cup, which is due to kick off next Tuesday (September, 20).
The participating leagues are namely; Canaries, Central Castries, Dennery, Desruisseaux, Gros Islet, La Clery, Mabouya Valley, Marchand, Vieux Fort North and Vieux Fort South.
Teams will play each other in a single round robin competition with the top four advancing to the semifinals. Matches will be played on Tuesdays and Thursdays respectively at the Gros Islet Playing Field, Desruisseaux Playing Field and Phillip Marcellin Grounds.
The opening fixture is as follows;
Canaries vs. Central Castries – 6. 15 pm – GIPF
Gros Islet vs. Dennery – 8.15 pm
La Clery vs. Vieux Fort North – 6.15 pm – PMG
Marchand vs. Vieux Fort South – 8.15 pm.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, defending champions Platinum FC edged out Northern United 2 – 1 to close out the final match of the SLFA Inc. Div. I competition at the Soufriere Mini Stadium.
Platinum led 2-nil at the interval, with Kurt Frederick and Saviola Elva netting in the 8th and 31st minutes respectively, while Torian Joseph scored for Northern United in the 65th minute.
In other updates, the Eastern Zone U-19 tournament continued last Sunday at the Desruisseaux Playing Field.
In the day’s opener, Mabouya Valley thrashed Mon Repos 8-0; with Zackery Harper scoring a hat trick with goals in the 10th, 12th, and 65th minutes. Larry Harper added a brace with13th, and 20th minutes conversions, while Alton Joseph, Merciah Wells and Kervon Edward scored in the 29th, 63rd, and 71st, minutes respectively.
Table leaders Desruisseaux beat Dennery 2-0, to cement their place at the top. With both teams on nine points each, but with Desruisseaux boasting a better goal difference – Dennery needed a win to secure first place.
However, Desruisseaux stamped their authority to win the encounter with goals from Joseph Mangal and Kelly Samuel in the 7th, and 51st minutes respectively.
As a result, Desruisseaux secured a finalist spot; Wednesday Mabouya Valley defeated Dennery 4-2 to advance to the finals.
In other developments, last Saturday, the Valley Soccer Academy (VSA) commenced its Football Tryouts at the Castries Comprehensive Secondary School.
The focus of the Day’s free sessions was centered on refocusing efforts at getting students back on track with physical activity, specifically the beautiful game of football. VSA’s intention as well was to scout players’ ages 4-12 years who portray potential and a strong passion for the beautiful game.
During the day’s session, coaches Zaine Pierre and Aazah Daniel utilized an array of fun competitive games to showcase the speed, agility, coordination, and basic football skills of these young aspiring ballers.
The drills were also aimed at building a friendly relationship between the youngsters through friendly competition and teamwork.
The activity was deemed to be a huge success as all players involved not only enjoyed their experience, but also went home with further increased knowledge regarding football.
Valley Soccer encourage others who were not present on the day to be a part of their tryouts, which will be held on September 17th and 24th at the Castries Comprehensive Secondary School.