Kwesi Mugisa, Staff Reporter
Tivoli goalscorer Michael Spence (right) celebrates with his captain, Jermaine Allen. Spence scored two goals for Tivoli in a 4-0 victory over Charlie Smith in their Walker Cup semi-final at the National Stadium yesterday. - RICARDO MAKYN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
TIVOLI GARDENS and Calabar High stormed into the final of the ISSA/Pepsi/JN Walker Cup with impressive 4-0 and 4-1 semi-final victories over Charlie Smith and Wolmer's respectively at the National Stadium yesterday.
A double strike from forward Michael Spence led Tivoli to 4-0 whipping of Charlie Smith in the 1:00 p.m. encounter. The west Kingston team forced their opponents on the back foot from the opening whistle. The work of the wily Richard Stern, who had looked a handful from the start of the game, put the visitors deservedly ahead in the 18th minute. Stern spun away to leave his defender for dead on the left flank and then struck a perfectly-weighted cross over the heads of two more on-rushing defenders. The ball was then headed powerfully into the back of the net by Spence, who gave Charlie Smith 'keeper Dervan Brown no chance and his team the early lead.
CRAWFORD SCORES
Another well-taken header would add to Charlie Smith's anguish 10 minutes later. This time a Jermaine Allen corner saw Ajani Crawford rise high to head the ball with plenty of authority over Brown and into the back of the net from 10 yards away. Having not begun the second half as brightly as they did the first, Tivoli's third goal was against the run of play. Spence ran on to a ball played long and away from the Tivoli back line. Caught short at the back, the two remaining Charlie Smith defender's were powerless to stop him as he darted in between them and fired a venomous shot past Brown for his second of the game. Substitute Shamar Johnson hit the fourth four for Tivoli in time added on.
In the day's other game, a Marlon Smith hat-trick led the way for Calabar High in a 4-1 thrashing of Wolmer's in semi-final two.
SECOND HALF GOALS
Despite taking the early lead through Shane Spragg in the 10th minute, Wolmer's wilted at the hands of a persistent Calabar team as they slammed in three second half goals.
Smith answered in the 33rd minute and the teams went into the break tied at 1-1. However, in a destructive second-half spell, Smith scored two goals in five minutes to put the game out of the reach of a weary-looking Wolmer's team. In the 50th minute he profited from a ball squared across the goal to fire home the go-ahead goal for his team and five minutes later he carried the ball down the right flank and again struck it past Wolmer's custodian Jamie Roberts. Calabar's Lennox Creary, who looked dangerous throughout the day, then picked the ball up from 40 yards out, dribbled past a handful of Wolmer's defenders and blasted the ball past Roberts for his team's fourth in the 68th minute.
Wolmer's coach, Vassel Reynolds, believes fatigue may have played a factor in his team's poor showing. "We played three games in four days and maybe that had an impact on the fitness of the players," Reynolds said. "But we will regroup for the second round of the Manning Cup and the best of Wolmer's is yet to come."
Calabar's coach, David Hunt, believed fitness was the key to his team's victory. "I told the team at halftime that if we played at the pace that we normally train with we would get them come second half," Hunt said. "We are a very focussed team and look forward to playing another good game in the final."
