Warner Admits SAP Was Better

Details

Football

Wednesday, 28 October 2009 21:52

By Nkrumah Gordon

National youth coach George “Cajawawa” Warner admitted that Cool & Smooth SAP was the better team when they beat his BASSA men at the Antigua Recreation Grounds (ARG) on Sunday.

In an interview with Caribarena, Warner said the SAP men were seemingly motivated by the fact that they were taking on a former coach, and had a point to prove. Warner, who coached SAP to Premier Division honours last season, left following his title run, for BASSA, under controversial circumstances.

“Our performance was not up to par at all, and we were outplayed by SAP – they came out to play and they had something to prove,” he said. “I must say kudos to the SAP team, they really came out with a vengeance and they ran after us from the start of the match and we didn’t get a chance to settle."

He however went on to add that if there was one lesson he would like his players to take from the contest, it is that being aggressive towards the ball and getting there first always works in your favour.

“The team who gets to the ball first controls the game, and SAP beat us to the ball most of the times, and they were able to control the flow of the game, so if you want to control the game and put the other team on the defensive, then you must be first to the ball at all times,” he said.

SAP inflicted a 3-1 beating on BASSA on Sunday, with their opening strike coming 25 minutes into the contest in the form a thunderous crack off the boot of Jamaican player Garry Barnes. The striker rifled a free-kick that was earlier awarded to SAP just off the edge of the 18-yard box, over a five-man wall and into the upper left-hand portion of the goal to put SAP ahead.

Four minutes later, SAP had a second goal – this time from midfielder Odell Murray, who capitalized on a defensive error to give his team a much-needed cushion. The player followed up on a long range shot that had Lewis diving to his right in an effort to affect a save.  The goalie, however, could not hold on to the low drive, but managed to block the goal-bound attempt.

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His teammates were nowhere to be found however, which gave Murray the opportunity to push the ball over the goal-line from close-range.

BASSA managed to pull a goal back in minute 56 through a Ranjae Christian strike. The player latched on to a long ball out of defense before sprinting past the SAP defense and pushing the ball past the advancing Tian “Big Sexy” Nathaniel in goal for SAP.

A goalkeeper blunder with just three minutes of added time in the encounter helped to seal SAP’s victory and lift them to 13 points at the top of the standings. Lewis, who collected a ball deep inside his area, sent his tame clearance onto the body of the advancing Okeem “Soda” Challenger of SAP, who ran past the limping custodian and placed the ball into the back of the empty net.

 

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