9 September 2023
Pietermaritzburg was hot on Saturday – the temperature topped 35 degrees and it was humid, too – and the meeting between the Saint Charles and Clifton 1st football teams reflected the challenging conditions until late in the contest when it sprang to life.
Shocked
The visitors shocked Saints when they took a very early lead through Rocco Rocha, who was on hand to side-foot the ball into the empty net after a speculative shot found the woodwork. The rebound left the ‘keeper stranded and the Durban boys were ahead.
Saints nearly had a quick equaliser, but a shot heading for the top right-hand corner was superbly rejected by Clifton net-minder Kyle Kearns, who athletically palmed it behind.
After that, the game settled down into a somewhat laboured pace – understandable in the torrid conditions – with Saints pushing to establish dominance in the midfield and Clifton standing strong in defence, well marshalled by their skipper, Keaton Murray.
Lead doubled
Early in the second stanza, Clifton put together a fast-flowing move down the right-hand flank that tore through the Saints’ defence. When the ball was centred, Cristiano Teixera was on hand to provide the finish and the boys in white were two goals to the good.
Facing a defeat on Colts, Saint Charles lifted the pace, led by their captain, Reardon Dicken, whose class on the ball stood out.
A South African Schools hockey player, his control and reading of the game, was a cut above the rest. And it was Dicken who brought Saints back into the game, slotting their first goal after an attack down the left and a bit of a scramble inside the Clifton box.
Dicken almost had another, but he was denied by another sensational stop by the Clifton ‘keeper, Kyle Kearns, who raced out to close down the angle and then spread himself wide to deny the midfield ace. At last, there was a real sense of urgency in the home team’s play.
The Saints’ skipper, though, eventually levelled for his team, sending the keeper the wrong way when the hosts were awarded a penalty.
Something special, or something lucky…
It was 2-2, but Clifton, for the most part, had looked solid in defence all game. It would need something special to pierce their resolute rearguard for a third time, or something lucky…and the latter proved to be the case.
With Saints dialling up the offensive pressure, an attempted deep cross by Thabiso Ndlela evolved into a pinpoint lofted shot over the goalie. Fortunate or not, it found the side-netting to put Saint Charles 3-2 up with little time left on the clock. That’s how the game finished.
Saints had their captain Reardon Dicken to thank for leading them to the win. Clifton might feel a little hard done by. They brought a lot to the contest and would probably feel that a draw would have been a fairer reflection of the game.
Age group results
Overall, Saint Charles enjoyed the better of the day. They were pushed hard in the 1st and 2nd team matches but emerged with a clean record in the open age group.
Clifton showed good depth to grab a draw and a win in the under-16 games, although the Saints’ under-16 A side continued its strong late season form with another win.
It was one-sided in favour of the hosts in the under-15 matches, while Clifton picked up a convincing under-14 A victory in the most evenly contested age group of the day.
Results
1st: Saint Charles 3-2 Clifton
2nd: Saint Charles 3-1 Clifton
3rd: Saint Charles 9-0 Clifton
16A: Saint Charles 3-0 Clifton
16B: Saint Charles 6-0 Clifton
16C: Saint Charles 1-1 Clifton
16D: Saint Charles 0-3 Clifton
15A: Saint Charles 5-0 Clifton
15B: Saint Charles 11-0 Clifton
15C: Saint Charles 5-0 Clifton
14A: Saint Charles 0-3 Clifton
14B: Saint Charles 4-1 Clifton
14C: Saint Charles 1-1 Clifton
14D: Saint Charles 5-3 Clifton
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