Jabloteh whip Walking Boys 3-1

CL FINANCIAL San Juan Jabloteh began the defence of their Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Club Championship crown with a hard-fought 3-1 win over Walking Boys Company of Suriname on Wednesday night at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo. This match was the first leg of the quarter-final stage, with the second-leg scheduled for Paramaribo, Suriname, on Sunday. Eight CFU teams are battling for a spot in the 2005 CONCACAF Champions Cup with a chance for the winners to book a place in the 2005 FIFA Club World Champion-ship in Japan. The Surinamers stunned the sparse crowd, and the Jabloteh team in particular, when they took the lead after 13 minutes through a fantastic overhead kick by Clifton Sanvliet.

Following a build-up between midfielder Jorge Dos Santos and captain Gino Brandon, Sanvliet received a right-side centre and buried his acrobatic 15-metre attempt past the lunge of  Jabloteh’s goalkeeper Daurance Williams. The goal seemed to sting Jabloteh into life and they got the equaliser in the 32nd, Otis Seaton (Aurtis Whitley) split the Walking Boys’ defence with a through ball to fellow midfielder Kerry Baptiste who rounded keeper Andre Zebeda and slotted home from close range. Jabloteh went ahead in the 57th, when left-back Nigel Daniel’s deflected free-kick flew past a unging Zebeda, after midfielder Travis Mulraine was fouled 20 metres out. The game went into a lull as both teams employed defensive tactics, but Jabloteh striker Devon Mitchell completed victory when he buried his point-blank header, from a right-side Seaton free-kick in stoppage time.