Big Five: Five Kirk showing! Blanchisseuse blow away Moruga to go top

Forget what you think you know about Blanchisseuse.

Tranquil, slow-paced, and friendly? Hah. The Moruga Secondary football team would beg to differ.

At the final whistle in yesterday’s Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) Big Five contest, Blanchisseuse Secondary led by five goals to two; and, in truth, the home team might easily have scored twice as many.

And Moruga, the 2019 Big Five champions, were in serious trouble—their hopes of promotion to the 2024 SSFL Premier Division competition fading rapidly.

“It’s all up for grabs against Miracle Ministries,” Moruga head coach Kempton Duval told Wired868, “and we have to hope that while we are on a bye for the last round, something miraculous happens that can get us through…”

Hoping for a miracle against Miracle Ministries Pentecostal High School (MMPHS) might be as close to the definition of desperation as one could get.

And Miracle Ministries, the Central Zone champions, gave their own promotion chances a boost yesterday with a goalless draw away to Signal Hill Secondary in Tobago.

Moruga are now bottom of the standings with one point from three games, MMPHS are fourth with two points from two matches.

The competition’s top three finishers are assured of Premier Division berths. And, at present, those places are occupied by Blanchisseuse, Signal Hill and St Augustine Secondary respectively who all have four points.

Blanchisseuse started the afternoon at the bottom of the Big Five standings. Before sunset, their supporters were openly talking about who they might welcome to their village first in the top flight.

In between was a whirlwind 90-minute spell that might haunt the South Zone champions—as they were smothered by the yellow tidal wave that was the Blanchisseuse football team.

“The hunger and the physicality [of the Blanchisseuse team] decided the game,” said Duval. “[Our boys] were complaining a lot because we weren’t getting to play our style of football, and that just threw off our game plan.

“Then when we started to get physical, the referee started to blow against us. The officiating was piss poor. So, we were between a rock and a hard place.”

Rookie Blanchisseuse coach Brent Rodriguez invited former Defence Force goalkeeper and ex-Holy Cross College coach Selwyn George and veteran former St Augustine Secondary assistant coach Sean Best to join his staff to bring more tactical nous to his squad for the crucial competition.

But there were some teething problems as they trio disagreed about how the team should play.

“Last game against St Augustine, we had little bickles—but we got it together,” Rodriguez told Wired868. “We had little issues that we needed to tidy but we got them tidy at the right time.”

Perhaps a unified staff was able to sufficiently galvanise the Blanchisseuse team for the vital fixture.

Or maybe it was the stardust provided by Arima MP Pennelope “Penny” Beckles, whose first appearance at a Blanchisseuse football match coincided with arguably their most famous win to date.

Hopefully, the result owed nothing to the stray dog that shamelessly took a dump in the Moruga half of the field just before kickoff.

“The game plan was to score first,” said Rodriguez, “and then to score one by one…”

Yes, but how? What was the plan to undo Moruga?

“We played 4-4-2 against Miracle Ministries,” said Rodriguez. “Then we played 4-3-3 against St Augustine but we didn’t get it correct. So, we went back to the drawing board and did our homework. And hard work pays off…”

So, Rodriguez did not clarify things much. Maybe he didn’t need to. From the naked eye, Blanchisseuse’s team plan might have consisted of two words: attack—quickly!

On a ground so tiny that one goalkeeper could almost throw the ball to the top of the opposing box, Blanchisseuse kicked off with a barrage of lofted balls over the top for their attackers to chase.

Any long ball that a Moruga defender failed to cut out invariably became a goal scoring opportunity. And, when they did intercept the ball, there seemed to be no hiding place from the waves of pressure by the Blanchisseuse players.

The game was just four minutes and 17 seconds old when forward Roger Kirk put the hosts ahead with a curling effort from an edge of the box that surprised Moruga goalkeeper Adriano Baptiste at his near post and went in off the underside of the bar.

The opportunity came off a quick throw from Kirk’s cousin and team captain, Abraham Kirk.

In the eighth minute, attacking midfielder Aaron Marcano doubled Blanchisseuse’s lead with a composed finish after chasing a punt over the top by defender Zakiyus Kirk.

The 14-year-old Zakiyus is 19-year-old Abraham’s baby brother. The middle brother, 16-year-old Simon Kirk, stood guard between the Blanchisseuse uprights.

Off the field, a fifth Kirk, Franklyn, seemed to be just as involved as the players. He is father to Abraham, Simon and Zakiyus and uncle to Roger.

“This side good for four allyuh!” Franklyn shouted. “Come fellahs, let we get some goal average!”

There might be nobody on the planet that talks more than coach George. But Franklyn comes close. The Blanchisseuse players were getting instructions from both sides of the field—one could only hope that the coaches on the other side of the rope were on the same page as those in the technical area, as the players were clearly trying to please them all!

Or maybe there were no specific instructions beyond: win the ball, play it forward, and try to score. Yesterday, that proved to be a winning formula.

Roger got Blanchisseuse’s third goal late in the first half, after Moruga custodian Adriano Baptiste failed to gather a long free kick into the area.

Blanchisseuse were temporarily down to 10 players at the time, as flanker Mickily Whiskey received treatment after a collision with Baptiste. Some in the stands might have suggested that his time on the sidelines was a good thing.

Whiskey missed at least three first half sitters, each scoring opportunity seemingly easier than the one before.

Duval made two changes at the interval. Neither player who entered the fray brought anything to the contest. But his decision to move muscular 17-year-old flanker Akino Sydney to the centre forward position, in place of the slender 13-year-old Shaquane Joseph, looked to be an astute one.

“This was more of a physical game and [Joseph] was complaining that he was getting lashed,” said Duval. “So, we put a more physical presence upfront.”

Things got worse for Moruga before they got better, though. In the 53rd minute, Blanchisseuse produced the best move of the match en route to a fourth item.

After seizing possession some 25 yards from the opposing goal, Marcano played to Abraham who released Johan Bleasdell down the right flank with a clever backheel pass. And, at last, Whiskey got his goal, as he controlled Bleasdell’s cross and buried beyond Baptiste on the turn.

It was 4-0.

“Allyuh have Signal Hill next week, yuh don’t want to get damaged,” Franklyn instructed the Blanchisseuse players. “Allyuh take your time and build a knock!”

But how would they retain the ball? Did Blanchisseuse rehearse creating passing triangles on the training ground? Did they have enough players who were comfortable in possession?

At this juncture, they began to flounder. And Moruga sniffed an opportunity.

Defender Diego Philip scored a fine late free kick against Signal Hill last Friday; and he almost performed an encore in the 68th minute. But Blanchisseuse custodia, Simon, kept his effort out with a sprawling save. And Moruga midfielder Terell Thompson wastefully hit the rebound off the bar.

Ironically, Moruga’s opening goal came via Blanchisseuse’s favoured route one approach, as Russell Lynch ran on to a lofted pass to smash a volley into the roof of the net in the 73rd minute.

“Nice goal, small man,” said Baffa, whose running cross-talk with Franklyn was as lively as the high scoring match.

In the 82nd minute, Moruga nearly got their second goal from another cracking Philip free kick—only this time the defender clipped the top of the Blanchisseuse bar with his effort.

The game was already in the 89th minute when Moruga halved the deficit, as midfielder Quacie Moore ran on to a quick free kick to stab the ball beyond Simon. But they had surely left it too late.

Deep into stoppage time, Marcano executed a flawless “rolly-polly” around a Moruga defender, only to face a crunching tackle from Philip who then wagged his finger in the face of the Blanchisseuse midfielder.

Don’t even think about showboating, seemed to be the message.

In the sixth and final minute of stoppage time, Marcano responded with some cheek though—after getting Blanchisseuse fifth item with another neat finish off a lofted Abraham free kick.

Marcano rushed over to Philip with finger on his lips and then offered his victim his “license plate”. There would be no further response from the visitors.

“We have to get to the Premier Division,” said, well, virtually everybody in the village.

A report on the Blanchisseuse team would be only half-done without a reference to their talented captain though.

Abraham Kirk looked as rugged as a MMA fighter. The 19-year-old midfielder was surely not born in Blanchisseuse; he was chiselled out of the North Coast!

But his first touch looked as elegant as the morning dew. His improvised passing off his left boot almost always hit the target, just as his dribbles were largely successful.

One on one, Abraham would be a handful to any Premier League defender. But, of course, his team still need to get there.

Next Tuesday, Blanchisseuse travel to Tobago to face Signal Hill. The players leave a day early and Rodriguez thanked Uncle Sam’s Bake and Shark for helping fund their Big Five adventure.

“Thank God for Blanchisseuse’s first Big Five win ever,” said Rodriguez. “I want to commend our team and the technical staff for their hard work and we are moving forward.

“[…] The difference [yesterday] is the team was focused and they listened to their coach.”

It was tempting to ask: which coach? The Blanchisseuse Secondary team belongs to the village of Blanchisseuse, in more ways than one.

A draw in Tobago would virtually seal a historic promotion for Blanchisseuse to the SSFL’s top flight competition.

Coach Downie Marcelle’s young Signal Hill team have a job ahead of them. But first, they must battle St Augustine Secondary on Warren Street this weekend.

It is nail-biting time.

(Teams)

Blanchisseuse Secondary (4-2-1-3): 1.Simon Kirk (GK); 14.Jesus Bailey, 6.Andy Quintero, 4.Zakiyus Kirk, 10.Allister Noreiga; 7.Abraham Kirk (captain), 5.Noah Lewis; 8.Aaron Marcano; 11.Johan Bleasdell, 9.Roger Kirk (19.Samuel Williams 90), 18.Mickily Whiskey (13.Ozia Danclair 60).

Unused substitutes: 17.Damian Daniel (GK), 2.Romeo Fraser, 3.Prince Selkridge, 12.Aaron John, 15.Kaydon Marcano, 16.Manuel Hernandez.

Coach: Brent Rodriguez

Moruga Secondary (4-5-1): 1.Adriano Baptiste (GK); 3.Angelo Molino (17.Garvey Rostant 46), 6.Veron Gomez, 5.Diego Philip, 14.Jaden Lopez; 11.Akino Sydney (9.Andelle Maurice 88), 8.Terell Thompson (captain), 10.Russell Lynch, 7.Quacie Moore, 21.Malique Friday; 13.Shaquane Joseph (15.Trevez Dover 46).

Unused substitutes: 4.Jose Steeling, 12.Tariq Henry.

Coach: Kempton Duval

Referee: Akini Wilson

Big Five results

(Tuesday 20 March)

Blanchisseuse Secondary 5 (Roger Kirk 5, 40, Aaron Marcano 8, 90+6, Mickily Whiskey 54), Moruga Secondary 2 (Russell Lynch 73, Quacie Moore 89) at Blanchisseuse;

Signal Hill Secondary 0, Miracle Ministries PHS 0 at Signal Hill;

St Augustine Secondary are on a bye

Upcoming fixtures

(Saturday 24 February)

Moruga Secondary vs Miracle Ministries, 3pm, Moruga;

St Augustine Secondary vs Signal Hill Secondary, 3pm, St Augustine;

Blanchisseuse Secondary are on a bye

(Tuesday 27 February)

Miracle Ministries PHS vs St Augustine Secondary, 3pm, Edinburgh 500;

Signal Hill Secondary vs Blanchisseuse Secondary, 3pm, Signal Hill;

Moruga Secondary are on a bye