The San Pedro Town Council (SPTC) 5-a-side Football Tournament has come to an end after crowning five champion teams. The first round of the final games took place on Wednesday, July 26th at the Honorable Louis Sylvester Sporting Complex, with teams in the Under-10, Under-13, and Under-15 divisions playing their championship matches, while the senior male teams played semi-final matches. On Saturday, July 29th the final round of games saw the female and male champs being awarded.
On Wednesday, July 26th, leading up to the big award ceremony, the Under-10 division final game was between the teams Belize Pro Dive and Pirates Manchester. Belize Pro Dive had a good offense, but it was not enough and at first half, Pirates Manchester led 2-0. During the second half, Pirates Manchester scored two more goals, winning the game 4-0.
Immediately after, FC San Pedro Pirates took on FC Larubeya in the Under-13 category. It was not a tough game for the FC San Pedro Pirates, as they easily won the 3-0 point game.
The championship match in the Under-15 division followed, and saw another easy victory in favor of the Caribeña Strikers over the San Pedrito Strikers. With a final score of 5-1, Caribeña Strikers are the Under-15 champions.
The last match of the July 26th evening was a semi-final game for the male division between Los Catrachos and Rough and Tough. After the first half, Los Catrachos had a 1-0 lead, but Rough and Tough made a comeback to tie the game by the end. In the second half, Los Catrachos had to dominate, and they successfully netted two additional goals, qualifying them for the finals on Saturday by winning 3-1.
The final game day of the 5-a-side Football Tournament saw a total of three matches. First to play on Saturday, July 29th were the female teams of Island Strikers and Island Invaders. Being the final match in the division, both teams gave it their best, and the game ended in a 0-0 tie. The champion’s title was then given to Island Strikers, who had a seasonal score of 2-1.
The match that followed was for third place in the senior male division, with terror Squad taking on Rough and Tough in a heated match. Wanting the coveted trophy, both teams played their best, but the match ended in a 5-5 point game in favor of Rough and Tough.
At 9PM, the final match kicked off between Jokers FC and Los Catachos FC. Both senior male teams were in search for the grand championship title. By the end of the regular time, the game was tied 2-2, and it proceeded to penalty shots. Los Catrachos managed to capture the win by securing 2-0 penalties, and they emerged victorious in the tournament.
After all games had ended, it was time for trophies to be issued. Individual winners were first to be awarded. In the Under-10 division, Jaheme Martinez and Brandon Quijano of Team Pirates Manchester were awarded Best Goal Keeper and Most Goals, respectively. The award for Best Goal Keeper in the Under-13 division went to Eleazer Castillo of FC Larubey, while Robert Nah of Team San Pedro Pirates received the Under-13 award for Most Goals. Yahir Sandoval of Team Caribeña Strikers was awarded Under-15 Best Goal Keeper and Harol Ramos of Team New Ravens was awarded Most Goals in the Under-15 division. In the female division, Damaris Cruz of Island Strikers was awarded Best Goal Keeper, while Sue Castillo of Island Invaders was awarded for Most Goals.
Five awards were given in the Senior Male division: Best Goal Keeper went to Darrell Novelo of Team Los Catrachos, Most Goals went to Lloydy Gonzalez of Team Costa Boys, MVP went to Nestor Cerpa of Los Catrachos, Fair Play Award went to Team Boca Bombers, and Youngest Player of the Tournament went to Elmer Muñoz of FC Larubeya.
Finally championship trophies were distributed. Team Pirates Manchester took the first place in the Under-10 division, FC San Pedro Pirates took first place in the Under-13 division and Team Caribeña Strikers took first place in the Under-15 division. The female first place team was Island Strikers while Island Invaders settled for second place. Rounding up the award ceremony was the top three teams in the Senior Male division, with Los Catrachos taking first place, Jokers FC taking second place and Rough and Tough taking third place.
The San Pedro Sun congratulates all participating teams for their sportsmanship. Organizers would like to thank all businesses and individuals that made the tournament a huge success.
 5-a-side Football Tournament has come to an end after crowning five champion teams.){kind=link}