Clarendon College took another step toward glory in the ISSA/Wata Ben Francis Cup when they edged Denbigh High 1-0 in a lukewarm semi-final encounter at Glenmuir High School on Tuesday.
A second-half penalty converted by Justin Hayles (54th) proved decisive for the dethroned daCosta Cup champions, who will face St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) in the final, as both seek to cap their season on a high.
Clarendon College’s manager, Richard Palmer, praised his young team’s composure under pressure.
“First I must say congratulations to the guys; I don’t know if you realised that this is basically our Under-16 team because we made a drastic move after the daCosta Cup to cut all the last-year players and played these boys. They did well because we didn’t expect to come this far, so whatever we got we would have been pleased with because this is basically preseason for these players,” he said.
Both teams approached the game cautiously in the opening exchanges, seeking to establish control without taking unnecessary risks.
Clarendon issued the first warning in the second minute when Hayles unleashed a shot from outside the 18-yard box, but it lacked the power to trouble Denbigh’s goalkeeper, Jamar Johnson.
Denbigh responded six minutes later when Dushawn Anderson delivered a teasing cross into the area, only for Teyo Cross to head narrowly wide.
As the match settled into a rhythm, Denbigh began to look the more threatening side. Lashawn Barnaby won a free kick in the 17th minute after being brought down just outside the area, but Marlon Murray’s effort sailed high and wide, wasting a promising opportunity.
Clarendon, although under pressure, had a golden chance against the run of play in the 38th minute. Nicholy Forbes found himself with time and space inside the box but rushed his shot which went wide to the relief of Denbigh’s defenders.
With the game goalless at the break, both teams would have been eager to notch the go-ahead goal, and it was Clarendon College that found success nine minutes into the resumption.
A Denbigh defender was penalized for handling the ball inside the area, gifting Clarendon a penalty, which was calmly converted by Hayles.
Denbigh, stung by the setback, intensified their efforts in search of an equalizer. They pushed forward relentlessly, putting Clarendon’s defence under sustained pressure, but failed to make that spell count and, as such, were left ruining what could have been.
Denbigh coach Garfield Carney commended his players for their effort despite the loss.
“I think the Clarendon team possessed the ball much better than us and we were left chasing the game. But I must say well done to Denbigh; we did well this season, and we hope for a better season next year,” he noted.
Sherdon Cowan is a five-time award-winning journalist with 10 years' experience covering sports.
Sheffield United return to Championship summit as Norwich thump Plymouth
Sheffield United went back to the top of the Championship following a 3-0 victory over Oxford United at home on Tuesday.
The result was a fifth victory in six matches for Chris Wilder's side, whose only dropped points in that sequence came in a 2-2 draw away to Coventry City last Saturday.
Callum O'Hare got things going for the Blades by scoring his first goal for the club on 10 minutes, before Tyrese Campbell doubled their lead with his fifth strike in six matches.
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi added the third in the second half, and they have now won seven in a row at Bramall Lane without conceding. They lead second-placed Burnley by two points, while Oxford are 18th and two points above the relegation zone after picking up one win in 12.
Elsewhere, Norwich City got their play-off charge back on track with a 6-1 victory at home to Plymouth Argyle.
Borja Sainz helped them on their way with a hat-trick, taking his tally to 15 goals in 19 appearances in all competitions this season.
While the score was 2-1 at half-time, a second-half capitulation leaves Wayne Rooney's side just two places and two points above the relegation zone with teams below them to play on Wednesday.
Burnley got themselves back in second with a 2-0 victory over Coventry at Turf Moor.
Jeremy Sarmiento and CJ Egan-Riley both scored in the second half to give Scott Parker's side three points, while Coventry are 17th and two points off the relegation zone.
As a result of Burnley's result, Sunderland slipped to third in the table after missing the chance to maintain their lead at the top of the table.
Regis Le Bris' side were held to a goalless draw at home to West Brom in a game that had just two shots on target. As a result, the Baggies remain seventh in the table, level on points with sixth-placed Middlesbrough having played a game more.
Young Boys 1-6 Atalanta: De Ketelaere steals the show
Charles De Ketelaere was the driving force for Atalanta in their commanding 6-1 win over Young Boys in the Champions League.
De Ketelaere scored twice and provided three assists as Atalanta – last season's Europa League champions – moved into fourth place in the standings, two points behind leaders Inter.
Star of the show De Ketelaere teed up Mateo Retegui for a ninth-minute opener, though Silvere Ganvoula quickly responded for Young Boys.
It was the first goal conceded by the visitors in the competition this season, but the rest of the half was controlled by Atalanta.
De Ketelaere scored his first in the 28th minute when a corner was flicked to him, and he managed to squeeze in a low shot on the turn.
The Belgium international then set up Sead Kolasinac with a throughball from midfield, and the former Arsenal defender calmly slotted home.
De Ketelaere capped off a dominant first half with his third assist, setting up Retegui once more.
Atalanta's fifth, and De Ketelaere's second, arrived 11 minutes after the restart as he drilled in a low shot from the edge of the box, with some help from a deflection, and Lazar Samardzic made it six in stoppage time.
Data Debrief: King Charles
De Ketelaere became the eighth player to be directly involved in five goals in a single Champions League match.
He is the first Belgian to do so and the first for an Italian side.
De Ketelaere is just the third player to assist three goals in the first half of a Champions League game, after Ryan Giggs for Manchester United against Roma in April 2007 and Carlos Martins for Benfica against Lyon in November 2010.
This was, unsurprisingly, Atalanta's biggest margin of victory in a major European match, while the 6-1 defeat was Young Boys’ joint-biggest home defeat in such competitions, along with their 5-0 loss to Hamburger SV in November 1960.
'We wanted to make a statement' – Arteta revels in thumping win over Sporting
Mikel Arteta revelled in a statement win in the Champions League after Arsenal's 5-1 defeat of Sporting CP.
Sporting, who are under new leadership following Ruben Amorim's departure to Manchester United, were in second place in the standings heading into matchday five, following their 4-1 demolition of Manchester City earlier in November.
Yet the Portuguese team were no match for City's Premier League rivals Arsenal on Tuesday, as the Gunners blew Sporting away in Lisbon.
Gabriel Martinelli, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Magalhaes put Arsenal 3-0 up by half-time, and though Goncalo Inacio pulled one back for the hosts, Bukayo Saka's penalty and a late finish from Leandro Trossard completed the rout for Arteta's side.
"I'm very happy, it is a big result against a big opponent," Arteta said, having seen Arsenal accumulate 3.89 expected goals, their most on record for a match in the competition (since 2013-14).
"We wanted to make a statement. I felt a really good energy before the match, but you have to put it into practice.
"The first half was exceptional and gave us the platform to win the game. We were really clever and efficient in the way we attacked them. It is an important win for us.
"The atmosphere was changing [when Sporting scored], they had belief, but after that we showed our personality to get on the ball again, to defend deeper if we needed to and the fourth goal changed it again.
"We have to enjoy it, playing in this competition against these sorts of teams. I was pleased with how the performance flowed."
Arsenal had been in a mini-slump of three games without a win before a 3-0 victory over high-flying Nottingham Forest in the Premier League this past weekend.
Backing up that victory with another dominant display is something they will have to do all season long if they are to be successful, according to Arteta.
"We need the consistency, if you want to be going for championships then you have to win and win again. Today was a different type of game but we handled it well and let's move on now," he said.
Arsenal are next in action on Saturday when they travel to West Ham in the Premier League.
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