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Arnett retain Boom El Clasico
October 20, 2023
The Boom El Clasico trophy will remain with Arnett Gardens for the second year after they beat Waterhouse 2-0 at the Drewsland Mini-Stadium on Wednesday.
A penalty in each half from Shai Smith and Rushike Kelson secured the $500,000 cash prize for the winners, and for coach Xavier Gilbert, it was a great way to start his tenure.
"It is a win under the belt. There are no points, but there are bragging rights. I am happy for the win. I am happy for the way we executed," Gilbert said.
"There are still some areas we have to touch up before the start of the season, but this was a great dress rehearsal for our season opener.
"It (win) is good for the community and good for the players, and it's good to get it (first match) out the way," Gilbert added.
The game was only five minutes old when an erratic challenge on an Arnett attacker inside the box led Smith to the spot, and he calmly converted from 12 yards.
Both teams had great chances afterwards, with Arnett missing a couple of excellent opportunities and even having a chance miraculously cleared off the line.
Waterhouse wasted a great chance in the 61st minute and were made to pay moments after that miss when Arnett were awarded a second penalty after a late tackle in the box, which Kelson dispatched in the 63rd minute.
"It is unfortunate that we were on the losing end," Waterhouse coach Marcel Gayle commented. "I thought we managed the game well. The first 15 minutes, we were a bit lethargic and disorganised, but we got ourselves back in the game and created several chances.
"Second half, we managed the game better. We had some chances, but unfortunately, we were let down in front of the goal. We take heart from the game. We saw a lot of positives," Gayle said.
