PHC Old Boys 1

Social Club Old Boys 0

During one of the most heartwarming nights in local football history, fans, family, former rivals and team-mates alike all turned up at the National Sports Centre on Friday to pay tribute to former PHC Zebras star Marischal (Mop) Astwood ? diagnosed earlier this year with Lou Gehrig?s disease.

As he sat quietly among family members in the Sports Centre?s grandstand, Astwood watched his former colleagues battle it out on the pitch for charity during an evenly contested match featuring legendary footballers of yesteryear.

Part proceeds from the game will help pay for Astwood?s medical costs.

After both sides had rattled the woodwork with cracking efforts, PHC?s Brendan (Pickles) Robinson pounced onto a Keith Bell pass in the box and beat ?keeper Wayne Butterfield at the near post with a firmly driven shot ten minutes from time.

?All I wanted to do was score a goal for Mop . . . and I was able to,? Robinson told The Royal Gazette afterwards.

?I told him at the half I was a going to get him a goal.?

Robinson played alongside the likes of Astwood, Ellie Wilson, Kenny Burt, Sammy Swan and Kevin Dill at Stadium Lane.

?I was a little out of shape, but it still felt good to be out there tonight,? Robinson added.

Although Social Club pressed on with Ralph (Gumbo) Bean nearly equalising minutes later at the opposite end with a glancing header, an equally star-studded PHC had just enough gas left in the tank to keep the Bluebirds at bay.

Social Club were unfortunate not to have taken an early lead when Mel Lewis had a goal-bound effort tipped over by a fired up Ed (Beaver) Burrows between the posts.

PHC?s Chris Furbert (cramp) and Danvers Seymour (hamstring), meanwhile, were the night?s only casualties.

Sports Minister Dale Butler was present at the Sports Centre where he personally thanked organisers for staging such a ?wonderful event?.

Both teams spread the ball around the full width of the pitch and created their fair share of chances but just could not find their way to goal until Bell and Robinson combined to deliver the KO blow during the closing stages of the match.

And after all was said and done, a humbled Astwood stated: ?I just want to thank everyone here tonight. I really appreciate it a whole lot.?

As for the action out in the middle, Astwood added: ?It was really good and the guys really enjoyed themselves.?

Social Club captain Mackie Simons was among those who dusted off their old boots for the charitable cause.

Simons was a member of the all conquering Bluebirds side that dominated the local football scene in the early 1960s.

?I enjoyed it very much. It was a lot of fun seeing all of my old friends and all of the guys I used to play against,? he said.

?As you can see the camaraderie is still there and one thing I can say about our generation is that although we played against one another we were all still very great friends.

?The competition was still there . . . but we were still good friends and I enjoy being a part of this. I had no hesitation when asked to play and it also felt good to be skipper for a little while tonight.

?This was a great turnout for Mop who is a good man. And you can tell the love others have for him by the turnout.?

Simons said his team were unlucky to have conceded a goal during the latter stages of the match.

?It was a late killer there . . . but it was good,? he added. ?I guess it really didn?t matter though because we were just having fun tonight for a very worthy cause.?

Both teams were bolstered by guest players. PHC had former Somerset Trojans and Bermuda midfield schemer George Brangman orchestrating in the middle of the park.

?It was a lot of fun,? he said. ?And this is what it is all about, having fun. I really enjoyed it, especially playing on a pitch that holds lots of memories for me.?

Earlier, Bermuda?s Under-20 national team, led by North Village?s talented youngsters Shayne Hollis and Keishen Bean, edged triple crown winners Village 2-1.

Hollis and Jahnai Watson both capitalised on two first-half goalkeeping errors while Keith Jennings pulled one back for Village with a merciless blast at the near post.