St George’s 0 X-Roads 1

X-Roads put a halt to St George’s Colts’ cup run at Wellington Oval yesterday with Paul Simons hitting the winner early in the first half.

Colts put up a gallant effort and at times matched their Premier League opponents, who had goalkeeper Dashun Cooper to thank with two jaw-dropping saves in the second half.

“It wasn’t our best performance, but we got the result we wanted, so I would take that,” Thaaqib Talbot, the X-Roads caretaker coach, said.

“Cup games can bring out the best in teams. Cooper did well to keep us in the game. He puts the work in day in, day out and all credit to him, but at the end of the day, it is a team effort.”

X-Roads dominated play in the early stages of the game with some precision passing and scored the only goal of the game early when Tyrell Burgess’s cross from a throw-in found Paul Simons at the back post who beat his marker to rifle the ball into the roof of the net.

St George’s started to come into their game as the half wore on with midfielder Jahron Dickinson being instrumental in many of their build-ups. It was Dickinson who came close to scoring when his fierce, dipping shot from 25 yards skimmed the cross bar.

St George’s thought they had equalised just before the half when Jelani Carlington’s deflected shot, wrong-footed Cooper, but the ball bounced inches past the upright for a corner.

Both goalkeepers were kept busy in the second half. First, Carlington hit a firm drive on the turn through a crowd of players that was destined for the “pigeon hole” only to have Cooper spring full length to grab the ball at the last second.

Freddy Hall, the St George’s goalkeeper, was just as equal to his opposite number when Donavan Thompson dispossessed Ernest Signor inside the box to hit a hard and low drive forcing Hall to dive to his right to push the ball around the post.

St George’s started to dominate and pushed players forward in the late stages in search off an equaliser. They thought they had scored when substitute Kenton Ottley hit a first-time volley on the run from six yards, but Cooper made a critical save by being well positioned at the near post to turn away the shot.

Andre Burgess almost gave X-Roads breathing room when Signor was dispossessed again, but his shot hit the side-netting with time running out.

SCORERS

X-Roads: Simons, 16

TEAMS

St George’s (4-2-3-1): F Hall — G Wade, J Hayward, E Signor, W Broadley — (sub: T Burgesson, 75) — J Carlington, D Signor — T McCallan, J Dickinson, J Brangman (sub: K Ottley, 65) — M Simmons (sub: A Smith, 85). Substitutes not used: K Greaves, D McCallan, B Swainson, A Francis. Booked: D Signor.

X-Roads (4-2-3-1): D Cooper — J Furbert, M Hill, K Wilkinson, C McDowall — T Daniels, T Burgess — K Brangman (sub: C Hayward, 78), P Simons, A Burgess — D Thompson. Substitutes not used: J Burrows, R Beek, K Talbot, J Sanchez. Booked: K Brangman.

Referee: T Simons.