Dev.Cougars 4 Wolves 0

Wolves became the first team to win the Dudley Eve Trophy and be relegated in the same season when three second half goals at Devonshire Rec. yesterday sent them crashing to their sixth defeat in seven matches since January.

And within minutes of the final whistle, Dennis Brown confirmed his resignation as coach of the senior team after six years - a decision he said was made weeks ago. Brown is hoping to coach one of the club's junior teams next season.

Apathy amongst his players in the second half of the season caused the club's slide down the tables after being tied for first place at Christmas.

“Everybody says they want success but the success over the Christmas holiday really did us in, I think,” said the coach who transformed the team into a force in the top flight. Relegation was certainly not on their minds when they won the Dudley Eve two months ago.

“We were hungry up until that point and after being successful in the Dudley Eve tournament we let our guard down and when we realised it, it was too late. There was a lack of determination and desire in the second half of the season and it really showed in the end result in the matches.

“They thought the second half of the season was going to be easy but when you win a championship you have a target on your chest where everybody is going to come out to play against you harder than usual, and we weren't mentally prepared for that.”

Only a 14th minute strike by Raymond Beach from a Wali Salaam ball into the box separated the teams at the half. A 34th minute penalty miss by Vince Minors certainly didn't help Wolves' cause, though Cougars players and fans felt justice was served by ‘keeper Ricardo Brangman's save.

The penalty was awarded by Stuart Crockwell after a challenge by Jeremy DeShields on Minors, who stayed on his feet and managed to release the ball just as the whistle was blown.

Brown launched a verbal attack on his players at half-time, but it did not produce the desired results as Wolves spent the majority of the second half defending against a now rampant Cougars attack led by the speedy pair of Beach and Heys Wolffe.

Winslow Williams in the Wolves goal produced a brilliant reflex save to deny Wolves just a minute after the restart. Then Wolffe unleashed a shot from 20 yards that the keeper scrambled away for a corner.

Julian Francis, the first half substitution for Wainwright, missed a sitter inside the six yard box when he headed wide and then Mark Smith at the other end put an easy chance wide after the Wolves defence had been cut open to leave him with just the ‘keeper to beat.

However, Smith made amends five minutes later in the 71st minute with a goal made from sheer determination, as he battled into the box before driving a low shot past Williams.

There was now no way back for a Wolves team who needed to win to have any chance of avoiding the drop. And as the resigned look of relegation began to show on their faces, Cougars went in for the kill, scoring two goals in the dying minutes to wrap up victory. Player-coach Shawn Smith scored the best goal of the game in the 87th minute when his shot from 25 yards hit the roof of the net with Williams off his line.

Three minutes into injury time, Taurianno Trott's final touch of the game summed up Wolves' day, when he turned an off target shot from substitute Lavintz Tota into his own net.

“I've done all I can and after six years I'm a bit tired mentally,” said a dejected Brown.

“But I'm going to still stick with the club and will probably go down to the under-11 and under-13 divisions next year. My decision (to quit) was made about a month ago, and I commend everybody who gave me the support.

“I'm the type of person who the more success I get the hungrier I am, but the mentality of a lot of young people today isn't the same as when I was coming through. This should be a lesson to them. If they stick together they should be alright, but no one knows what's going to happen in the future.”

Cougars: R.Brangman; S.Smith, C.Smith, J.DeShields, D.Brangman, D.Eve (P.Mallory 81 mins), W.Salaam, K.Saltus (S.Coddington 67 mins), M.Smith (L.Tota 84 mins), H.Wolffe, R.Beach.

Wolves: W.Williams; J.Douglas (N.Webb 47 mins), J.Simmons, R.Ebbin, T.Trott, A.Thomas, M.Ray, J.Peniston, N.Smith, D.Wainwright (J.Francis 40 mins), V.Minors (A.Webb 57 mins).

Booked: W.Salaam, C.Smith (Cougars); N.Smith, T.Trott, N.Webb (Wolves).

Men of the match: H.Wolffe (Cougars), W.Williams (Wolves).

Referee: Stuart Crockwell.