Our first game and our first academy team. There was a nervousness in the air, a secret calm hoping that we don’t get hammered by Mitchells Plain Centre of Excellence! Once the whistle blew however, it only took 10 minutes to completely change our expectations… to “Hey! We might actually be able to win this one!” MPCE made it clear from the start that they were not here to fool around and came out strong, but our defensive backline played with a certain assertiveness that led to our boys making quick retaliations, putting MPCE under attack instead. Delroy Daniels opened the score for Kuilsriver at the 10 minute mark and since then Kuils River AFC looked poised to take a win. MPCE was not to be outdone though and by 2nd half came into the game with a new focus. A rookie mistake in our backline gave MPCE an opportunity to break through and go one-on-one with our goalkeeper, Connor April, who up to that point had a fantastic game. They netted their first goal 10 minutes into the second half. Within another 3 minutes MPCE’s attack seemed too much and they again broke through and scored their second goal. Kuilsriver was not to give up though and fought back hard, but to no avail. No matter how many times our Kuila Boys broke through, they just could not finish. We lost our first game 2-1, but what a good loss, if such a thing exists. Well played boys!

Our second game took place later that day and this time the team was made up of a very different line-up of boys compared to the first game. We made it clear early at the start that all our boys will get game time, no matter what happens. Our boys were really hoping to win this one though. Belstar was after all not considered an academy and we’ve won plenty league games against them in the past, so we thought they would not be too much of a challenge. But Belstar also came to the tournament to learn and grow, so they were here hoping for a win from this game too. The game started hard and remained so till the very last minute because if there were any games to be won, it would be this one. With hard tackles, quick passing and barrage of shots, it took only 10 minutes for Kuilsriver’s Rayden Daniels to find the back of the net. Quite a few opportunities were missed by our boys though, leaving us vulnerable close to the end of the 1st half. As fate would have it, Belstar managed to pull a goal back to level the score in the dying minutes before the end of the 1st half. Once the 2nd half whistle went, it only took Belstar 5 minutes to net a lucky goal. With the score now being 2-1 in Belstar’s favour, they went into lock-down mode and played very defensive for the rest of the game. As in the first game, no matter how many times our boys broke through, they just could not find the back of the net. The final score remained 2-1 and KRAFC were now staring at the plate section of the tournament.

Click here for our Day 2 review