February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Williams was involved in all three goals of what coach Billy Henderson dismissed as a very sloppy game.
“It wasn’t a good game, but it was good to put one under our belt,” he said.
Central Park, who spent most of the summer training together, made their superior conditioning count from the get-go and were rewarded with a goal in the 20th minute thanks to a Scott Brindley header.
Enter Williams, who replied in kind. He connected with a powerful header from a corner to tie the game before half time.
Williams was on the mark again on the hour when his shot bounced off the Central Park goalkeeper and into the net.
He then won the penalty, from which Dave Fitzgerald scored what would be Shamrock’s third and decisive goal, when a defender handled his goal-bound shot with the goalie beaten.
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Central Park pulled one back in the 89th minute from a breakaway that Henderson claimed was clearly offside.
Shamrock advance to the second round of the competition they won two years in a row before last season.
The Rocks, who face promotion side Manhattan Kickers in the league this Sunday, will be gunning for the First Division title with a strengthened squad.
They have two notable signings in midfielders Tommy Browne, a former Sheffield United youth player, and Dave McFarland, most recently with the Irish Rovers.
Rangers Payback
Later at Msgr. McClancy High School, Central Park’s reserves got a measure of revenge for their Metro team’s loss by thrashing the Shamrock second team 4-0 in the Saunders Cup. Rich Enticott (two), Justin Fishkin and Ra Eang were on target.
Shamrock’s newly formed Over-30 side were also on the receiving end of a one-sided shellacking in the Saunders Cup. They crashed 5-1 to the Rory Finn-coached GH Metros at Randalls Island. Steve Bodden starred for Metros, reeling in four goals after Sebastien Matimora had broken the ice.
Nick Haley (35th) grabbed Shamrock’s face-saver.
Celtic First
Last season, Manhattan Celtic failed to win a game in the CSL’s Metro Div. I. They needed penalties to break that dubious run last weekend at the expense of Lansdowne Bhoys in a League Cup first round tussle at Van Cortland Park.
Celtic prevailed 4-3 in the shootout after Lansdowne’s Gary Dunleavy (85th) had pegged back Danish forward Stephan Nyvang’s go-ahead-goal (30th).
Nyvang, Keith Doyle, Tunisian Rafaet Olina and the Russian-born Roman Kalinin were Celtic’s spot-kick heroes.
Celtic boss John Marron was pleased with the result. “It was very competitive and no one gave up,” he said. “They are a very good team.”
Bhoys president Eamonn Duffy said: “We hit the crossbar twice, once at the end of regulation and once in OT. They had one chance in the first half and they took it.”
Bhoys expect even fewer mercies in their next match — against Irish rivals Astoria Gaels in the league this Sunday at noon at Van Cortlandt Park.
“That will be a bloodbath,” Duffy predicted.
Shields’s Clincher
Brooklyn Celtic ace Danny Shields opened his scoring account with the only goal in the Over-30 side’s 1-0 decision over Guyana Veterans “B” in the Saunders Cup.
“A good game. We had a lot of chances to increase the lead but couldn’t take the chances,” said Jim Murray.
Celtic’s irrepressible Paddy O’Sullivan had the best opportunity of all when his spectacular overhead kick came off the crossbar in the 75th minute.
Cup Replay
In other League Cup results, holders New York Albanians edged out Central Park Rangers’ first team 1-0 at Randalls Island in a replay of last year’s final, which the Bronx side won 6-4. Dylan headed in Albanians’ winner in the 75th minute. “We’ll get them in the league,” vowed Rangers’ Paul Clayton.
A Nick Christopher goal steered Pancyprian Freedoms past Second Division promotion side Roosevelt International in a 1-0 affair at Randalls Island.
There was also a win for Metro side Kandia who upset Banatul 5-0 at Randalls. Layton Mattis (two), Osmond Petter, Bruce Toulloh and Dave Taylor scored.