February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Jessie Van Saum (20th, 34th) scored both goals in the final to keep the trophy in Rovers’ possession for another season.
The win was the Long Island amateur side’s fourth Manning Cup victory in six seasons after triumphs in 2000, 2001 and 2004. Rovers were losing finalists in 2002.
It was also deserved consolation for the Irishmen’s 2-1 defeat to Islip in the Long Island League Cup final the previous week, a match in which John O’Hagen scored.
Mark Hooper, Rovers’ honorary director and former coach, gave kudos to player-manager Paul McGlynn for the club’s recent success.
“He’s done an absolutely brilliant job,” Hooper said.
He singled out veteran defender Kevin Daly for Man of the Match honors against Pancyprian.
Rovers are poised for more honors as they also lead the Long Island Soccer League’s First Division.
CELTIC TIE
Manhattan Celtic will have to avoid defeat against third place Clarkstown this weekend to clinch promotion to the CSL Second Division after they coughed up a 2-0 lead in a 3-3 draw with Ridgewood at Wards Island last Sunday.
Michael Thomas was on target twice (20th, 30th) in the first half as Celtic appeared headed for an easy win. However, the Romanians struck twice in two minutes to draw level through Nitu Tudo (58th) and Sofrone Bacula (60th).
John Finelli looked like he’d restored order in Celtic’s favor with ten minutes remaining, but once again Ridgewood replied in kind, this time through Eduard Laibner (85th), to pick up a vital point in their relegation battle.
“We blew it,” confessed Celtic boss Ian Woodcock who said they’d now have to get the job done against Clarkstown (8-3-1, 25).
The two options for the Celts (9-1-3, 30) is that they can either pip Central Park Rangers (10-2-2, 32), who’ve completed their fixtures, for the Metro Div. 1 title or miss out on promotion altogether.
LANSDOWNE SUSPENSE
A 2-1 defeat to unpredictable Koha at New Utrecht High School has left Lansdowne Bhoys’s First Division status in the air.
Damian Mescall (20th) opened the scoring for the Bhoys who dominated play until the heat kicked in and Koha hit them twice on the break (25th, 75th pen).
The result means the Bronx Irish finish their rookie season in the top flight second from the bottom in the East for now, on the 17-point mark with five wins, nine losses and two draws.
Koha (4-9, 12) are five points behind in last place but have three games left that they need to win in order to avoid relegation at Lansdowne’s expense. The first of those games is against Mike Fitzgerald’s West title chasing Manhattan Kickers at Chelsea Pier 40 at 7pm tonight.
“We had our chances but didn’t take them,” said Bhoys coach Paul Doherty. “The heat killed us. We were all over them until the heat kicked in.”