November 13, 2007 | 12:00am
The Sacred Heart School-Jesuit Football Club (SHS-J FC) grabbed the second place honors in the Boys 10 age group of the Alaska Cup Football Festival last Sunday at the Alabang Country Club in Muntinlupa City.
The SHS-J FC lost to Tamasak Football Club of football hotbed Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo via penalty shootout, 1-2, in a nail-biter of a championship game. The game ended 1-1 in regulation with Gani Fernandez scoring the first goal of the game for SHS-J FC in the first half. Tamasak, however, came back strong in the endgame, scoring the equalizer with three minutes left in the game. With both teams tired after a long day of football, no other goals were scored and the championship was decided through a penalty shootout.
The runner-up finish proved to be a memorable achievement for SHS-J FC which was making its first appearance in this annual football festival that drew teams from all over the country.
SHS-J FC dominated its group in the elimination round, sweeping the opposition. It defeated Brent, 4-2, then followed this up with an 8-0 trashing of Brightwood, another 8-0 whitewash over Las Pinas, a 5-1 rout of Makati Football Club, and a close 4-3 victory over Faith Academy.
Next up was the quarterfinal round where SHS-J FC crushed Don Bosco Pampanga, 5-1. They then met a familiar foe in Cebu International School in the semifinal, winning 3-1, before capping the day by facing off against the eventual champions.
SHS-J FC also sent a team to play in the Boys 12 division where it placed second in its group in the elimination round with a 2-1-1 record or seven points.
This, however, wasn’t good enough to make it to the playoffs. They defeated Learning Center (3-0) and Brent School (5-0). They were held to a draw by Faith Academy (1-1), and lost a heartbreaker to La Salle Antipolo, 2-3.
Overall, the Manila trip proved to be a productive learning experience for the boys who were making their second trip to Manila this year. SHS-J FC participated in the RIFA Cup last January, winning the Boys 10 age group championship (boys born 1997). The club also bagged two other top three finishes at the RIFA Cup, taking third place in both the Boys 95 and 96 age groups. — Rico S. Navarro, Columnist
