MPU Blue tops Pacific Ocean Cup VII

MP United Blue’s Rintaro Miyawaki, left, and Paire’s Dylan Mister ward off each other during the first half of their title game in the Pacific Ocean Cup VII held last Sunday at the Koblerville Elementary School Field. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

MP United Blue avenged its loss to Paire Football Club after coasting to a 4-0 victory in their finals rematch in the Pacific Ocean Cup VII last Sunday at the Koblerville Elementary School Field.

Rohan Basnet made a hat trick in the winner-take-all finale to hand MP United Blue the championship in the five-team competition that also featured the visiting Vivid Blue of Japan, the pledging Southern United Football Club, and MP United Silver. Dylan Kim scored the other goal for MP United Blue, which bowed to Paire in a shootout, 2-4, during the Pacific Ocean Cup V held here in April 2016. Pure FC of Japan won the Pacific Ocean Cup VI, which Vivid Blue hosted in September last year.

MP United and Paire collided anew for the Cup after placing in the Top 2 in the round-robin elimination. The eventual champion was perfect in the preliminary round, winning all its four matches. MP United Blue debuted with a 3-0 victory over Southern United and posted another shutout win (3-0) against Vivid Blue. The Gene Weaver and Alex Park-coached team continued its streak with a 1-0 triumph over Paire and then completed a sweep of the elimination round with a 6-0 rout of sister squad MP United Silver.

Paire also prevailed in its first game after blanking MP United Silver, 3-0, while the former got its second victory following a close 1-0 win against Southern United. Then after falling to MP United Blue, Paire denied Vivid Blue an entry to the finals and earned a chance to win its second championship after outclassing the visiting Japanese team, 2-0.

However, Paire missed the opportunity to get back-to-back titles on Saipan as it misfired in the finals and failed to contain Basnet. Actually, Paire did a great job preventing Basnet and other MP United Blue strikers from finding their target in the 15-minute first half and in the opening minutes of the second.

Basnet then ended MP United Blue’s drought by converting his shot in the 21st minute. He made it two in a row with his goal five minutes later, while Kim widened the gap with his shot in the 27th minute. Basnet then capped MP United’s domination of Paire in the second half as he completed a hat trick with just about a minute left in the finals.

The MP United striker went on to win the Golden Boot award and the Team MVP plum. Basnet scored eight goals in the entire weekend tournament to beat teammate Rintaro Miyawaki (4), Southern’s Frank Basa (3), Vivid Blue’s Tsujita Hayato (3), and Paire’s Dylan Mister (5).

Basnet’s teammate Jerick Quimzon got the Golden Glove award for not allowing a single goal in the competition, while Kaito Ito of Vivid Blue brought home the MVP award. Other Team MVP winners were Southern United’s Michael Peters, Mister, MP United Silver’s Tori Weaver, and Vivid Blue’s Taiki Miyashiro.

Vivid Blue also took the third place award after beating Southern United in a shootout, 3-2. The consolation match went to a shootout after Hayato forced the standoff with his goal in the last two minutes of the 30-minute game. Hayato also hit the goal that sealed the win for Vivid Blue in the shootout, while Miyashiro and Kakeru Tomotaka also scored for the visiting squad.

Southern United knocked in its first two attempts with Basa, who scored for his team in regulation, shooting first and Darien Quitugua giving the squad its second goal before Vivid Blue goalie Ibuki Tanaka blocked the shots of the next two shooters.