Shirley’s grabs Division 2 lead

Shirley’s Football Club’s Wes Bogdan, right, receives a pass from Panapa Peteru during their game against the CNMI Women’s National Team in the Division 2 of the M-League last weekend at the Oleai Sports Complex Field. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

Shirley’s Football Club jumped to the top spot of Division 2 of the 2016 M-League after defeating the CNMI Women’s National Team, 3-1, last Sunday at the Oleai Sports Complex Field.

Shirley’s now has a 4-0-2 win-draw-loss record to lead Sun Palace (3-1-1), World Resort (3-1-2), Kanoa (2-1-2), Thundercats (2-1-3), and the WNT (1-0-5).

Three different players scored for Shirley’s to avenge the team’s 2-3 first round loss to the WNT. Shirley’s made all its goals in the second half with Kris Kim logging the first and Rodwealth Espana hitting the second. Kazuaki Togo nailed the third goal for the winning squad, while Irish Pagarao registered the only goal for the WNT.

Kanoa 5, Sun Palace 3
Kanoa stunned erstwhile leader Sun Palace in the first Division 2 match last weekend.

Kanoa drew goals from five players led by Owen Ji, who found the back of the net in the fourth minute. A conversion from Saixian Bagsic seven minutes later lifted Kanoa to a 2-0 advantage, while Ho Jin Woo made it three in a row with his shot in the 13th minute.

Sun Palace, on the other hand, ended its silence in the 14 th minute, thanks to Jun Sik Kim’s goal and the squad moved within one 10 minutes later, courtesy of Sang Ho Choi’s goal. Another goal from Choi early in the first half forced the deadlock, which Jae Hwang Oh broke with his goal in the 43rd, while Kirk Andon hit the insurance for Kanoa in the 68th.

World Resort 4, Thundercats 1
World Resort also pulled off an upset against former division leader Thundercats.

Daniel Agulto led World Resort’s third win in six games after knocking in a pair of goals. He got his first in the 23rd, while Ryu Hoin and John Lewis scored earlier in the 16th and seventh minute, respectively, to power World Resort to a 3-1 halftime edge. Kitae Kim tallied the only goal for the Thundecats in the first first and the team failed to light up the board in the second, while Agulto earned another one in the 36th minute.

DIVISIONS 1
Paire/Inter 10, Matansa 0
In the last Division 1 match, Paire/Inter Godfather’s whipped Matansa to reclaim the lead in their group.

Paire/Inter Godfather’s peppered Matansa with goals in the first half, recording eight. Ajani Bureel registered one of them and went on to complete a hat-trick after delivering two more in the final frame. Arkie Reusora, Ryu Tanzawa, David Bush, Yoshi Mafnas, Peter Loken, Jin Seok Kim, and Yogesh Singh scored for Paire/Inter Godfather’s in the opening half.

Paire/Inter Godfather’s improved to a 3-0-1 card to pace Tan Holdings (2-1-1), MP United (2-1-1), Korean Football Association on Saipan (2-0-1), and Matansa (0-0-5).

In the other Division 1 match, Tan Holdings and MP United settled for a 1-1 draw. Terrence Belcher hit the equalizer for MP United in the 32nd minute, while Sean Perez posted the first goal in the match seven minutes earlier.