Happi Bath Estate FC and Promex Harlem United will have to take to the field again to determine who will walk away with the grand prize of EC$10 000. Both clubs were vying for the prize money of the 2020 Dominica Football Association (DFA) Recovery Cup Knock Out competition.
The grand finals got on the way at 3:27 pm on Sunday at the Windsor Park Sports Stadium had to be aborted 11 minutes of the start. The organizers, the DFA, were forced to put an end to the proceedings on the instructions of the Commissioner of the Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force.
According to the Police, the game could not continue because of COVID-19 protocol breaches, which included physical distancing and a maximum of 200 people in the stadium, inclusive of players, security personnel, DFA officials, vendors, and spectators.
Numerous calls for spectators to physically distance themselves fell on deaf ears. Many persons were also seen jumping the walls to enter the stadium. These breaches were enough for the Police to bring a halt to proceedings.
The decision did not go down too well with players and management of both clubs as they felt that the Police could have allowed spectators to leave the stadium and continue the game rather than bringing it to an end.
At the time the game was blown off by the referee, the scores were locked at nil all.
The DFA will make a decision as to what will happen as it relates to the game. However, a source with intimate knowledge says that the encounter will have to continue exactly where it stopped and with the same players who were on the field at the time that the game was discontinued. Such a situation is termed a force majeure, which is basically an event occurring outside of the control of a party.
Meanwhile, Central Cooperative Credit Union Dublanc LTD walked away with EC$3000 and the third-place trophy. In the third-place match, Dublanc made easy work of WE United when they secured a four goals to nil victory.
Ajaya Royer and Euclid Bertrand scored one goal each in the first half of play to give their club a two-nil advantage at the interval. In the second half, Tristane Shillingford and Jamie Deluge sealed the deal with one goal each.
Something needs to be done about the VERY POOR officiating performance of game referees. They need to understand that when they make such bad decisions as game referees, it breaks down the confidence and spirit of a team. I must commend Vibean.TV for bringing the games live. That way everyone can see their poor officiating and bias towards certain teams. If we want the level of football to rise, more work needs to be done with the referees.