Latinos’ Raul Rodriguez scored a hero’s goal with just 15 minutes left against Bodden Town Sunday (11 October) night at the Ed Bush Stadium. Both teams came into the game undefeated; winning their first two games in the Cayman Islands Football Association (CIFA) Premier League.
For Bodden Town the game was an opportunity to get redemption after losing to Latinos in the Charity Shield during the preseason. That said, the spanish team had other ideas on the outcome of their respective fixture.
“We knew against Bodden Town it would be a difficult game but we prepared for that”
– Nahun Rodriguez
The match kicked off with both teams setting a high pace early. However, it was Latinos that found themselves on the opposition side of the field shooting several times but denied by Bodden Town’s keeper and captain Ramon Sealy.
Bodden Town put themselves at a disadvantage just before the first half concluded, after Kyle Santamaria was shown a red card after a reckless tackle that left Latinos’ Rodriguez wincing.
The 2019-2020 league winners kept their defense locked despite being one man short, but a shot from Rodriguez 22 yards out found the back of the net in the 85th minute to bring the game 1-0.
Bodden Town tried to rally late but found themselves on the receiving end of yet another red card, issued to Brian Martin for intolerable language towards the referee.
“We’re happy with the result,” Latinos head coach Nahun Rodriguez told Cay 03 Sports after the match. “We knew against Bodden Town it would be a difficult game but we prepared for that and the guys fought hard for this.”
When asked about the performance of Rodriguez and his single goal to secured the game for his team, Nahun said it was an overall team effort that gave his team the victory.
“Raul is a very important player for our team and we really value him but it was not just about his goal,” said Nahun. “It was about the full team and I’m very glad with all the players that fought today.”
Scholars ISC | 6 | Roma United SC | 0 |
Future SC | 3 | Academy SC | 1 |
Elite SC | 2 | East End United FC | 1 |
George Town | 2 | Sunset FC | 1 |
Latinos FC | 1 | Bodden Town FC | 0 |