Goal-shooter Donna Charles was almost flawless on Tuesday night in leading Police to its third title in the Retro Division of the Courts All Sectors Netball (ASNL) at the Centre of Excellence in Macoya.
The policewomen beat Harlem, 8-5, in the final of the Retro-style (double elimination) knockout competition with Charles scoring all eight goals for the winner.
"I feel very elated to win the title," said Charles. "It's a joyful feeling. I haven't played in 10 years however it felt natural. It's feels great to be part of a winning team."
En route to the finale, Police beat Bermudez, 11-6, in the first round to advance to the winners' bracket so too TSTT, who defeated Harlem, 6-2. Both Bermudez and Harlem were relegated to the losers' bracket.
Police on the other hand moved on to meet Les Enfants, who was on a bye in the first round and easily took care of them, winning 10-1, sending its opponent to the losers' end.
Les Enfants did not stay down for long and beat Bermudez to face off against Harlem for a spot in the final however it was the latter, who prevailed by a narrow one-goal (10-9) margin in added on time after both were tied at end of regulation time.
On the other end, TSTT put up a good fight against the eventual winner Police but the former still fell to a 8-6 defeat.
In the Police's unit final league match, the day before, Charles, a former national netballer, notched 29 goals from 37 attempts to defeat Bermudez 38-17 at the same venue.
Charles partnered well with goal-attack Beverly Hernandez (9/11) as they did all season and had Police ahead at the end of each quarter, 10-5 in the first, 23-9 at the half and 30-14 in third to seal the 21-goal victory.
The win ensured that Police remained unbeaten in claiming the League title with full 16 points after two rounds of matches in the five-team competition.
Debra Beckles was the lading shooter for Bermudez with 15 goals off 36 tries while her goal-attack added the other two goals from five attempts.
Police reign started early in the season with them emerging joint champion in the divisional knockout competition, sharing the crown with TSTT, after the teams remained tied 11-11 at the end of regulation time.
"I feel very proud to be part of this winning team," said Charles, who is a cancer survivor. "It also feels great to be able to make a valid contribution to the team winning three of the four titles that were up for grabs in the ASNL."
TSTT, which placed second with 11 points from five wins, a draw and two losses in the League competition, also won the Fast5 title, again sharing top honours, this time with Bermudez.
The Bermudez squad ended the league in third place on points table with four wins, a draw and three losses (nine points).
Les Enfants with shooting from goal-shooter Joanne Payne with 26 off 36 tries, closed their season with a win over Harlem, topping them 35-20. Operating in the circle with Payne was Barbara Britto, who netted nine in 14, to .
Denise Rose (13/27) and Maylin Peters (7/11) did the shooting for Harlem, which remained winless in the league competition, to place last.
The awards ceremony will be held on Saturday at 3 pm at the Maloney Indoor Sports Arena.
RESULTS
Double Elimination Knockout
Final
Police 8 (Donna Charles 8/10, Jacinda Bristol 0/1) vs Harlem 5 (Maylin Peters 2/2, Denise Rose 3/5).
Semifinals
Winners’ bracket: Police 8 vs TSTT 6
Losers’ bracket: Les Enfants 9 vs Harlem 10
Second round
Winners’ bracket: Police 10 vs Les Enfants 1
Losers’ bracket: Bermudez 3 Les Enfants 7
First round
Bermudez 6 vs Police 11
Harlem 2 vs TSTT 6
Les Enfants, bye
Monday
League
Final matches
Les Enfants 35 (Joanne Payne 26/36, Barbara Britto 9/14) vs Harlem 20 (Denise Rose 13/27, Maylin Peters 7/11). Quarter scores: 1st. 9-3 (Les Enfants); 2nd. 20-7 (Les Enfants); 3rd. 27-13 (Les Enfants).
Bermudez 17 (Debra Beckles 15/36, Jennifer Williams 2/5) vs Police 38 (Donna Charles 29/37, Beverly Hernandez 9/11). Quarter scores: 1st. 10-5 (Police); 2nd. 23-9 (Police); 3rd. 30-14 (Police).
STANDINGS
Place Team P W D L GF GA Diff Pts
1 Police 8 8 0 0 299 125 174 16
2 TSTT 8 5 1 2 201 153 48 11
3 Bermudez 8 4 1 3 202 242 -40 9
4 Les Enfants 8 3 0 5 193 208 -15 6
5 Harlem 8 0 0 8 138 305 -167 0