HOUSTON - It was a hot and humid summer day in Houston, Texas with temperature reaching 99 degrees. Present at George Bush Park were teams from Ghana, Congo, Angola and SSFC, representing Nigeria.

SSFC vs Angola (0:0)
SSFC and Angola are no strangers to each other because they have had over 3 scrimmages at Eldridge park. SSFC has a 100% winning record versus Angola. However, this show down was to be of a different kind in a new setting.

The game was tough from start to finish and both teams were physical throughout. The 1st half saw SSFC with the most chances. Angola also had opportunities to score but failed to put the ball in. The game ended 0-0 and was the only scoreless game in the tournament.

Angola:1pt; SSFC:1pt

Ghana vs Congo (4:0)
Congo was no match for Ghana because they had only 9 players available for the game. Ghana dominated for obvious reasons and scored 4 goals. Congo had no response and gave up.

Congo quit the tournament after their 1st game. This gave Angola an automatic win and thus qualifying for the Final.

Angola:4pts; Ghana:3pts; SSFC:1pt; Congo:0pt

SSFC vs Ghana (5:1)
SSFC went into this game knowing they had to win it to qualify for the finals. Congo quitting the tournament gave Angola a spot in the final so the winner of this game would go to the final.

SSFC had its full squad to play this game because of its importance. SSFC did not disappoint. The players delivered a lovely game. SSFC started scoring from the start with goals from Mike, Habeeb and Fatai in the 1st half and 2 goals in the 2nd from Temzie and Saheed. Ghana scored a consolation goal late in the 2nd half but it did nothing apart from proving Ghana could score against SSFC.

SSFC booked a place in the final with the amazing win and the 1st game show down was about to repeat itself.

SSFC:4pts; Angola:4pts; Ghana:3pts; Congo:0pt

Angola vs SSFC (0:2) - FINAL
Angola felt SSFC using one of its tournament organizers as the referee would be unfair so a player from Ghana was used instead. The game started slow because SSFC players were tired after 3 games and Congo had been resting for over 2 hours. The tempo quickly changed when both teams realized what was at stake. The trophy!! The referee gave 2 red cards to a player from both team for an altercation.

The game was still fierce with 20 players on the field. The breakthrough was a counterattack by SSFC through Justice on the right flank. Justice used his pace to beat an Angola's defender and crossed an inch-perfect ball to Saheed. Saheed, waiting patiently unmarked, got the ball in the back of the net with a superb header. The 1st half ended 1-0.

The 2nd half started with a faster tempo. Angola, knowing they had to equalize, put their players out to attack. DJ and Francis' speed helped in SSFC's defense on numerous occasions to stop Angola from scoring. Angola started showing weakness in the defense and SSFC capitalized on that. Caleb had a 1-on-1 chance to seal the game but failed to convert. Oke got the rebounded ball and passed it back to Mike. Mike turned the ball around and gave it back to Caleb. This time, Caleb scored with a blazing left shot to finally sealed the deal.

An Angola player, out of frustration and protestation, stormed off the field and was replaced by another. The new player failed to make an impact as the game ended 2-0.

SSFC, like France in France '98, was crowned champions in its 1st annual invitational tournament. The competition was a success and next year promises to be bigger and better.