Saipan Blue was among the five teams that participated in the two-day tournament, ending day one with wins against teams Rovers and Big Blue from Guam. The Saipan Blues’ win streak was ended by the Korean Football Association, but they fought back after beating Saipan White 2-1.
Saipan Blue drew first blood in the finals round last Sunday when midfielder Rob Epley scored a goal in the 10th minute. Saipan White’s Matt Holley tied the game after striking a goal past Saipan Blue’s goal keeper, Glen Smith. With five minutes left in the game, Saipan Blue finished off their opponents when Sunji Nagayasu scored the final goal.
The Saipan Whites defeated KFA 3-1 in day one, before reaching a 0-0 deadlock against team Big Blue. They struck a perfect 2-0 win against the Rovers but later lost to Saipan Blue by 2-1.
Team Saipan Blue ranked first in the tournament with nine points. Three points were awarded to a winning team, while one was awarded for a tie and zero for a loss.
Despite losing in the finals, the Saipan Whites were guaranteed second place after tying with KFA on Saturday. They earned a total of seven points from the tournament while KFA also collected seven. The Rovers ended the tournament with three points while team Big Blue had one.
Players in team Saipan Blue included Steven McKagan, Adam Hardwicke, Ben Wood, Glen Smith, Tom Linden, Peter Bonser, David Loan, Peter Houk, Masa Otsuka, Choi Chon Won, Dale Roberts, David Duenas, Sunji Nagayasu, Rob Epley, and Greg Borja.
