Bayside U16s beat Brits in friendly, 2-0
BY JOSH JURNOVOY Special to the News

Submitted Photo Great match there, chap Members of the Bayside U16s and Retford United pose for a photo after Bayside's 2-0 win Friday. Retford came over from 'across the pond' to see some American competition.

The Bayside U16 boys' team defeated Retford United in a friendly match on Friday night 2-0. What made this game different was Bayside's opponent is from England.

They made their journey to America to compete it various games and tournaments. They came in second place two weeks ago in a tournament hosted by the Pensacola Football Club.

The Bayside U16 team mostly consists of players from both the JV and Varsity soccer teams from Gulf Breeze High School and a few players from neighboring high schools.

The teams played an even match until Bayside's Brad Parrish broke the tie with a goal in the 26th minute. Parrish received a pass from the right and put it past the goalie on the left side of the net for the score.

Bayside sealed the deal in the 49th minute when Chris Lee received a pass from Nick Malloy and took a shot that the goalie saved but he couldn't hold on to the ball. Lee got the rebound of his own shot and tapped the ball in to make it 2-0.

Retford United showed great sportsmanship in defeat and followed a custom that many countries outside of the United States share by giving the opposing team gifts. They gave every player on Bayside a postcard that had a picture of their home field on it.

"It was very interesting game. It was funny because I had never heard so many British accents at one time before, and they had weird haircuts," said Bayside's Thomas Farmer. "But they were a tough opponent, and we knew they were a good team when they came in second at PFC."