“Three points is more important than my goal” South Shields IA striker reflects on recent win

In a five-goal thriller, South Shields narrowly beat Macclesfield to win the battle of the International Academies.

The breakthrough for the Mariners came through Daniel Rovira in the 25^th minute. Cai Pritchard quickly doubled their advantage in the 29^th minute.

Shields finished the half strong. Striker Osman Padilla grabbed his first Shields goal in the 42^nd minute as they looked to cruise to victory.

Late goals from Carlos Santos and Tyler Beck in the 80^th and 94^th minute added some late drama to the game, but Shields were able to hold on to three points.

Striker Padilla’s first goal was worth the wait. Crucially, his goal was the difference, securing three points for the Mariners.

“I’m glad that we got the win, three points is more important than my goal.” Said Padilla.

“At the time we looked like we could’ve scored six, I didn’t think mine would be the winning goal.”

Going into the half with a three-goal lead, nobody could’ve predicted the final score being so close.

“There was a time where we stopped playing our game. If we controlled the game like we did in the first half, they wouldn’t have had a chance”.