Leighton Elliott 1st & 2nd- Season   Oneil Taylor 1st - Season   Statan Clarke 2nd - Season   Richard Brown 1st - Season

06 JAN 2010 - King's Sports Centre, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

"Ebony and Ivory" is a 1982 number-one single by Paul McCartney, performed with Stevie Wonder. At the simplest level, the song is about the ebony and ivory keys on a piano, but also deals with integration and racial harmony on a deeper level. The title was inspired by McCartney hearing Spike Milligan say "black notes, white notes, and you need to play the two to make harmony folks!" 

It is also the name for the favorite choice of Dante, from the video game Devil May Cry. Dante's arsenal consists of firearms and melee weapons, including "Ebony and Ivory" a duo of handguns that never need to be reloaded. It is this combination of harmony and firepower, where Wednesday night’s Old Boys FC squad, comes in.

Although not always so diverse in the past, the team that lined up to feature against the old adversary of McAlpine, was to be a perfect of blend ebony and ivory combined with lethal ability. Low in numbers, but high in quality the team featured two making their debut in Oneil & Richard, two slightly injured in Daniel & Dominic, two towering figures in Leighton & Statan, and two other keys to victory in Wayne & Jess. A perfect illustration of how Ebony and Ivory live together in perfect harmony. 

Always with the potential to be a feisty affair, not helped by the fact that the OBs feature 3 McAlpine employees in their roster, this game was no different. McAlpine obviously came into the game with bad intentions, and those were made evident within the first few minutes, with several of the OBs having to pick themselves off the floor; the victims of rash tackles. But by now we all know that people are the same where ever you go. There is good and bad in everyone. 

A first half that saw 5 goals ensued, with the lead flip-flopping back and forth as both sides tried to gain control of the game. The OBs broke the deadlock, taking the lead through a debut goal from Oneil Taylor 5 minutes in. McAlpine immediately went on the offensive and replied 3 minutes later. Statan put the OBs ahead again soon after, with his second of the season, but once again McAlpine pulled back to level the score at 2-2. They then unfortunately, got the last word of the half, snatching a 3rd to minutes from the halftime whistle to go ahead 3-2.

By this point the verbal abuse coming from the McAlpine team had reached a fever pitch. Much like the critics who, following the massive chart success of “Ebony and Ivory”, later named it as the tenth worst song of all time, they berated and belittled the OBs, with much of their hostility aimed at Leighton - who they still seem quite aggrieved to have lost. It was even suggested that the OBs should just go home then as the game was over. But we learn to live. We learn to give each other what we need to survive. Together alive. This however would prove to be the catalyst for a dynamic second half that would seal the game and with it, the possibility of a first McAlpine victory over the Old Boys.

After an inspirational halftime talk from the gaffer, and a shared initiative to take this game by the horns, make a steak out of it and enjoy it with a delicious bottle of 1987 Opus One Red Blends Napa, a different Old Boys team emerged for the second half. All too content in the first half to stand off and let McAlpine play their game, the OBs dominated the second half with a display that was both physical and forceful but with a dash of invention and a deftness of touch. Simply put, they were outstanding. 

With not just the goal scorers to thank, the supporting cast too was outstanding in the air, strong in the tackles and impressive in possession. Wayne in goal thwarted numerous goal-bound shots and Dominic’s tireless running kept the opponent attack virtually non-existent. Jess excelled in a more defensive roll than usual and Daniel presented a constant thorn in the side of defenders of McAlpine, with surging runs and strong challenges. While the new invigorated OBs appeared industrious and inventive, McAlpine played with languid gait. This expanding gulf in quality became evident quickly and paid dividends with the object of McAlpine’s verbal assault, exacting his revenge with an assault of his own. 

With Statan controlling the play deep in the McAlpine half, he found a marauding Leighton, who dispatched a rocket into the McAlpine goal with extreme prejudice to once again level the scores. This was as close a McAlpine would get with the other debutant, Richard Brown regained the lead with a calm, calculated finish to a sweeping move that he started in the OBs defensive line. Leighton finished off the stellar comeback, doubling the advantage with a final effort 4 minutes before the final whistle for his second of the season. 

That final goal capped a performance of heart, determination and effort. You could definitely pity the man of the match adjudicators with the entire team presenting such compelling cases. However one could easily agree on the final decision with Leighton’s 2nd goal putting the finishing touches on a man of the match performance. With a potentially tricky encounter next week vs. the Security Centre, let’s hope that ebony and ivory can one against sit side by side and take the team to No. 1 on the charts.