HPWC Under-9s went all the way to the final of the AC Milan Continental Cup tournament in Cleveland, Ohio, before seeing the game decided in dramatic fashion in a penalty shoot-out.It was the high point of an overseas trip which saw three young Hot Peppers’ teams compete in different age divisions in the competition.The Under-9s topped their group standing to advance to the semi-finals where they met the Cleveland Kickers. They won that game 6-4 to reach the final where their opponents were Ohio Premier Soccer Club who had been the only side to beat HPWC in the group stage.The Hot Peppers were on the wrong side of a 3-0 scoreline at half-time, but pulled back to take the lead 4-3. Ohio then equalised only for HPWC to regain their lead with three minutes to go. However, in the final minute of the game Ohio equalised to send the game to a penalties shoot-out, which the Ohio team won 4-3.Leading scorer for the tournament was Khiari Sharrieff-Hayward who hit the back of the net 16 times.The Hamilton Parish Under-12s finished second in their group of five to advance to the quarter-finals where they lost to Internationals Red 6-2. They finished seventh overall out of 21 teams in the division. Aaron Burgess was the leading goalscorer with eight, while Jahkari Furbert netted six.The Under-11s side had topped their group until the final group stage game where they lost and missed out on a chance to progress further in the tournament.The team ended up sixth in their age division, with Z’Chai Jennings and Razir Jones top scorers on four apiece.Coach Phillip Burgess was pleased overall with the HPWC players, and said he had seen a big improvement in their development from less than a year ago.He added: “This is our vision as we try to further their development in football. The players and I would like to thank our sponsors for making the trip possible the Hamilton Parish community, MarketPlace, Mr and Mrs Carr, The Seventh-day Adventist Church, Derrick Burgess, Mr V Furbert, MP Darius Tucker and Burgess Electrical Technology.”