Waterhouse too hot for Tivoli
published:
Monday | January 21, 2008
Kwesi Mugisa, Staff Reporter
Waterhouse's Jonathan Williams (left) attempts to take possession of the ball while his teammate Vincent Earle (centre) and Tivoli's Sheldon Palmer look on in Cash Plus Premier League (CPPL) action at the Waterhouse Stadium yesterday. Waterhouse won 2-0. - photos by Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer
Former champions Waterhouse stopped surging league leaders Tivoli Gardens cold in their tracks, handing the West Kingston team a 2-0 loss in a heated Cash Plus Premier League (CPPL) fixture at the Waterhouse Stadium yesterday.
It was the Drewsland team's talisman, striker Kevin Lamey, who opened the scoring with a superb free kick in the 66th minute, and his partner upfront Jomo Gordon finished off the game on the heels of a sweeping counter-attacking move in the 77th minute, but Tivoli who were left fuming after the bruising encounter will be lamenting their missed opportunities.
"When you get your chances to score and you don't put them away and the other team puts theirs away, you'll end up on the losing side, that just how the game goes," explained a disappointed Tivoli coach Desmond Francis.
Disappointment
After a first half in which the West Kingston team dominated proceedings, there was quite a lot to be disappointed about, as wasteful shooting by strikers Horace Howell and Navian Boyd among others let the Drewsland team off the hook time and time again. Sneaking into the area, an unmarked Howell flashed across the penalty spot for a 25th-minute header but put the opportunity wide of the target. No more than four yards away from goal, Boyd managed to have his effort skim the top of the post, 10 minutes later before Howell flicked another header wide from a similar position in the 40th minute.
However, pushed by the industry of Vincent Earle from central midfield, Waterhouse turned the tables on their rivals in the second half and it was they who would begin to have some missed opportunities of their own. However, on one of his many driving runs from the heart of the pitch Earle was brought down just outside the area.
Lamey stepped up to curl a the free kick over the wall and away from Tivoli custodian Leon Gordon. Pressing for the equaliser, Tivoli would get caught out on the counter- attack and though the final ball put into the area by Williams lacked accuracy, a poorly cleared effort allowed Gordon to latch on to the opportunity to fire the ball wide of Gordon from 10 yards.
"We played within ourselves and our confidence out here was high today. We really showed what we were made of today," said Waterhouse coach Wayne Fairclough.
"We were chasing a bit in the first half but I told them to stay focused and disciplined and the opportunities would come."
