Boys' Town cool Portmore United
published: Friday | February 29, 2008
Ainsley Walters, Staff Reporter
George Vernal controlled the midfield for Boys' Town in their 2-0 win over Portmore on Wednesday evening. - File
BOYS' Town coach Andrew Price, arguably the most animated man on the sidelines in the Cash Plus Premier League, had little to shout about on Wednesday night as his team took 10-man Portmore United to school in a savage display of all-out attack for a 2-0 win at Ferdie Neita Park.
Portmore started the day leading second-place Tivoli Gardens by a point but fell two behind after their rivals beat Seba United 2-1 at Jarrett Park to regain the lead they held earlier this season.
Price, whose team got goals from Denzil Watson in the seventh and Renae Lloyd in the 70th, said his side had come to shut down Portmore United's midfield and everything went according to plan.
"It's a much smaller field than we're used to at Collie Smith Drive, so we decided to shut down the areas and not allow Portmore to play," he said.
"We got an early goal and after they went a man down we decided to move the ball around. At half-time we realised we were in control and we got that excellent goal from Lloyd.
"I counted 15 passes before he scored," the Boys' Town coach pointed out.
Big victory
Boys' Town jumped to 38 points with their big victory, pulling level with Waterhouse, who played out a 1-1 draw with Arnett Gardens at the Tony Spaulding Sports Complex.
Waterhouse's point earned at Arnett kept them third, on goal difference, over fourth-place Boys' Town, who were sixth two rounds ago.
Portmore remained on 44, trailing leaders Tivoli on 46.
Coach Linval Dixon admitted Damian Williams' ninth-minute ejection hurt his team.
"It really set us back as Boys' Town are a running team," he remarked. "They really play with heart."
Boys' Town got their opening goal from Watson when he pounced on a high ball punched to his feet just inside the left of the box by goalie Dwayne Kerr.
Watson's shot caught Kerr in no-man's land and started a decline in Portmore's play as Williams was ejected two minutes later for stomping midfielder Michael Campbell in a touchline incident.
Lloyd netted a beauty in the 70th minute following an impressive build-up which ended with the midfielder beating Kerr at his near post, from outside the box, with a torrid shot which caught the Portmore goalie reacting late.
Portmore's need for more penetrating forwards was exposed as the pair of Anthony Bennett and Steven Morrissey was pulled in a 61st-minute double substitution by Dixon.
However, their replacements, Roen Nelson and Carlington Smith, had few chances as Boys' Town's midfield, led by George Vernal, ran rings around the homesters, whose best attempt was a header cleared off the line after 83 minutes.
